I absolutely depend on my radar detector in my cars. It has become my best friend. I'm now shopping for a mount for the C14 and have narrowed my focus to the "Adjustable Windscreen Mount" from Legalspeeding.com. The main advantage it has for me is that it places the detector in my line of sight. However, I've noticed a distinct lack of discussion about this mount on the forum. Have guys tried it without success? Does it have a disadvantage?
If you ride a big, powerful bike then in all likelihood you will frequently violate our rather timid speed limits. The maximum speed limits are set for all of us but were designed for the drivers/riders with the least ability to drive or ride. I have been legally licensed to drive/ride for 56 years and doubt that I have ever driven or ridden for more than five minutes on any given journey without exceeding the speed limit. Prior to radar all one needed was sharp vision and your head on a swivel. The advent of radar changed that a bit. I have an Escort Passport and I never leave home without it. Granted, the Escort is a very expensive radar detector, but it is always at the top of any radar detector review I have ever seen. My hearing was seriously impaired some 35 years ago when an accident fractured my skull and an assortment of other bones. There is no way for me to hear the radar detector, even in a car, without the use of headphones or speakers in my helmet. Fortunately the folks at Escort have equipped their products with a headphone jack and a volume control. When driving my cars or truck I use a set of headphones that are lightweight, fit in the ear, allow one to hear just about as well as when not wearing them and are unobtrusive. For my helmet I use a pair of Iasus (
http://www.iasuslogistics.com/) helmet speakers that attach to the lining of the helmet with Velcro and very gently touch my ears. They go completely unnoticed until the radar detector awakens you by its detection of radar signals. They're somewhat expensive unless you compare their price to the price of a speeding ticket. They offer more than sufficient volume and when used to listen to music provide excellent sound quality. The only time they are ever removed from the helmet is on those occasions when I decide the helmet lining is getting funky and wash it. It's my opinion that relying on a visual alert is far less than ideal as those times when you receive a radar alert are those times when you're riding at such a speed that the demands of your concentration and your visual focus is on the road ahead rather than the peripheral area where your radar detector is located. You may see it the moment it begins its announcement that a cop is trying to get a reading on your velocity or you may see it too late or not at all. The in-helmet visual alert used by ZG is probably the best way to use your eyes to know of the radar's presence but for me this is not nearly as good as the audio alert that will tell you which radar band is being used and how close the source is without any visual distraction.
To mount the radar detector I use RAM mounts. (All pictured below) Whichever motorcycle, car or truck I'm using has a place for the radar detector to warm me that an officer of the law who is determined to save me from myself by extorting a considerable sum of my money in the form of a fine along with another considerable sum to be consumed by the increase in my insurance premium is trying to hone in on me with his radar unit. Double jeopardy in my opinion, but legal, as the establishment can do as it damn well pleases and it generally sides with increasing its wealth. There are times when I wish I lived in a truly free country rather than one that hypocritically proclaims to be one.
The first two pictures show my headphones for the car and for the helmet. The Iasus speakers are Velcro attached. The white circular item is the protective cover for the glue side of the female Velcro attachment with the male side is glued to the speaker. I don't use the female side as the male Velcro readily sticks to the helmet liner itself. The radar detector is mono while the speakers are stereo. I made this simple mono to stereo adapter to accommodate the different plugs. The picture shows how I siamesed the two positive connections of the plug to the single wire that connects to the single mono connection. The RAM mount is a flat base with a strong rare earth magnet that one normally connects to the bottom of the radar detector. I use my detector in all of my vehicles and didn't want to affix a magnet so I cut a piece of Lexan and attached it to the magnet and glued the vibration insulating rubber to it. The radar detector is then attached with a pair of rubber bands. One is sufficient but two add a bit of insurance to prevent the $450 Escort from being destroyed if the rubber band should break. I replace the rubber bands a couple times per year. I grant that the rubber bands are not visually appealing but I'm 70 years old and don't consider aesthetics as important as function. For those of you who are more fashion conscious a similarly sized black O-ring will do the job and look good doing so.
Hopefully this offering will broaden your scope of the dilemma you face and will assist you in reaching a satisfactory solution.
In case anyone is wondering about the strange looking handlebars. They're the excellent handlebar extenders produced by Phil Ham (philipintexas). They raise the position of the grips and move everything four inches to the rear. He also makes a three inch version. The grips retain their original distance from each other. This modification is the most significant I have made as it allows me to ride in comfort. An aching back seriously erodes the pleasure of riding such a nice bike. The stock position of the handlebars is probably perfect for an unfaired bike as the wind pushing against your chest would take the weight off your arms. But the C14 has a fairing and a windshield so the forward canted position demanded by the stock handle bar placement induces discomfort and in my case, pain.
