Windbender Installation: Honda GL 1800 HP and ST

Installing and setting up the 1500 Windbender HP Like any High Performance equipment, getting it set up correctly is important to truly take advantage of its capabilities. Please read these instructions through to understand them before installing the Windbender high performance windshield.

To remove the windshield, release the mirror boot from the fairing, unplug the signal light connectors and remove the mirrors. (With minor dexterity, the mirror removal step can be skipped. Swing the mirror forward to give greater access to the hardware.) Pack a rag between the fairing and mirror below the bolt holding the windshield garnish on. This will keep from losing mounting hardware into the inner spaces of the fairing.

Using a 10 mm combination wrench, remove the left and right bolts, washers and rubber grommets that hold the windshield garnish to the windshield holding plate. Release the windshield garnish from its four grommets. Using a Phillips screwdriver, remove the fiber wind deflector located at the bottom of the holder plate. Remove the bolt holding down the lower portion of the holder plate with an 8 mm combination wrench. Remove the four Phillips setting screws and oval mounting plates holding the windshield on. Remove the two 5mm hex socket setting bolts holding the center and final oval holding plate. (Caution, do not remove the Phillips screw from the center holding plate until the windshield is removed.) Remove the windshield by sliding it up between the fairing and the holder plate. Transfer the center oval mounting plate hardware from the windshield to the Windbender base using a Phillips screwdriver.

Reinstall the lower half of the Windbender windshield reusing the existing hardware and reassembling in reverse order.

With the lower half adjusted down to the lowest setting, slide the top half of the windshield onto the bottom half. The top half of the windshield may need to be flexed a little flatter in order to accomplish this. Once the two windshield halves are mated up, install the two pins in the two brackets aligning the highest slots in the top windshield half. (The windshield is now in its lowest position.) Loosen the four 10x24x5/8 screws that hold the two brackets on the top half of the windshield. This allows the brackets to align with the bottom ones and center themselves. Tighten up the four screws. If excess rattling between the brackets is noticed after setup, they can be tightened up. Removing the top windshield, loosen the two bottom screws of the top mounting brackets and slide them away from each other and retighten. If further tightening is needed, follow the same procedure moving the top of the brackets toward each other.

Set Up Adjustments

Now that the windshield is mounted, it's time to set it up for your particular height and riding style.

1. With your motorcycle sitting in a parking lot, measure and place a marker 88' from the front tire in the direction you would be riding. (This is one second of travel at 60 mph.)
2. Sitting on your motorcycle in your natural riding posture (with at least one foot down so you don't tip over) look at the marker you placed at 88' in front of you. Adjust the windshield so that when looking at the marker, your line of site is just going across the top of the windshield. (Here's a tip, most of us tend to slouch a little after riding for awhile. Try to create as much of a true riding position as possible. Let the bike sit on its wheels, don't use the side or center stand.) The adjustment can be accomplished by either raising the windshield with the factory adjustment, moving the upper half by removing the pins and sliding it up to a different slot, and for fine tuning the height, there is an inch adjustment available by loosening the four screws on the top half and sliding it up. Your final setting can be accomplished by any combination of these adjustments.
3. After riding for awhile, you will more than likely make another final adjustment. The key to this set up is to have the 88' target somewhere in the middle range of your adjustment. Here's the reason, the goal is to have an unobstructed view over the top of the windshield from one to two seconds of travel distance. This distance increases at high speeds and decreases at low speeds. This necessitates the requirement to adjust the windshield up and down for different riding situations. For example, the rider can travel quite comfortable at 70 mph with the windshield set down at 88' site distance, but the co-rider who sits up higher, may need it raised to about the 130' site distance to be comfortable. At the other end, cutting curves on a secondary road at 50 mph will be more fun if the sight distance is down to 65' and wind isn't as much of a problem for the co-rider.