cee bailey shields

manybikes

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I see a number of posts regarding the cracking of Cee Bailey windshields, is this a continuing problem or has the company rectified this? I am considering one of these or a laminar lip which I had on a PC 800 and worked pretty well. Thanks
 

Phil Tarman

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I've had three CeeBaileys and two of them have cracked. Next time I around I'll probably buy something different.
 

RedLdr1

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I had a +2 "flip" and did not have any issues...but several other folks have had problems though. I suspect, but do not know, that some of the cracking issues may be due to the adjustable windshield brackets being a slightly different size due to their alignment on some bikes. Folks like Phil, who has had a couple failures, may be at the edge of the factory tolerance and that is causing the cracking issue for that specific bike. That would explain why some folks never have a problem and others go through windshields. The good news is if it does crack Cee Bailey has been very good in handling the issue and getting a replacement out.
 
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Cee Bailey windshields are made of acrylic. According to the August issue of Motorcyclist , Acrylic cracks or shatters easily on impact compared to polycarbonate.
 

DirtFlier

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I believe the adjustable portion of the Vario can be purchased separately for fitting on other windshield, not just their own.
 

kenstone

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I have a CB +2 and the upper "curl" distorts the view.
After seeing the way they crack/come apart I am considering a sheild from National Cycle.
I've owned NC products before, and they all were good quility.
http://shop.nationalcycle.com/perl/cycle/N20002?
Not the best looking but I'm sure it's functional.
Ken
 
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I have about 12K miles on my Cee Bailey +4 with no issues, knock on wood. Also, several of the ST guys use them also. One thing about CB is they stand behind the product. Doug (Comanchee) had a rock crack his in half horizontally on his way to Spearfish a few weeks ago. When he called CB to see about buying a replacement and getting it sent to S-Fish for his ride home, they sent him a replacement overnight and did not charge him for the windshield or the cost of shipping it. The kicker is, it was not under warranty. He had a windshield by Thursday.

To me, the willingness of a manufacturer to stand behind their products and do what they did for Doug goes WAY beyond what anyone could expect. CB either is pretty proud of their products and willing to put up or shut up, or they are making crap and scrambling to preserve their reputation. I think it's the former.

Two other points need mentioning, unless it is in extreme inclement weather, you are suppose to look over a windshield, and so the distorted vision of the "flip" at top is essentially rendered moot. It is that flip that allows riders to lower the windshield and reduce the drag profile or the "sail" effect under windy conditions or when following/passing trucks.
Secondly, there is a tendency to over-tighten the fastening bolts on the windshield. I have also learned to lower the windshield when cleaning it to avoid placing too much counter-pressure on the mount when its in a slightly more vulnerable upright position.

I really like the tertiary effects of being able to ride with less shield raised and reduce the drag and turbulence. It's counter-intuitive to think that using a 4" longer shield than the OEM will allow you to lower it and improve handling, but it works for me.
Len
 
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kenstone

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I can understand how you could feel that way about the distortion, but there are times , moving at parking lot speeds, when I want to see what's right there in front of my wheel.
If it's a step, seem, pothole, or crack, I don't want that distortion adding a anomaly that's not there.
And if a pizza slice shaped shard goes thru your neck, good customer service isn't going to help a whole lot.
Watch this vid at full screen
http://nationalcycle.com/newsvideo/index.html#news5
jmo
 
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RedLdr1

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All curved windshields add some distortion, even the OEM windshield has distortion. Now add to that the distortion caused by a helmets face shield and it gets even more interesting. It is too bad that the manufactures can't get them to "cancel" each other...
 
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I am the know user of the laminar Lip. I rather like it. I mounted mine with the stick on Duo Locks and it has never even tried to come off. I have had it for 3+ years and nearly 61,000 miles of riding. I tend to be an over looker but on the times I need to look throough, there is no noticable distortion. The 'Lip does not seem to produce any new stresses on the stock screen.

If you look at the Laminar web site, the NT700 is mine.

Chuck
 
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I can understand how you could feel that way about the distortion, but there are times , moving at parking lot speeds, when I want to see what's right there in front of my wheel.
If it's a step, seem, pothole, or crack, I don't want that distortion adding a anomaly that's not there.
And if a pizza slice shaped shard goes thru your neck, good customer service isn't going to help a whole lot.
Watch this vid at full screen
http://nationalcycle.com/newsvideo/index.html#news5
jmo
Ah, but they stop short at applying the Mythbusters "awlaya test to destruction" approach. Where's the dynamite? :rolleyes:
 
OP
OP

manybikes

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thanks to everyone who responded so far..much appreciated
 
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I had the CB +6 on mine. IIRC it was on there for 16k of the 28k that I had on the bike when it was sold. It did not look like there was any stress cracks started.

Remember that this shield was larger than most on here, and was probably ridden at higher avg speeds ;) Interstates were usually at 85mph. Some of my back road trips hit over 100 for 15 to 30 min at a time. I-40 was horrible for truck traffic. When passing a truck I would notice the shield flexing at least 1" (the stock shield also flexed that much in those conditions). It also took some direct hits with some large marble size rocks on one trip.

Most of the time I rode with it in the middle position, sometimes in the 2nd from top or top and looking through the flip there was no distortion. Keep in mind the way these were made. CB used the same mold for all and just cut them to the height desired. So for the +6 almost all the extra height of the shield was in the 'flip'.

I also was not "kind" to it. At freeway plus speeds I would "slap" the shield to a lower position (when running over 90 there was much less drag with the shield all the way down and me 'tucked' :) ).

Would I buy another? Yes. If you are bothered by the cracks then do what I had planned. Make spring steel extensions to the mount brackets to better support the shield.

FWIW, this is one of the worst designed parts of the NT, the windshield brackets. The change in tilt of the screen when raising it is stupid, IMHO.

I would have liked to have tried one of the National screens, but, never had a need to replace mine before the bike was sold.

The Guzzi has a nice big screen on it and I added the Vario-X extension to increase the 'bubble'. Now I ride without any of the windstream hitting my hands, shoulders or the helmet. If all you want to do is move the airstream a couple of inches the Vario will work fine.
 

Warren

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Anyone had a stock windscreen crack or break ? Mine still seems to be ok and the CB+2 still sits in the box. Will probably put it on this winter to give me a little more coverage from the cold air blast
 
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FWIW, this is one of the worst designed parts of the NT, the windshield brackets. The change in tilt of the screen when raising it is stupid, IMHO.
I agree. I wanted the taller screen so that the brackets could be moved to a lower setting, allowing the screen to be less vertical. The further away from the rider and more vertical a screen is, the more turbulence the rider suffers.
 

kenstone

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Yeh, It would be interesting to see something like a rag doll with a bowling ball head, swung on a pendulum into the back of an acrylic shield, simulating me going over the bars with a full face helmet.
I'm sure that would be way too graphic, but I'd bet the jagged edges would tear up that doll(me).

Did you see the pic of the acrylic sheild verses the seagull at the Isle of Mann?


Ken
 
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We all have our experiences and preferences. As wrong and invalid as they are to some, to each their own.

+1 on the NT's windshield mounting brackets. they are weak. I'd be interested in seeing spring steel extensions you made Charlie, or was that just a suggestion to throw out there?
 
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Yeh, It would be interesting to see something like a rag doll with a bowling ball head, swung on a pendulum into the back of an acrylic shield, simulating me going over the bars with a full face helmet.
I'm sure that would be way too graphic, but I'd bet the jagged edges would tear up that doll(me).

Did you see the pic of the acrylic sheild verses the seagull at the Isle of Mann?


Ken
I did this, so you wouldn't have to :) I crashed a ST1300 with a Rifle windshield (which is acrylic, I believe). Sure enough, it shattered as I went through it leaving scary jagged points. All it did was poke a very small wound in one knee, dealt with by a single bandaid.
 
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We all have our experiences and preferences. As wrong and invalid as they are to some, to each their own.

+1 on the NT's windshield mounting brackets. they are weak. I'd be interested in seeing spring steel extensions you made Charlie, or was that just a suggestion to throw out there?
It was what I planned just bfore deciding to sell it. Just two flat steel plates about 10" long secured between the shield and the brackets. Spring to allow some flex but spreading the load out.
 
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