Former '01 GW. Stock OEM windshield. After rain-ride, in garage, my wet boot-sole slipped off the centerstand pad while putting bike up on c-stend. Bike leaned to the right, away from me, and over she went. Halfway, that is . . .
The right edge of windshield caught the edge of my workbench. 900+ lbs of motorcycly weight being supported by the right edge of windshield, bike at a radical lean angle but crash bars not in ground contact. Radical bend in shield. That sucker looked like it was almost folded in half . . .
For a millisecond or 2, I'm eyeballing that and waiting for the windshield to just explode like the Universal Big Bang. Never happened. Picked the bike back upright, and you'd never even know it happened.
That '01 went to Honda Heaven as a result of me getting literally French-Kissed in the face by an already-airborne Bambi midway theough a sweeper curve at 55 MPH. The windshield was one of the few Tupperware parts on the bike that DIDN'T break. Amazing stuff, that OEM Lexan.
As far as swirls, whorls, and scratches, on multiple GW OEM windshiields I've had excellent results via never using anything on them except PLEXUS spray polish-cleaner. Above & beyond how well it works, what I really like about Plexus is that just a little bit . just a very light mist spray - goes a long, long way.
I started using Plexus when I noted a helmet face shield manufacturer recommended using nothing but Plexus on the faceshield. Worked so well I've never used anything else since on anything clear "plastic" that I might hafta look through.
FWIW to any possible "newbies", the faceshield manufacturer also emphatically stated NEVER EVER use paper towels to clean or dry any windshield or faceshield. The nitrocellulose in any paper product will create swirl scratches itself. Recommendation was not to use anything except a soft terrycloth. And always clean-polish-wipe in the same linear direction - (either) up-down (or) side-to-side - but never both. And especially not in a circular fashion.
I see guys all the time using those high-tech "microfiber" cloths on their windshields. You know, the cloths that clean chrome & paint so nice 'cause they pick up so much surface diirt and trap./hold it in the microfiber pores. Might as well be playing tic-tac-toe on your windshield with sandpaper.
I guess I'm lucky, too, in that I'm height-challenged at 5'6" tall. Lowest position of stock OEM shield puts me looking just over the top of it, with very little wind buffeting at all. AKA "Just Perfect".
What a bummer - breaking a shield as a result of dropping off a lift jack. Hey, "look on the bright side". Better breaking your windshieed than your ANKLE.
Classic example of the cliche that "things (and the bike) could just as easily have gone the other way" - toward ya, instead of away from ya.
Safety Straps during Lift-Jacking are a loving Huggy-Bear to your Wing, as well as your own limbs, for sure !
I'm real glad it's only your Windshield and your Wallet that had to pay the price of that one.
Kudos and Congrats and Respect to anyone who freely self-admits a litle mistake in a public forum, thereby lending a very helpful Reminder that helps other learn or Relember things the "Easy Way", from someone else's experience, instead of the Hard Way, in their own experiennce.
Best Wishes & Good Luck in your hunt for a new windshield that makes ya happy.
