Wind turbulence on Road King
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1st Gear
Joined: Sep 2005
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Wind turbulence on Road King
I have a problem and I know I came to the right spot for an answer, so thanks in advance. This is my first windshield bike (2006 Road King standard) but for looks alone I like running without a windshield. Don't like the OEM windshield so I purchased a smoked short windshield hoping it would work and look decent at the same time. Well I took a run with the short windshield and it didn't help, in fact it made it somewhat worse because the turbulence was beating me up where as I would rather run without it. Question is...would installing lower deflectors help with this situation, and if they do, are the lower deflectors an easy take-off when I want to run without the windshield?
Road Captain
Joined: Jun 2005
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RE: Wind turbulence on Road King
I have an RK and also hate the look of a windshield and dont use one around town, however I always have one when I ride on the freeways for comfort. I have the short smoked one one like you (see pic in my gallery). But the short smoke works good for me because I'm short. As I sit on the bike, the windshield comes up to about nose, so I can just see over it. This deflects wind and accompanying turbulence above my head. I bet you are taller than me and have more of your head exposed over the shield than me.
I dont run with lowers, but I would think they would help only a minimal amount from the symptoms you are describing. I would try getting a larger smoked windshield from one of the inexpensive aftermarket companies and then cut it down to fit your height if necessary. There is a good "how to" for that on this forum.
~Matt
I dont run with lowers, but I would think they would help only a minimal amount from the symptoms you are describing. I would try getting a larger smoked windshield from one of the inexpensive aftermarket companies and then cut it down to fit your height if necessary. There is a good "how to" for that on this forum.
~Matt
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Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 96
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From:
RE: Wind turbulence on Road King
I have about 35,000 miles on my RKC, and agree with Matt. The effect of any windshield is to take the air that would otherwise be hitting you directly and divert around your body. That air is accelerated and compressed, so if it hits you, it's worse than no windshield at all -- exactly what you experienced. The only way to make a windshield/fairing work for you is if the diverted air is pushed up and out, away from your body. The combination fairing/windshield on the ElectraGlides and Road Glides are designed to start deflecting the air well out in front of the handlebars -- basically acting like a wedge. They get the air deflected higher with a shorter windshield because of the fairing design.
The windshield on the Road Kings, Heritage Softtail, et al, are more like a sheet of plywood, aerodynamically. The curvature HD builds into the OEM windshields manage to create laminar flow for a few inches beyond the edge of the shield, but beyond that, it's very turbulent for a good way. On the Road King, the top of the windshield needs to be pretty close to eye level to get the accelerated air over your head at highway speed.
This is one of the big tradeoffs to think about when selecting a bike. It's no accident that many folks who ride long distances prefer the batwing and lower fairings. They really do save you a beating. This RKC is my third Harley and 5th bike in 30 years. I've gone from chopper to RK as my riding mode has changed (from bar-hopping to touring). I'm pretty sure the next bike will be an ElectraGlide.
PL
The windshield on the Road Kings, Heritage Softtail, et al, are more like a sheet of plywood, aerodynamically. The curvature HD builds into the OEM windshields manage to create laminar flow for a few inches beyond the edge of the shield, but beyond that, it's very turbulent for a good way. On the Road King, the top of the windshield needs to be pretty close to eye level to get the accelerated air over your head at highway speed.
This is one of the big tradeoffs to think about when selecting a bike. It's no accident that many folks who ride long distances prefer the batwing and lower fairings. They really do save you a beating. This RKC is my third Harley and 5th bike in 30 years. I've gone from chopper to RK as my riding mode has changed (from bar-hopping to touring). I'm pretty sure the next bike will be an ElectraGlide.
PL
Road Captain
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 680
Likes: 1
From: Seattle area
RE: Wind turbulence on Road King
Today, I put the chrome HD lowers on the RK to see how they worked. I'm running the shorter detachable windscreen. The effect was amazing! Most of the turbulence was coming up from below -- I'd previously tried the Jacks flaps vest with moderate success, but the lowers virtually eliminated all turbulence to the chest and head area at all freeway speeds tested. They go on or off in about 5 minutes -- just 4 existing acorn nuts.
Extreme HDF Member
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 16,125
Likes: 24
From: Linden New Jersey
RE: Wind turbulence on Road King
ORIGINAL: Gunkholes
Today, I put the chrome HD lowers on the RK to see how they worked. I'm running the shorter detachable windscreen. The effect was amazing! Most of the turbulence was coming up from below --
Today, I put the chrome HD lowers on the RK to see how they worked. I'm running the shorter detachable windscreen. The effect was amazing! Most of the turbulence was coming up from below --
Very interesting. Something else I can speed money on
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Extreme HDF Member
Joined: Nov 2005
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From: Linden New Jersey
RE: Wind turbulence on Road King
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Road Captain
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 680
Likes: 1
From: Seattle area
RE: Wind turbulence on Road King
Those are the ones. This morning, while commuting, I noticed my helmet visor fogging on the freeway due to the 36 deg temps -- that never happened before due to the large amount of wind that used to come up from below the screen. I had to crack the visor until I got over 60 MPh! I'm sold on these puppies, at least until it gets warmer and I take the windscreen off.