CalSci windscreen problem

[BWDenver]

I replaced my windscreen on my 2013 C14 with a Cal Sci screen a few weeks back.  And since then it has been nothing but problems.  The directions make it quite clear that 4 Ft Lb of torque is all you can put on these.

I went on a very rough patch of street and one of the parts flew off the bike.  When I got home the windscreen was actually cracked around the factory holes.  I stop drilled them and hopefully this will be ok, so long as I can get the hold down brackets to work.

The hold down brackets last about 30 miles then crack near the screw attaching points.  The last set was put on with 3.5 Ft Lb of torque, and lots of Lock Tight.

The problem is either the Kawasaki parts, or the Cal Sci windscreen as the holes are drilled in the Plex just slightly off from where the factory holes go.   The Kawasaki part has a pronounced Bow in it, and this might be contributing to the problem, or the windscreen is not as curved as the OEM part and the stress near the screw holes is causing the damage.

These things keep cracking.  Does anyone make a set of billet aluminum parts?  I’ve contacted a number of machine shops to get replacements made.

Any ideas or help would be appreciated.  I live in the Northern Virginia area in the US.

The real interesting thing is it is quieter without the windscreen then with it! 

But less fun in the rain…
Regards,

Bryan
Manassas VA

[Conrad]

I don't know what 's going on with your screen but I'll tell you about the issue that I had with my CalSci screen.

I have the tinted shorty and the screen is not as thick as the stock screen in the mounting hole area. I had to add some fiber washers to make up the difference in thickness. If you're not doing that on yours that may be part of the problem.

[jirod]

<Snip>
The hold down brackets last about 30 miles then crack near the screw attaching points.  The last set was put on with 3.5 Ft Lb of torque, and lots of Lock Tight.
<Snip>

The cracking problem is most likely caused by the Loctite.  Cyanoacrylates attack polycarbonate and other plastics and cause from hairline cracks to outright disintegration of the part. I destroyed a GPS mount by using Loctite.  I am sure you remembered to assemble the black rubbery gasket, so that should not be a factor. Other than Loctite and gasket, the shape of the windscreen and the thickness Conrad mentioned are the next things I would look at. You might have a claim against CalSci. Ride safe.

[B.D.F.]

First off, I think you should contact CalSci about this rather than looking into custom parts. There is most likely a problem or misunderstanding at the root of all of this and I think Mark and you could get to the bottom of it and solve the problem(s). After that, CalSci seems to have pretty good customer service and I am sure they will make some effort to satisfy you regarding this windshield.

As a side note, I have had a CalSci +6 on my bike since 2007 and for something like 90K miles without incident. One example is useless but there are a lot of CalSci windshields out there being used successfully so that would seem to indicate that yours may be a specific case that is unusual and absolutely solvable. IMO of course.

Brian

I replaced my windscreen on my 2013 C14 with a Cal Sci screen a few weeks back.  And since then it has been nothing but problems.  The directions make it quite clear that 4 Ft Lb of torque is all you can put on these.

I went on a very rough patch of street and one of the parts flew off the bike.  When I got home the windscreen was actually cracked around the factory holes.  I stop drilled them and hopefully this will be ok, so long as I can get the hold down brackets to work.

The hold down brackets last about 30 miles then crack near the screw attaching points.  The last set was put on with 3.5 Ft Lb of torque, and lots of Lock Tight.

The problem is either the Kawasaki parts, or the Cal Sci windscreen as the holes are drilled in the Plex just slightly off from where the factory holes go.   The Kawasaki part has a pronounced Bow in it, and this might be contributing to the problem, or the windscreen is not as curved as the OEM part and the stress near the screw holes is causing the damage.

These things keep cracking.  Does anyone make a set of billet aluminum parts?  I’ve contacted a number of machine shops to get replacements made.

Any ideas or help would be appreciated.  I live in the Northern Virginia area in the US.

The real interesting thing is it is quieter without the windscreen then with it! 

But less fun in the rain…
Regards,

Bryan
Manassas VA

[BWDenver]

The root cause of the problem is the Kawasaki windscreen has a compound curve, the C-14 CalSci windscreen is fairly flat and only curves left to right in the area of the mount. 

The Brackets for the OEM windscreen are also curved, to the tune of 0.112" bow in the middle.  That is what is causing the problem.  When the screws are torque down, all the force was being transmitted at the ends of the brackets near the screw holes.  They only lasted about 30 miles. 

An email from Mark indicated I'm not the only one who has had this issue with the C-14 windscreen.  But he was not help full in a fix.  His product is good, but it is not the same contours as the OEM screen.

So I spent a day thinking about it and remembered that Ansell Adams used his microwave to dry test prints.  So after some playing around with a Brocken part, 3 1/2 minutes at high and the polymer was sufficiently heated to reset the shape.  I pulled the parts out of the microwave, wife was thankfully away, and forced the re-bend before I locked it onto a piece of wood with recesses for the screw guides.  When they cooled they retained the nearly flat profile.

Not sure if anyone else riding a C-14 has this problem with aftermarket windscreens, but the fix is simple enough.  I just have to sand some wood fillers to take the bow out of the mounting points on the bile.  Popsicle sticks and a sander should work to remove the gaps on the bike side of the windscreen, and support the windscreen to prevent cracking.

See the additional shots.

Hope this can help other folks.

Bryan

[VirginiaJim]

Note to self, don't buy Calsci.

[jirod]

BWDenver, thanks for posting the failure cause and your clever fix. CalSci does say it fits fhe Concours and have links to posts singing the praises of their product and customer service. Now they admit they know customers are having trouble with their products. Let's see how long they stay in business.

[gPink]

My calsi fits as it should. Wouldn't mind seeing the email.

[Tremainiac]

You sure you weren't mounting the brackets upside down/ reversed. I seem to remember when I first mounted mine they fit oddly. That was it. They will fit, but the tension was wrong.
Assume they would have cracked down the road if I hadn't caught my mistake.

[Gsun]

Had my Cal Sci on for a couple of years. No problems. Take it off and put it on as well.

[RBX QB]

Had my Cal Sci on for a couple of years. No problems. Take it off and put it on as well.

+1... No issues with 2 different sizes.

[Conrad]

You sure you weren't mounting the brackets upside down/ reversed. I seem to remember when I first mounted mine they fit oddly. That was it. They will fit, but the tension was wrong.
Assume they would have cracked down the road if I hadn't caught my mistake.

If you'll take a look at the bottom side of the brackets you'll see that they are marked left and right with an arrow pointing to the front of the bike. The rubber gaskets mount accordingly. 

[Tremainiac]

Which side is left... 
Port and starboard make so much sense on any vehicle...
 

[just gone]

I had the CalSci Medium and had no install problems. It didn't solve my back pressure problem so I finally removed it.

 The OEM black plastic covers are easily mis-mounted so be sure to look at the insides of them to make sure you are doing it
correctly. The FWD arrow points forward or down towards the front fender if you prefer, and the left and right are relative to the direction of travel or rider's left and right when sitting on the bike. Participate in the free to try windshield exchange and you'll become an expert at installing windshields and at not losing the white nylon washer under the middle screw. 

Which side is left... 
Port and starboard make so much sense on any vehicle...
  

  errr...for landlubbers....same problem with different names.     

[maxtog]

Which side is left... 
Port and starboard make so much sense on any vehicle...

Nah.  On motor vehicles, direction reference is ALWAYS from the driver's seated/driving perspective.  Don't be throwing any of that freaking nautical stuff in here... next thing you know, you will want us to relate speed in knots or elevation in fathoms or something.

[B.D.F.]

Yes, from the driver's / operator's point of view when that device is being used. Fine for things like motorcycles, aircraft (even a helicopter flying backwards has the same left / right orientation), autos, dirigibles ad nauseum. The one that is most interesting and unusual I think is a backhoe: because the operators' seat spins 180 degrees, the right / left side can become somewhat confusing. For example, on each side of the machine, immediately behind the rear tires, are two outriggers that lift the back of the machine off the ground for digging. Now here is the interesting part: the right outrigger is located behind the left tire and vice- versa. And of course when swinging the boom (the entire backhoe actually) to the left, it gets closer to the right fender.... and so forth. Which generates a lot of "No, your other left!" when they are being worked on....

 

And remembering which side is which color and which nautical term is easy: the three short words go together: port, left, red. Green, starboard and right are on the other side.

Brian

Nah.  On motor vehicles, direction reference is ALWAYS from the driver's seated/driving perspective.  Don't be throwing any of that freaking nautical stuff in here... next thing you know, you will want us to relate speed in knots or elevation in fathoms or something.

[Conniesaki]

Nah.  On motor vehicles, direction reference is ALWAYS from the driver's seated/driving perspective.  Don't be throwing any of that freaking nautical stuff in here... next thing you know, you will want us to relate speed in knots or elevation in fathoms or something.

I just knew that the original port / starboard post was either you posting under an alias ... or, if not, you'd have to respond to it in some way

I just read where a person's 'success' is largely determined by how conscientious that person is. By my understanding of the word conscientious, you should be extremely successful, Max     

I patiently await correction as to my understanding of the word conscientious         

[B.D.F.]

Are you sure you spelled that correctly? I always though it was contentious.....

 

Brian

I just knew that the original port / starboard post was either you posting under an alias ... or, if not, you'd have to respond to it in some way

I just read where a person's 'success' is largely determined by how conscientious that person is. By my understanding of the word conscientious, you should be extremely successful, Max     

I patiently await correction as to my understanding of the word conscientious         

[maxtog]

I just knew that the original port / starboard post was either you posting under an alias ... or, if not, you'd have to respond to it in some way

Gotta keep it entertaining

[VirginiaJim]