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Not my bike. I grabbed the image from another thread. The poster stated this was the replacement shield he received from LRS, after returning the first one for the exact same issue. There was another poster in the thread that also received the same "shrinkage" response from LRS when he complained about poor fitment. I'm not familiar with the manufacturing process at LRS, but how does a shield, that was originally cut to, let's say 22" wide, end up shrinking to 21"? Doesn't seem possible, but that's what customer service is saying.
Here's my 7" Freedom Shield. Fitment is perfect, and the polished edge is a nice touch.
Looks great. I have a, iirc, 7" windsplitter on mine, but measuring straight up (instead of just measuring the shield itself) measures a 4 3/4" height.....quite a difference. Yours looks more like what I'd imagine a 7" shield would look like.
Looks great. I have a, iirc, 7" windsplitter on mine, but measuring straight up (instead of just measuring the shield itself) measures a 4 3/4" height.....quite a difference. Yours looks more like what I'd imagine a 7" shield would look like.
I was somewhat confused at first on how to measure, vertical, or actual shield length. Different manufacturers, different methods, Freedom uses the later. My 7" measures 7" from top of shield to top of fairing, if I lay the tape on the shield. I could of went with a 10", and still easily looked over the top, but I thought that would take away the stealthy look of the Street Glide. Freedom claims the curve at the top mimics the airflow of a straight shield that is 2" taller, and I tend to agree. Prior to the 7", I had the 5" factory shield. Although the 7" didn't totally eliminate buffeting, and wind noise, I would estimate it reduced it by 90%, and I'm happy with that.
I just went thru the windshield process with my new to me 16 SGS. Here’s what I observed.
At 5’11” using the stock 4” HD windshield the “buffeting line” was right at my eye level. If I lowered my head just an inch or so there was no buffeting. At normal riding position, my glasses almost vibrated off my face at 60+ mph.
I wanted to stay with an OEM shield. So I tried a 7” HD Wind Splitter with the slimmer side-to-side profile and curved lip shape. I figured one size taller should raise the buffeting level right? Nope. I found that the Wind Splitter has a more swept back angle, and the buffeting height level is essentially the same as the 4” OEM style. Next, I tried the next size up 10” Wind Splitter. That cured the buffeting but I couldn’t comfortably see over the top of it during normal riding.
Finally, I tried the 7” OEM style windshield and did the trick. It raised the buffeting level above my head and I can easily see over it from a comfortable riding position.
My conclusion is that the buffeting level is affected not only by the height of the shield but also the swept angle of the glass. Hope this saves someone else some time in the process.
I just went thru the windshield process with my new to me 16 SGS. Heres what I observed.
At 511 using the stock 4 HD windshield the buffeting line was right at my eye level. If I lowered my head just an inch or so there was no buffeting. At normal riding position, my glasses almost vibrated off my face at 60+ mph.
I wanted to stay with an OEM shield. So I tried a 7 HD Wind Splitter with the slimmer side-to-side profile and curved lip shape. I figured one size taller should raise the buffeting level right? Nope. I found that the Wind Splitter has a more swept back angle, and the buffeting height level is essentially the same as the 4 OEM style. Next, I tried the next size up 10 Wind Splitter. That cured the buffeting but I couldnt comfortably see over the top of it during normal riding.
Finally, I tried the 7 OEM style windshield and did the trick. It raised the buffeting level above my head and I can easily see over it from a comfortable riding position.
My conclusion is that the buffeting level is affected not only by the height of the shield but also the swept angle of the glass. Hope this saves someone else some time in the process.
True, it seems they all do it differently. Clearview does it even weirder, imho. They want you to do a 50' line of sight type measurement. Not an easy task, but I did it and the two measurements did not fit one of their height combos. The technique makes sense, but since they don't fit into one of their 'boxes'.........lol
HD has several demos that you can try out. My '14 SG came with a 4". The buffeting drove me crazy. I went down to my local plexyglas dealer and purchased a piece of dark Lexan. Used the stock shield as a template for the bottom and top but raised it to 61/2". works great and it only cost $20 and an hours time to make..
HD has several demos that you can try out. My '14 SG came with a 4". The buffeting drove me crazy. I went down to my local plexyglas dealer and purchased a piece of dark Lexan. Used the stock shield as a template for the bottom and top but raised it to 61/2". works great and it only cost $20 and an hours time to make..
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