Yeah, this doesn't deal directly with Sportsters, but I imagine the 'end result' might be the same.

Yesterday I quite a bit of time riding a friends Honda 250 Rebel, as they need to sell it because of money problems, and I might buy it from them as it's a fun little bike, 'bullet proof', and will go anywhere. I might put on some on/off road type tires and use it for running around on some of the dirt and gravel roads we have around here.

Anyway, the Rebel has a detachable windshield and I decided to try some full throttle runs to see it's top speed with and without the windshield.

To keep the test on equal grounds, I rode the bike in the same riding position (didn't lean over the tank or anything to reduce wind deflection), and the results were quite interesting.

Without the windshield, and the wind hitting my body and torso, the top speed on a long, level, deserted strip of highway was 81 MPH.

With the windshield, same road, same conditions, the top speed was 86 MPH.

The 250 Rebel gets about 85 miles per gallon without the windshield mounted, so I imagine the mileage might be slightly higherusing the windshield,as theaerodynamics seem to be slightly better...

Kind of interesting....

Carry On......

 

Seems the opposite of what one would assume. Makes me want to go out and get a windshield. How high is it?

 

That's good data. I always suspected the smooth curvature of a windshield would be more aerodynamic than a blunt torso but never could verify it. That Rebel 250 was just the trick.

 

Not sure of the exact height, as I didn't measure it, but it 'appeared to be' about the same height as the detachable windshield I have on my FatBoy.

When sitting on the bike I can look over the top, but if I 'stoop down a bit' I can look through the windshield.

The windshield on my FatBoy is a replacement, 2" under windshield I got from Cee Bailey. It's 18 inches from the headlight cutout to the top, while the stock Harley unit was 20 inches. I like being about to look slightly over the windshield instead of looking through it while in my normal riding position.

 

I'd like to know the top speed without the windshield and crouched down over the tank, I would think it would be quite a bit quicker.

 

Was that the top speed indicated by the speedometer? If so, then japanese speedo's are horribly inaccurate.

 

Might be true, but it's probably consistently inaccurate, i.e. it might not have been doing 81 & 86, but perhaps the windshield run was indeed 5 mph faster than bare?

 

hmmm.. gives me something to compare in the spring - gas mileage with and without windscreen. Don't think the windscreen is coming off around here until at least May or June.....

 

A rebel will do 86?

 

Yep and without a cause apparently.