Hand wind deflectors

daler

daler

Joined
Feb 19, 2013
Messages
147
Location
Montana
Bike
2011 Black NT700
After my ride today I am thinking of installing some wind deflectors. If anyone has installed these did you go with the Hondaline or an aftermarket brand.
Thanks, Clint
 
Clint, I think some may have installed something like Barkbusters, but the Honda wind deflectors really do work well. They're aerodynamically ingenious, working like a slot on a wing, energizing the air flowing off the fairing and keeping that flowing smoothly till it's a couple of inches outboard of the edge of the fairing. I rode through torrential rain from San Diego, NM, nearly all the way to Albuquerque, about 120 miles, wearing my thin summer-weight gloves. The backs of the gloves did get wet but not so soaked that the whole glove was wet, and they dried fairly quickly. If I hadn't had the wind deflectors, my hands would have been soaked and frozen.
 
I have had the OEM wind deflectors, and heated grips from Mother Honda since day one The heated grips help prevent cramps in my hands, % years and over 100,000 miles on the GL1800 and the OEM grips never failed to do anything I ask of them.I don't have Lories dedicated bicycle toughness working for me,:shrug2: I also believe in Gerbing, or any other heated liners for top and bottom, Why be miserable when you don't have to be!!

Eldon
 
The Honda "knuckle deflectors" are amazing.
They don't look like much and they are expensive but they are very easy to fit, look like they have always been there when fitted and work extremely well. Before fitting them I suffered with cold hands on both the Deauville and the Varadero. The last straw was a 200 mile round trip to the North West starting early on an autumnal morning. My hands were freezing when I got there. I tracked some down at a local Honda dealer, they looked like they have been on the shelf for a while so I did a deal with them for that and a rubber Honda tank pad all in for ?100. Fitted them yesterday morning, took about 20 minutes and I'm no DIY expert. The instructions said not to use the bike for 48 hours because the glue takes that long to stick but I couldn't wait so, yesterday afternoon with the temperature dropping, I wore my summer gloves and out I went for a 90 mile trip into the Dales and back.

Amazing! There is barely any wind coming through and when you look at the deflectors you wonder how they manage it. My hands were toasty warm in summer gloves with dusk fast approaching doing up to 80 mph.

I also considered other options such as Barkbusters but, in all honesty, there does not appear to be anything made specifically for the Deauville so anything else would need to be modified either a little or a lot to get it to fit. As I said earlier, I am no DIY expert, so I opted for the Honda ones and I'm very pleased I did.

Hope this helps sway you one way or the other!


I
 
I must have very poor circulation in my hands. They are always cold. I have the Honda knuckle deflectors, electric grips and barkbuster type hand guards and with electric winter gloves my hands still get cold within my 30 minute commute. In the winter it does get well below freezing and when it gets below 20?F my hands will still get cold. Over the summer I bought a pair a handle bar muffs for ATV's that should help out.
 
+1 on the HondaLine wind deflectors. They were one of the first farkles I did. Since they are Honda, they fit and blend perfectly with the bike. As noted above they are very effective. I have gotten wet hands in HEAVY rain but I also have bar risers (1" up and 1" back) that change hand position markedly. Another plus is that no tools are needed to install them. (I tend to be allergic to tools)

Keep the shiny side up,

Chuck
 
I was a cheap one. I just got some cheap brush guards ($29) from Cycle Gear and installed them. Did a great job keeping anything fromhitting my hands. Bugs, rocks, rain, wind. I also had Oxford heated grips since they were half the price of Honda's.

I have since moved to heated gloves. They work well down to the 20's.

My next farkle fo the Honda would have been lowers to protect the feet. May have to get heated insoles for the Goose.
 
LOL, no, they are at the knees, or more precisely the ankles. The knees touch the valve covers, which aren't that hot. But, when at a stoplight I can warm my hands on the valve covers. ;)

I guess I need a beemer with the cylinders right in front of my feet :)
 
Bumping this with a long shot question: does anyone have a CAD file of the OEM wind deflectors discussed here? I'd like to 3Dprint them...
 
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Having had the Honda OEM ones on the bike, if you are installing Wind deflectors due to the cold, go for Barkbusters or similar as they work better at keeping the wind off your hands.
 
I have the OE wind deflectors on the NT and really like 'em. I have the Bark Busters on the Wee Strom and they are great but I think they would look a bit out of place on the NT. Kinda like mudder tires on a Miata.
:eek:
Mike
 
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