Madstad Windshield

[DanWill]

You have to realize this windshield is redirecting the airflow with air going up and behind shield also. It is not a big piece of plastic trying to push all the air aside.

Yeah, its a big piece of plastic AND a piece of metal trying to push all the air aside!!! Wait...

 

[fouzilogic]

That thing looks like a wind sail....lol Do they make one for my BOAT ?!?!?

lol.. jk.. It's of course just an opinion... But, I may have to be the one that disagrees on the look of this thing..

It's a pretty sore thumb, if you ask me. The stock one can be a little wind harsh, I just purchased one that's 4" (10cm) taller than the OEM. I wanted a little more wind protection, but not a NASA satellite, attached to my handlebars...lol.
I will let you know how it works out once I have it attached.

I would like to retain the orig look of the bike. What shield did you go with that is only 10 cm taller the. The OEM.

 

[etiainen]

So my madstad arrived today, just wondering if anyone knows how long this will take and what tools are required. I'm taking a ride down to Delaware to visit friends after work and I'm wondering whether it's worth attempting to put this on first.

 

[DanWill]

Not a difficult install. Take off old windshield, attach brackets to metal plate, attach metal plate to bike, attach windshield. Need allen heads (don't know the sizes) and a wrench or socket for the nut behind the brackets... Doesn't take long at all.

 

[Huck369]

Took me 15-20 minutes.....

 

[etiainen]

Thanks! I will head home and try this out. Then straight to the highway to test it.

 

[TomInOregon]

Has anybody had issues with this windshield on their motorcycle? I ask because mine came off this morning at 55 MPH and smacked me in the head on the way to the asphalt. Luckily nobody was behind me. The windshield, robo-brackets and mounting plate all came off as a unit. It worked for ~15 miles prior to its' unexpected departure. Preliminary investigation looks like the Honda threaded pieces that the Madstad bracket bolts went into came off of the bike. Now I'm out the price of the windshield and I didn't really get to see how well it works.

 

[Beemerphile]

Has anybody had issues with this windshield on their motorcycle? I ask because mine came off this morning at 55 MPH and smacked me in the head on the way to the asphalt. Luckily nobody was behind me. The windshield, robo-brackets and mounting plate all came off as a unit. It worked for ~15 miles prior to its' unexpected departure. Preliminary investigation looks like the Honda threaded pieces that the Madstad bracket bolts went into came off of the bike. Now I'm out the price of the windshield and I didn't really get to see how well it works.

Mark said they never had a problem with the Honda well-nuts holding it. Looks like they have now. I put mine in with Dale's nut plates. The windshield itself is still attached with breakaway fasteners so there is no need for two breakaway systems. The aluminum plate of the Madstad can safely be solidly mounted. Talk to them. You may not be out the windshield.

 

[TomInOregon]

I'm going to examine mine closer when I get off work. I am wondering if the well nuts weren't installed backwards from the factory and simply pulled out of the holes. If they are still on the mounting plate bolts and backward, I will know that they were mis-installed at Honda.


Edit: I just went out and looked and the plastic-looking pieces that go in the holes were put into the holes from the front of the motorcycle with the madstad mounting plate screwing into them on the front side. The wide piece that ties together the two tabs that go into the holes was on the front of the windshield bracket, not on the back. Of course it didn't hold up to the force of the wind hitting it. Is that the way they are all mounted by Honda, or was mine just "special"? They held up fine with the stock windshield for 300 and some miles before I switched the windshield.

 

[lamlamz]

Thanks for the pictures.. Looks like the stock well nut is not designed to hold up the extra weight and force caused by the wind. One could imagine that the stock screen is short and light weight. Even with the touring stock screen it came with a supporting bracket. I wonder what Madstad will have to say about this. I have yet to test drive mine now that it is mounted. I am worried.

 

[lamlamz]

So, has anyone had troubles, long or short term, using the Honda wellnuts with the Madstad?

Here is the first reported issue. http://nc700-forum.com/forum/nc700-mods/2211-madstad-windshield-11.html#post42268

 

[TomInOregon]

Thanks for the pictures.. Looks like the stock well nut is not designed to hold up the extra weight and force caused by the wind. One could imagine that the stock screen is short and light weight. Even with the touring stock screen it came with a supporting bracket. I wonder what Madstad will have to say about this. I have yet to test drive mine now that it is mounted. I am worried.

I would recommend that you check to make sure that the well nuts are on the backside of the windshield brackets on the motorcycle. What I mean is that the order should go: Madstad mounting bracket, Honda windshield brackets, then well nuts. In my case, the well nuts were between the Madstad mounting bracket and the Honda windshield brackets on the motorcycle, not on the backside of the Honda brackets, so they weren't actually holding the windshield onto the motorcycle. I don't know if they are all mounted that way, or if mine was assembled incorrectly. If they are all mounted that way (which I doubt), everybody needs to change them around immediately. With that said, I will be purchasing the metal well nuts for mine when I get a new screen. I don't trust the plastic with the amount of force they are subject to. $25 is a small amount of money to avoid being hit in the face with a windshield at 55 MPH (not to mention $150 for a replacement screen).

 

[mikeblanton]

I'm going to examine mine closer when I get off work. I am wondering if the well nuts weren't installed backwards from the factory and simply pulled out of the holes. If they are still on the mounting plate bolts and backward, I will know that they were mis-installed at Honda.


Edit: I just went out and looked and the plastic-looking pieces that go in the holes were put into the holes from the front of the motorcycle with the madstad mounting plate screwing into them on the front side. The wide piece that ties together the two tabs that go into the holes was on the front of the windshield bracket, not on the back. Of course it didn't hold up to the force of the wind hitting it. Is that the way they are all mounted by Honda, or was mine just "special"? They held up fine with the stock windshield for 300 and some miles before I switched the windshield.

View attachment 5071View attachment 5072View attachment 5073View attachment 5074

This is how mine were attached. Once I ordered my new windshield I pinged Dale to get a set of his nut plates. WAY better design.

 

[dog]

I'm going to examine mine closer when I get off work. I am wondering if the well nuts weren't installed backwards from the factory and simply pulled out of the holes. If they are still on the mounting plate bolts and backward, I will know that they were mis-installed at Honda.


Edit: I just went out and looked and the plastic-looking pieces that go in the holes were put into the holes from the front of the motorcycle with the madstad mounting plate screwing into them on the front side. The wide piece that ties together the two tabs that go into the holes was on the front of the windshield bracket, not on the back. Of course it didn't hold up to the force of the wind hitting it. Is that the way they are all mounted by Honda, or was mine just "special"? They held up fine with the stock windshield for 300 and some miles before I switched the windshield.

You have them on correctly, but I'm wondering if maybe they were torqued too tightly. I thought I read somewhere (the Madstad install instructions?) that the well nuts just need to be deformed to prevent them from being able to come through the holes. I too am using Dale's nut plates, but I rode around for quite a while with the OEM well nuts with no problems -- up to 85 mph on a couple of test runs and at 75 mph against a headwind for sustained periods. But i didn't have anywhere near that much thread showing. In any case, really sorry this happened to you and am glad you didn't get seriously injured.

 

[lamlamz]

TomInOregon, your setup is correct. When I took out the Madstad adapter + winshield ON it is HEAVY. I could feel it and could even guessed with the wind forcing it, these three elements (adapter + windshield + wind force) will give significant force and it is not secure. I just PM Dale for his nut plate and this will give it a solid mount.

Thanks again for sharing you have saved me and others for potential hazards!
dog, did you get the 5mm nut plate or 6mm?

 

[TomInOregon]

That's surprising that they are supposed to go that way. They fit in the holes just fine from the backside of the bracket and, with the bolt screwed into them, it would be nearly impossible for the windshield to come loose (unless the threads pulled out of the plastic). If mine were on correctly, then I guess I will chalk it up to poor engineering compounded by a combination of the bracket holes and well nuts both being at the outside edge of manufacturing tolerances. To be fair, it was fine with the stock short shield and it sounds like Honda supply different well nuts with the OEM taller shield, so, while the design could have been a bit more failsafe, it did work with the intended windload. Any aftermarket shield will put more of a load on the well nuts, so it makes sense to upgrade to the metal ones (and mount them on the backside of the bracket). It sucks that I had to be the one to find this out the hard way, but at least now we know. I hope this information helps someone else out there. I will email Madstad and let them know about my incident and recommend that they look at maybe including metal well nuts with their shields. Thank you all for your help and information!

 

[dog]

dog, did you get the 5mm nut plate or 6mm?

I re-used the OEM bolts which I believe are 5 mm. Dale can confirm that if you order his nut plates.

 

[Fuzzy]

Tom's experience confirms Honda's own analysis. Honda does not consider the stock mounting to be strong enough for a tall screen. They provide stronger mounts for their tall screen. It is a risky bet to install aftermarket tall screens with only stock mounts. Aftermarket vendors should provide something with their screens. Until they do Honda-bike-pro's nut plates are a good solution. I ordered my nut plates and Madstad same day. When my NC arrives I'm ready.

 

[Cagedodger]

There is a ridge on the wellnuts that must clear the metal mounts of the bike to make a secure connection. When reinstalling you have to push the well nuts through the plastic spacers then install that assembly. Then feel behind the metal frame mounts to see if the ridge has cleared before tightening. If the ridge doesn't clear then the well nut compresses inside the metal mount instead of on the backside. If it comppresses on the inside then it could pop out after 1 mile or 100.

With the Madstad or the Bruudt brackets the well nuts can still be pretty solid, much more so than bolt on acryllic shields that use the OEM well nuts.

I agree with the thought that the aftermarket providers should really offer a better mounting system. I'm glad that Hondabikepro offers us a solution but we shouldn't have to buy fix a fix.

 

[yticolev]

I think a nut plate adaptor is the best idea for safety, and said so when I bought the Madstad on this forum and to Mark. However, I have failed to do anything about it other than help Mark with measurements to assist in his plans to supply his own nut plates with the screen kits for the NC. I did make damn sure that I could visualize what I thought to be an appropriate deformation when tightening the existing well nuts, and I do believe that if properly installed that a problem is unlikely. A failure will not come from the windshield assembly completely coming off if the well nuts are properly installed, but detaching of the bottom well nuts that hold most of the wind forces at bay (the upper well nuts are mostly a lower stress fulcrum for wind forces) causing the windshield to tilt back. This is unlikely to cause an accident before stopping.

Of course it is better to remove all possibility of such an occurrence or improper installation with a solid mounting system.

I've only used the Madstad for about a thousand miles and the stock OEM well nuts have not failed. I do check them often as the assembly rattles a bit at low speed making me nervous. The flexibility of the well nuts causes the windshield to rock back and forth creating a rattle. This vanishes at speed when wind creates a steady single vector force against the lower well nuts.