[doug.crocker]

I purchased my 2018 Standard last August and rode with the Stock Short Shield for several months. Quite frankly the stock short shield provided me with good wind protection at the rider position but my passenger not so much.

I purchased the 20" F4 Customs with recurve late last Fall with cold weather coming on. Wanted more wind protection for myself in cold weather and was hoping for better protection at the passenger seat as well. The 20" F4 provides good wind protection at the rider position but only improves conditions at the passenger position when the shield is in the Full Up position. I prefer to look over the Shield.

After quite a bit of additional research, I ordered the 20" Slipstreamer Wraparound shield for comparison purposes. The Slipstreamer is 1-2" wider on each side depending on where you measure. At the top the Slipstreamer is wider as well. It's squared-off at the top as compared to the F4 being more rounded. Personally I like the squared-off look and think is suites the Angular Look of the new Goldwing. My best guess is that the Slipstreamer has about 15% more surface area compared to the F4. When mounted on the bike the Slipstreamer really does not look bigger, just different.

One thing I noticed in the Slipstreamer photo before ordering. It appeared the gap between the lower part of the shield and faring was a bit larger that stock. Sure enough, when mounted the bottom of the shield is about 1/2" higher than stock with the shield Full-Down. Looks to me like the Slipstreamer has a bigger bite to direct more air up the back side of the shield. So it will be interesting to see if this has an impact ??

My previous experience with a Madstad on my F6B (best shield I've ever had) was better to run a shorter shield adjusted up higher that a taller shield adjusted all the way down. It was pretty obvious to me you did not want to choke off too much air from coming under the Madstad shield.

Anyway, waiting for some decent weather here in South Central IL to compare the two. May take a few weeks but I'll be sure to share my thoughts.

 

[doug.crocker]

Slipstreamer Wraparound 20" installed. I'm 6'2", 34" inseam, sitting on a stock seat and I'm only looking over the top of the shield by 1-2 inches with the shield full down. I don't have to raise the shield much and the top is in my line of sight.

 

[BBQWing]

I’m curious to hear your findings about your new Slipstreamer windshield. I also have the 20” F4 windshield but would like a little more air under the shield, gets a little toasty here in Texas. The factory vent below the windshield leaves a little to be desired.

 

[INTHEWIND]

Slipstreamer Wraparound 20" installed. I'm 6'2", 34" inseam, sitting on a stock seat and I'm only looking over the top of the shield by 1-2 inches with the shield full down. I don't have to raise the shield much and the top is in my line of sight.

Looks good, are you planning to take off those winglets on the sides?
Are they being used at all?
Do the mirrors hit the shield?
Thanks :smile2:

 

[doug.crocker]

I’m curious to hear your findings about your new Slipstreamer windshield. I also have the 20” F4 windshield but would like a little more air under the shield, gets a little toasty here in Texas. The factory vent below the windshield leaves a little to be desired.

I did take the bike out Solo yesterday since we had one of our first 50 degree sunny days. It will probably be a month or so before I can do a proper back to back test ride and evaluation of each shield.

I mentioned earlier that the F4 offers good wind protection at the rider position while looking over the shield. My main motivation behind the Slipstreamer purchase was to see if better wind protection for the passenger could be achieved without having to raise the shield Full-Up as I have found to be the case with the F4.

With the Slipstreamer Full-Down I had light buffeting around my head (no helmet) at 75 mph on the Interstate. Raised the shield about an inch and just the sound of a light flutter similar to the Madstad on my previous 2013 F6B. The cockpit was calm at speed and I noticed the width of the shield was directing air just past the bar ends so my hands were in calm air.

My experience with Madstad was that a shorter shield raised a bit was more effective than a taller shield in the Full-Down position. Seemed like letting more air under the Madstad produced a calmer cockpit and may be the same thing with the 2018 Wing ?? Also have to note I'm riding the Standard and wind protection my be different on the Tour ??

Once the Slipstreamer was raised about an inch, wind protection remained consistent from that point to Full-Up at the rider position. My impressions of the F4 from the rider position were very similar. In order to improve wind protection at the passenger position the F4 had to be Full-Up which left me looking through the shield.

So the big question will be if my passenger notices an improvement without having to raise the Slipstreamer to the Full-Up position ??

If you are looking for air directed towards the cockpit for hot weather relief, then I find the Honda Upper Wind Deflectors effective at directing air inward.

 

[doug.crocker]

Looks good, are you planning to take off those winglets on the sides?
Are they being used at all?
Do the mirrors hit the shield?
Thanks :smile2:

The shield does not come anywhere close to contacting the mirrors. The Slipstreamer also has a bit less curvature compared to the F4 providing a little more clearance between the backside of the shield and the winglets.

I do plan to try the shield without the winglets. I want to get some passenger input before I do that to compare with and without. Since the shield extends well past the winglets, looks to me like the winglets are limiting the amount of air flowing under the shield when the shield is Full-Down. Removing the winglets may help ??

 

[hojo in SC]

Waiting for your passengers input.

 

[Mattinfairborn]

Thanks for sharing. I do have a question - the Slipstreamer directed air past the bar ends so your hands were in calm air. Did the F4 also get the wind off your hands?

I'll ride in pretty cool weather. Last bike was an ST1300 and the mirrors kept the wind off my hands and feet better than the 2018 Wing does. The Wing is a great bike. Picked it up at Russellville AR on November 9th, rode home by going a bit west to Ozark and then up the Pig Trail to Eureka Springs and across the northern part of AR then back the Fairborn. 921 miles, 22 hours over Saturday and Sunday less food and gas stops. Other than Saturday morning the temps ran low 30s to mid-40s. Temps on the Pig Trail Saturday morning November 10th got down into the upper teens. Not a particularly good time to find out ye olde hands are in the breeze.

 

[doug.crocker]

Thanks for sharing. I do have a question - the Slipstreamer directed air past the bar ends so your hands were in calm air. Did the F4 also get the wind off your hands?

My initial impression is that the Slipstreamer added width does keep more wind off my hands. To be fair to F4, I will have to find a day where I can compare each back to back. That may take a few week depending on my work schedule and weather conditions.

 

[hojo in SC]

Another question is what exactly bothered your passenger, was it at the helmet, the arms, legs, or all of the above?


I too like to look over the screen but the wing hasn't had an electronic adjustment so I may be tolerant of looking through the screen when it is freezing outside and if the screen fogs over, I can lower it.


I would almost see myself using the OEM screen during the summer so I can get the air flow, then switch to a wider/taller screen when it gets cold.


And finally, I still like the idea of the F4 scratch resistant feature, some bugs can really cause problems and I'm very careful with how I clean my screen.

 

[doug.crocker]

Another question is what exactly bothered your passenger, was it at the helmet, the arms, legs, or all of the above?


I too like to look over the screen but the wing hasn't had an electronic adjustment so I may be tolerant of looking through the screen when it is freezing outside and if the screen fogs over, I can lower it.


I would almost see myself using the OEM screen during the summer so I can get the air flow, then switch to a wider/taller screen when it gets cold.


And finally, I still like the idea of the F4 scratch resistant feature, some bugs can really cause problems and I'm very careful with how I clean my screen.

My passengers observation with the F4 Full-Up was a Big Reduction in Wind Noise at the passenger position compared to the stock Short Shield that comes with the GW Standard. On long rides Wind Noise can fatigue so I was looking to improve this area.

I thought it was interesting that as I raised the F4 in increments, my passenger noted no improvement in wind protection until the very last inch of adjustment up. She said, Just all of a sudden it got very calm at the passenger position. I would have thought the improvement would have been gradule as the shield was raised. Not the case however.

The scratch resistance is a Big Plus and did influence my decision to purchase the F4 in the first place..

 

[doug.crocker]

Looks good, are you planning to take off those winglets on the sides?
Are they being used at all?
Thanks :smile2:

Well I was not planning to remove the Winglets for a while. But because of my experience with Madstad on my F6B, I knew the Madstad Shield was most effective when letting as much air as possible flow under the shield. Looking at my 2018 with Winglets and the Slipstreamer installed it was obvious the Winglets were choking off air entering under the shield when the shield is Full-Down.

Since it's a bit time consuming to remove the Winglets, I decided to do it now rather than later when the weather is nice for riding. Photo 1: Slipstreamer installed with stock Winglets, Photo 2: Slipstreamer installed with stock Winglets removed, Photo 3: Back side of Slipstreamer installed with stock Winglets removed. The shield is in the Full-Down position in all 3 photos.

I mentioned earlier that on my first ride with the Slipstreamer, I was getting some wind buffeting around the head with the shield Full-Down. Raise the shield about an inch and the buffeting disappeared. Now that the Winglets are removed, it will be interesting to see if the same happens with the shield Full Down ??

 

[INTHEWIND]

Well I was not planning to remove the Winglets for a while. But because of my experience with Madstad on my F6B, I knew the Madstad Shield was most effective when letting as much air as possible flow under the shield. Looking at my 2018 with Winglets and the Slipstreamer installed it was obvious the Winglets were choking off air entering under the shield when the shield is Full-Down.

Since it's a bit time consuming to remove the Winglets, I decided to do it now rather than later when the weather is nice for riding. Photo 1: Slipstreamer installed with stock Winglets, Photo 2: Slipstreamer installed with stock Winglets removed, Photo 3: Back side of Slipstreamer installed with stock Winglets removed. The shield is in the Full-Down position in all 3 photos.

I mentioned earlier that on my first ride with the Slipstreamer, I was getting some wind buffeting around the head with the shield Full-Down. Raise the shield about an inch and the buffeting disappeared. Now that the Winglets are removed, it will be interesting to see if the same happens with the shield Full Down ??

I like that look.:smile2:

 

[doug.crocker]

I like that look.:smile2:

It's interesting, the bottom portion of the shield being Blacked-Out gives the illusion that the shield is somewhat smaller than it's actual size.

 

[INTHEWIND]

It's interesting, the bottom portion of the shield being Blacked-Out gives the illusion that the shield is somewhat smaller than it's actual size.

I agree.
You probably wont even notice that the winglets are gone when riding.:smile2:

 

[doug.crocker]

Today was sunny, calm and 45 degrees. With lower temps and low humidity the air is quite a bit more dense compared to hot and humid days. Wind Buffeting at interstate speeds is more noticeable on cool low humidity days. So I thought it would be a good day to compare the Slipstreamer Wraparound (approx 25" wide) to the F4 (approx 22" wide with recurve).

Both shields are 20" tall, I'm 6'2" with 34" inseam, 220 lbs, sitting on a Goldwing Standard stock seat. Sitting on the bike I'm looking over both shields by approx 3 inches in the Full-Down position. During these rides I wore a windproof skullcap (no helmet), unlined leather gloves and had the grip heat at 75%.

Started with the Slipstreamer Wraparound shield at approx 25 inches wide. Did a 12 mile stretch up and back on Interstate 55 which runs North & South. At highway speed with the shield Full-Down I was looking well over the shield and getting some light buffeting around my head. Raising the shield approx 1" eliminated the buffeting. Wind protection along my arms and shoulders was good. The shield seemed to push the wind out to the handlebar ends providing reasonably good protection to the hands. My hands remained warm and the skullcap I was wearing kept my head and ears warm.

Next up was the F4 shield at approx 22" wide. I repeated the same interstate loop as before. At highway speed with the shield Full-Down I was again looking well over the shield and getting some light buffeting around my head. As with the other shield, raising the F4 approx 1" eliminated the head buffeting. There was however noticeable buffeting around my shoulders and upper arm area compared to the previous ride. I have a collar Flap on my Klim jacket that fastens with Velcro that was not fastened on either ride. The unsecured flap was blowing around quite aggressively at times. I noted more wind on my hands and although I was not getting head buffeting, my head under the skull cap felt a bit cooler on this ride.

During each ride I adjusted each shield Full-Up and Full-Down several times. Each shield provided maximum wind protection when raised up approx 1-2 inches (I was still looking over the shield). As the shields were raised incrementally to Full-Up, wind protection in the rider cockpit remained unchanged.

During each ride I made sure to tuck in close to large trucks that tend to produce a lot of turbulent air. I have to say I thought the Slipstreamer provided noticeably better protection. Even in these turbulent conditions the loose collar on my coat never started slapping my cheek.

After my first ride with the Slipstreamer I remember thinking "The Slipstreamer does an OK Job". During the second ride with the F4 I remember thinking "The Slipstreamer really did a Pretty Good job". Riding with each shield Back to Back is quite revealing.

OK, so to be fair, I plan to repeat the Back to Back rides to see if the observations I have expressed here hold up for a second time? After that I will get some passenger input to see if the Slipstreamer can provide improved wind protection at the passenger position?

 

[Kenichi]

@doug.crocker thanks for your time and effort and of course sharing your reviews on both shields! Looking forward to the next report with great interest.

 

[hulkss]

what's involved in removing the winglets?

 

[doug.crocker]

@doug.crocker thanks for your time and effort and of course sharing your reviews on both shields! Looking forward to the next report with great interest.

It's interesting, I've had the F4 shield for a while and really didn't notice the Buffeting around my arms & shoulders until this Back to Back comparison. Not that the Side Buffeting of the F4 was so bad but rather there was virtually no Side Buffeting from the Slipstreamer. So there was simply a contrast that was noticeable.

Now I'm a big guy with broad shoulders so someone smaller may not feel the Side Buffeting I experienced ? I thought it was interesting that both shields had to be adjusted to the same height to be their most effective. It's suggested that the F4 recurve pushes the wind up higher compared to a standard straight shield.

The Slipstreamer is shaped more like a rectangle where the F4 curves gradually from the sides towards the top. The Slipstreamer is a bit wider at the bottom and quite a bit wider at the top due to differences in their respective shapes. This may explain why it seemed to me the Slipstreamer was providing a wider envelope of calm air ??

When my passenger first noted the wind noise at highway speed with the F4, I assumed the shield was not throwing the air up & over to clear her head. Now I'm thinking the wind noise being experienced by my passenger with the F4 might be from the Side Buffeting I felt around my arms and shoulders coming in from the sides and hitting her ??

Here in South Central Illinois it's been Cold and when it does start to warm it's been WINDY. Not good conditions for evaluating a windshield. For now, just waiting for a reasonably warm and calm day, may be a while.

 

[doug.crocker]

what's involved in removing the winglets?

It is a bit time consuming unfortunately. Each Winglet is attached with two screws which can be seen just under what Honda calls the Front Garnish Panel. To remove the Front Garnish you have to remove both mirrors and remove both faring side panels. Once the side panels are off you have access to the bolts that hold the Front Garnish, remove these and the Garnish can be removed. The Winglet screws will be exposed and can be removed.

I watched a couple of videos by Max which helped: