mtbbiker
Race Dog
- Joined
- Apr 17, 2009
- Messages
- 515
- Reaction score
- 0
- Location
- Centurion
- Bike
- Honda CRF-1000L Africa Twin
I currently own a DRZ 400 that I use for everyday commuting and the occasional off-road trip.
Well the first thing that you realize when traveling on the open roads is that the wind noise makes a "Naked" bike very, very uncomfortable. I for this reason decided that I had to get a windscreen. I searched the internet and found a few after market screens. I also found that the Dakar windscreen is quite popular as an aftermarket modification on bikes like the DRZ.
Well I decided that looks cool and I want one. I couldn't find one or the ones that I found were way too much for my budget :-\
I decided I will make it myself :
.
I bought Perspex sheet from Maizey's (www.maizey.co.za - You can find all the documentation regarding the various product's mechanical and thermal properties). I chose perspex because when you heat the sheet at 150°C for 3-5 min it becomes "plastic" and you can shape it into almost any form (Its like playing with clay). The only disadvantage with perspex is that it can crack and break easily, but its very in-expensive so you can always make a new one.
I did the following:
1. Borrowed a screen from a mate, traced the outline (See picture), Modified a bit to get rid of the "lip" just above the head light.
2. Cut the shape out of the sheet.
3. Heated the sheet in a kitchen oven till it became plastic, took it out and shaped it in the Dakar screen (my mold)
4. Bought some aluminum bar a Builders Warehouse that I then shaped to form the brackets of the screen.(picture)
5. Mounted the top bracket on the Handle bar and the bottom one on the hand guards. (See picture)
6. I also created a little dashboard, where I mounted the 12V socket to the upper bar. I also use this dashboard for my GPS's suction mount (Add a bit of Duck tape to make sure it stays there)
I am currently experimenting with polycarbonate sheet because of its mechanical properties, you can hit it with a hammer and it wont break. The only problem is that it cost twice as much as perspex and it is also not so easy to form it thermally.
PS: I also built a a carrier rack for my luggage (see picture)
Well the first thing that you realize when traveling on the open roads is that the wind noise makes a "Naked" bike very, very uncomfortable. I for this reason decided that I had to get a windscreen. I searched the internet and found a few after market screens. I also found that the Dakar windscreen is quite popular as an aftermarket modification on bikes like the DRZ.
Well I decided that looks cool and I want one. I couldn't find one or the ones that I found were way too much for my budget :-\
I decided I will make it myself :
.
I bought Perspex sheet from Maizey's (www.maizey.co.za - You can find all the documentation regarding the various product's mechanical and thermal properties). I chose perspex because when you heat the sheet at 150°C for 3-5 min it becomes "plastic" and you can shape it into almost any form (Its like playing with clay
). The only disadvantage with perspex is that it can crack and break easily, but its very in-expensive so you can always make a new one.I did the following:
1. Borrowed a screen from a mate, traced the outline (See picture), Modified a bit to get rid of the "lip" just above the head light.
2. Cut the shape out of the sheet.
3. Heated the sheet in a kitchen oven till it became plastic, took it out and shaped it in the Dakar screen (my mold)
4. Bought some aluminum bar a Builders Warehouse that I then shaped to form the brackets of the screen.(picture)
5. Mounted the top bracket on the Handle bar and the bottom one on the hand guards. (See picture)
6. I also created a little dashboard, where I mounted the 12V socket to the upper bar. I also use this dashboard for my GPS's suction mount (Add a bit of Duck tape to make sure it stays there)
I am currently experimenting with polycarbonate sheet because of its mechanical properties, you can hit it with a hammer and it wont break. The only problem is that it cost twice as much as perspex and it is also not so easy to form it thermally.
PS: I also built a a carrier rack for my luggage (see picture)
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