[gregsfc]

Be advised, the hardest part of mounting this screen is removing the nose of the bike to attach to the bike, and then reassembling the bike parts. There is already a thread in the How-to section on how to do this for the OEM tall screen that will suffice for the Madstad screen. I've focused this how-to on assembling the Madstad screen only.

I assembled all four major pieces of the screen all together before mounting to the bike, which worked fine, but one can wait to assemble the Madstad screen until after the mounting base is mounted to the bike. The following steps are the order in which I mounted the Madstad screen.

At the time of this post, only two after-market screens are available (that we know of) for the CTX700 fairing model. Since I'm one of the first owners of the Madstad screen, I'm going to try a How-To assembly of that screen.

The screen arrived to me without assembly instructions. It is very simple to put together and mount to the bike (it mounts just like the stock screen once it's put together), however, for those not very mechanically inclined, like myself, it might be helpful for some to explain what hardware goes where and what direction, which end goes up, etc.

Feel free to use my pictures if you get stuck figuring out what goes where and in what direction. It also helps to look at one or two of the pictures for the CTX700D screen at the Madstad website. The following link will help one get organized and oriented for the install.

CTX700D

The screen came in meticulously packaged. It includes the screen itself (mine is a 12", medium gray), a mounting base, two adjuster brackets with roller locks that mounts to the base and the screen, and a pack of hardware.

See picture titled Madstad hardware. Hardware packet includes: 4 short bolts, four washers that fit only the short bolts that have a finished side and a rough side, and four lock nuts (all used to mount the adjustment brackets to the mounting base); and 4 bolts that are longer than the other bolts, 4 washers that are rough on both sides, and four rubber washers that are all used to attach the adjuster brackets to the screen itself.

1. Reference: Picture--Hardware and Adjustment Brackets. Attach the adjuster brackets to the mounting base, on the concave side, using the uppermost and inner most holes on the mounting base with the adjuster rollers facing each other to the inside. With respect to the hardware, I ran the phillips head bolts through the finished side of the washers that fit only these bolts, then through the brackets, then through the base, and tightened the lock nuts on the inside or convex side of the base (the side that will face the rider).

2. Reference: Picture- Brackets on Base. Attach the screen to the other end of the adjuster brackets using the long bolts going through first rough washers, then the rubber washers, then the concave or outside of the screen, then the adjuster brackets, and tightened into the female threads on the adjuster brackets. The brackets already have rubber bumpers attached to them permanently so that both sides of the screen will contact rubber.

3. Reference: Picture-Madstad Screen Assembled.... Follow the instructions for removing the nose of the bike in the How-To section of the forum for installing the Honda OEM screen.

4. Attach the entire assembly to the bike. Make sure you keep the bolts and washers / spacers / protectors from the old screen for attaching onto the bike end or lower end of the windshield for mounting the Madstad screen. Thread and tighten the bolts with the two washers/spacers/protectors for each onto the bike. Do not over tighten. I tightened each one until snug and then just kept moving back around to each one until all were snug.

5. Reference: Picture-Madstad Screen Assembled Complete. Reattach the nose, and adjust height, gap, and angle to your riding height and give it a test run. Readjust if necessary.

Reference: Picture-Madstad Versus Short Stock Screen

Please feel free to correct my errors or to clarify anything that I've omitted or made confusing...

 

[wheels]

Gregsfc:

What is the vertical adjustment range in inches ?
What is your height and inseam ?

thanks

 

[wheels]

Just installed and tried out a 14" light gray screen. It doesn't win on style points but this is an excellent windscreen, tilt, height adjustments and no back pressure.
I am 5'7" in boots with a 29" inseam. Took it for a short test run 80mph just saw my top most, outer shoulders (jacket) moving a bit.

I am picky about windshields, if you are, then read on.

I moved the lower pivot (loose) bolts to the innermost position, then had to move the fixed (tight) bolts a tad back in the double cut hole. Why ?

I want the screen to be in the maximum downward position .... this stops any air burbles between the outside screen and fairing of the bike. Also, I adjust the tilt of the windscreen based upon the angle of the front forks. Viewed from the side, the top to bottom center of the windscreen at a neutral position is 'parallel' to the front forks. I prefer the windscreen to be just a bit steeper than the forks, at high speeds this applys downward pressure on the front tire/end for increased stability (no need for a front end damper).

I should know better (you can always cut but you can't add) and should/will have ordered the 16" instead of the 14". The 14", I had to raise it almost 2" which does work fine but I want to eliminate the lower outer corner air burbles. As an added benefit, having it all the way down looks a lot better.

Madstad emailed two installation PDFs, I assume they will place them on their website.

 

[toyota_tundra]

I ordered mine last week and it's supposed to arrive today. Madstad emailed me instructions on the removal of the OEM screen and the install of their screen. However, I'm not mechanically inclined, so I'm having a local shop do my install; they charging $60. I went to a Honda dealer and they wanted $90 an hour and they said they normally get 2.5 hours to do a windshield install - I said see ya!

 

[CEETEEX]

Stock shield will come off in 10 minutes tops if they know what they are doing. $60 is reasonable for a shop to do it if they work with you on adjustments.

 

[toyota_tundra]

Yes I think that was a reasonable price and from people that I know who go there consistently, say they do quality work. I'm sure I could get the screen off w/o any problems, I'm just not sure I could get the new one on.

 

[gregsfc]

I'm 5'8 with a 30.5 inseam. I'm short in the torso for my height. I've got the 12" in medium gray.

I don't know the total range of this screen height wise and angle wise, but it is quite significant from one end of the spectrum to another, especially when you start looking at all the possibilities. If one starts messing with the gap distance (gap between the screen and the mount; I'll refer to as "gap"), this reduces the maximum height at any given angle that is possible and increases how low you can go; increases how obtuse you can make the angle; and so, I would agree as it has been posted above that to go bigger than is listed at their website for any given height, because if the screen is ordered too tall at the largest gap position, it can be adjusted lower via bringing the screen inward making a smaller gap. I had not thought of varying the inward adjustment (top/tight versus bottom/lose) as wheels has done. Maybe this will help me refine the ride.

Right now, I've got the screen set at the closest gap top and bottom and at about 56 degree angle, and the height set about 3/4 of the way extended, which puts it about 15 1/3 inch height measuring from the ignition switch to the top/center of the screen. I did a lot of riding yesterday and found that I'm getting used to the original improvement and getting more picky, so now it's hard for me to know whether my gap adjustment has really hurt things, as it seems like it has, or whether I'm just riding in more wind, or if I've just gotten used to the lower noise level and now can't remember how loud it was before.

At any rate, at every setting I've tried at the most narrow gap top and bottome, I'm still getting a lot of noise in the top area of my helmet and some turbulence when I set it near the original Madstad setting. Raising the height does not seem to help. I messed around a lot yesterday with the angle on a windy day, and if I get anywhere from 58+ degrees (factory set) or more, I get some turbulence, but if I get down in the mid 50s, I have to keep raising the height adjustment just to keep the same height but the turbulence goes away. Whether or not I have it set with turbulence or not, I'm still getting about the same amount of overall noise, but I have to keep reminding myself that now I can still hear the transmission a little while cruising, I can hear the click when I shift, and I'm not going deaf when I crack the face shield open. This seems to be the case in all adjustment settings that I've tried.

The 12" screen arrives with the bracket bolts attached at the farthest position outward; giving it the gap factory set at the farthest position (screen distance from the mounting base). My screen arrived at the lowest height setting and (I think), at the nearly the most obtuse angle, which Madstad stated was 60 degrees. Since I did not have the instructions at the time, all I can say is that at the factory setting, it had an approximate 4" gap at the top of the mount and about a 3" gap at the bottom.

Going back from the first week, before I made a gap adjustment, the only thing I did in the beginning was increase the height slightly putting the height even with my upper lip. The angle, I'm assuming was about 60. I took my first ride and it seemed very quiet comparatively, and I noticed no turbulence. I then tried going up to the tip of my nose and noticed no improvement. I then went to the minimum height (just below my bottom lip) and noticed only slight degradation, so I settled on 3/4" higher than the minimum setting, which put the height at or about 15" from the ignition switch to the top/center of the screen. I did not mess with any angle adjustments during this time; since it was working well and I want to maximize mpg. I can't remember the angle setting from Madstad, but whatever it was, I left it alone. That is until I made a major mistake...

The number of possible adjustment combinations are mind boggling, so it can take a while to find the best adjustment, especially as wind conditions vary, and so it's hard to tell sometimes if a certain adjustment is better or worse. It arrived to me without instructions. I got an email stating that they realized they had not sent them and that they would send them to me on a certain day, but it didn't happen that day or that week. I finally got them after I requested them but not before I had gotten impatient and had already made a gap adjustment, which is a hardware adjustment, and lost some plastic washers that came from somewhere within the bracket where the gap adjustment hardware is located. Since I didn't have the instructions, I didn't know to look for the washers and so lost all but one. Even though I now have the instructions, they don't specifically state where the washers belong, so I've not replaced them. I can still adjust it, but it's not working as smoothly as it was designed making height adjustments. I sort of have to knock it up and down with the palm of my hand instead of pushing up and down. This makes the adjustments tougher, because when I knock it, I change the angle inadvertently.

My inclination is to believe that things were better with the largest gap set for me, except that it's the worst appearance wise, but I'm not for sure, if like I have stated, I've just simply accounted for the improvement and have gotten more picky, or if in fact, there is a difference in sound level.

This may take a while to figure out, but I think my next step is to get some more plastic washers, figure out where they go, and adjust it like wheels has done as he or she certainly has more experience than me with windshields.

 

[gregsfc]

Yes I think that was a reasonable price and from people that I know who go there consistently, say they do quality work. I'm sure I could get the screen off w/o any problems, I'm just not sure I could get the new one on.

The only issue for me with assembly and installation without the instructions were with respect to the popits on the bike. I had never dealt with this type of hardware before, so I had trouble pulling them out without loosing the handle on them. One has to sort of know or have experience with how much tension to put on the center button removing them and then how much tension to put on the back side in order to catch them coming out the front end when, and to handle them with care when reinstalling them. As is often the case in such circumstances, I over did it with respect to a couple of the popits and pushed them out too hard from the back side, sending them air borne and down inside the fairing area. But as far as the instructions, it's pretty easy to follow. Just be careful and keep your hand cupped in order to catch the popit.

The instruction manual is a little better than the "how-to" on this forum with respect to explaining the popits and pictures detailing how they are constructed and how they work for novices like me, but of course, I didn't have them.

 

[toyota_tundra]

OK, all you cycle experts, question from a newbie. I got my Madstad windshield installed today. What a big difference, I think it's too good, I'll have to watch my speed now b/c I'm to 60 mph before you know it (and that's not even on the highway).

I did get on the highway and got it up to 80 mph and this thing is great! I do have a question though? I guess I'm supposed to look over the windshield and not through it, right? So how much and I supposed to see over the top, or is it just a matter of preference?

 

[vulcan]

Hey TT....there is no magic here.
Some big cruiser windshields are so tall you look thru them.
Some folks can't stand that. Looking over is common on a lot of windshields but the amount isn't cast in concrete.
Is it comfortable for you? That's the real issue.

 

[Old Tom]

I guess I'm supposed to look over the windshield and not through it, right?

Just imagine you're travelling at a normal speed for the conditions. Then imagine another vehicle unexpectedly splashes mud up onto your windscreen. It could be anything that unexpectedly clouds the screen and spoils your vision. You can quickly flick open your visor, but you can't reach forward and clean the screen.

 

[vulcan]

Old Tom,
Yeah, that's possible, especially if you are riding on dirt roads.
But....I have thousands of miles on both the Nomad and the Victory. Both were cruisers with windshields you looked thru.
Even riding in the rain for many miles.....never a problem, especially with mud.
I prefer looking over a windshield but millions of riders on cruisers look thru them.
Not an issue.

 

[gregsfc]

I got some replacement plastic washers yesterday where I had lost all but one; took off my windshield and roller bracket assembly, leaving the mounting base attached to the bike, which is the way I recommend doing this if anyone decides to move to other mounting points. The first time I tried adjusting with everything mounted, and it is just too easy to drop hardware, and if you do that while it's mounted, the hardware slides down the faring into no mans land, whereas if you take it inside or to a work bench, you can see where the hardware goes if it drops. Additionally, those plastic washers just seem to come out on there own. I don't even know where they are supposed to be, but I put them on each side of the height-adjusting grooves where the lower bolts go. That was the only thing that made sense to me.

I moved the upper (tight bolts), and the bottom (loose bolts) to the middle holes. The upper adjustment has two slot choices in the middle hole. I put it in the outer slot. I tried doing it the way another member on here has done it, moving the lower bolts farther inside than the upper bolts but that did not allow me to have less than a 65 degree angle, so I've settled for the middle as of now. I have not given it a test ride, but I'll keep everyone informed.

My installation is not right. It will not height adjust without me hammering on it with my hand even with the plastic washers back on. I looked at the pictures on line, and the manual. It looks like that the part of the bracket that stays attached to the windshield goes to the outside on the pictures, but when I put it back on this way, the right side seems right, but the left side is separated from the roller giving lots of tension and not allowing for easy height adjustments. The pictures I looked at shows only the rights side, so maybe the right side goes to the outside, and the left side to the inside. Maybe I'll try this later. The manual is of little help. It's not our brackets; it's the brackets for another windshield. I may have to send it back to Madstad to get it put back together correctly.

 

[wheels]

Plastic washers on the outside of w/s, rubber washers on the inside of w/s.
You can find these at a real hardware store.
I would suggest glueing the rubber washers to the wellnuts.

You only need to tighten the screws until the wellnut/rubber bulges, this will hold the w/s.

Look at the orientation of things before moving the bolts (ahh , too late).
I set mine up in a more upright position than the default from Madstad.
In order to to this I moved the fixed bolts back (double cut holes).
Note: the fixed bolt screw head will interfere with the sliders (up/down) if you don't move them.

 

[Patefermente]

Installed Madstad yesterday

Yesterday I braved the cold in my unheated garage to install the Madstad windshield on my CTX700D. Everything went pretty smooth, except for releasing the front of the fairing to expose the bolts for the old windshield.
The fairing is secured with four friction clips, and when gently trying to release them, I snapped the top two clips. The temperature was hovering at about 20, so I figured that they were stiff and a bit brittle. I worked steadily and gently, but when the cover suddenly released, I saw little pieces of white plastic shoot across the garage..., "****"! On my hands and knees, I retrieved them and went inside to look them up on the parts diagrams. They're only $0.49 each, but shipping would be about ten bucks, "****"!
I finished the job, figuring that the bolts and pop rivets do the real work of holding that cover in place. I'll get those clips some time in the future... The attached photos show the unadjusted shield in place. I took a quick spin yesterday and found that it works to reduce wind and wind noise, but needs to be adjusted correctly.

-- Patefermente

 

[toyota_tundra]

LOL - too funny. Kinda like the plumber who came out a few years ago to fix my outside faucet that wouldn't shut off. The part itself was on 50 cents, but I was charged $65 for labor. Glad you got it installed. I paid a shop $60 to install mine. Love it! Makes a huge difference when you get it adjusted right.

 

[gregsfc]

Plastic washers on the outside of w/s, rubber washers on the inside of w/s.
You can find these at a real hardware store.
I would suggest glueing the rubber washers to the wellnuts.

You only need to tighten the screws until the wellnut/rubber bulges, this will hold the w/s.

Look at the orientation of things before moving the bolts (ahh , too late).
I set mine up in a more upright position than the default from Madstad.
In order to to this I moved the fixed bolts back (double cut holes).
Note: the fixed bolt screw head will interfere with the sliders (up/down) if you don't move them.

Thanks. I got mine back together in a way that works like it should; put replacement plastic washers on inside and out, which may explain why I keep losing lock nuts. Anyway, all of this hardware is easily replaceable. I've got at a much more obtuse angle than your picture. I was getting turbulence even @ 60 degrees but didn't try going more acute thant that. I'm at 55 degrees which is almost as slanted as the fairing, but in doing so, the height has to be near the top of the range.

 

[wheels]

The 16" is the perfect fit for me, 5'7", 29" inseam, just looking over the top, angle slightly steeper than the front forks, w/s down to the bottom. Actually, the fairing model Madstad looks a lot better (especially with the w/s down low) than the unfaired version.

 

[gregsfc]

The 16" is the perfect fit for me, 5'7", 29" inseam, just looking over the top, angle slightly steeper than the front forks, w/s down to the bottom. Actually, the fairing model Madstad looks a lot better (especially with the w/s down low) than the unfaired version.

I wish I had ordered the 14" or 16", but I was going by the info on the Madstad website that stated that the 12" was for 5'8" and taller, which means, going by that information, they don't have a screen for anyone under 5'8. But in reality, due to the many different configurations that can be done with this screen, I could have used a larger 16" screen and made it low enough for looking over the top and yet get better wind protection.

Live and learn...

 

[toyota_tundra]

I wish I had ordered the 14" or 16", but I was going by the info on the Madstad website that stated that the 12" was for 5'8" and taller, which means, going by that information, they don't have a screen for anyone under 5'8. But in reality, due to the many different configurations that can be done with this screen, I could have used a larger 16" screen and made it low enough for looking over the top and yet get better wind protection.

Live and learn...

I believe they will let you return it for a taller one. I ordered the 16" screen and love it.