It gave me a headache..

[jasperthehorse]

Hi all,

Im in the market to move over to the adventure bike class and naturally I am gravitating to the GS, it will be a 13MY if I go this route.
Took a ride on a Triple black yesterday and had a good hour on it on mixed roads.
Really, really like it but found the screen troubling. Im 6ft 1in tall and the buffetting was incredibly uncomfortable. The dealer said that the screen was the one from the GS adventure, I noticed the standard GS screen was smaller. Unfortunately it really spolied my ride and Im worried about this.
Ive ridden allsorts over the years including nakeds and I have never experienced anything like the buffeting, it was so bad it gave me a headache, even with my ear plugs in.

Otherwise Im mega impressed with the GS. I jumped back on my Daytona 675 after the ride and it felt tiny!!

I am a bit of a Triumph fan having owned several with no real problems and have to confess to looking at the 1200 Explorer but the weight is putting me off a bit.

Any comments on the screen thing please?

 

[Big Si]

Hi all,

Im in the market to move over to the adventure bike class and naturally I am gravitating to the GS, it will be a 13MY if I go this route.
Took a ride on a Triple black yesterday and had a good hour on it on mixed roads.
Really, really like it but found the screen troubling. Im 6ft 1in tall and the buffetting was incredibly uncomfortable. The dealer said that the screen was the one from the GS adventure, I noticed the standard GS screen was smaller. Unfortunately it really spolied my ride and Im worried about this.
Ive ridden allsorts over the years including nakeds and I have never experienced anything like the buffeting, it was so bad it gave me a headache, even with my ear plugs in.

Otherwise Im mega impressed with the GS. I jumped back on my Daytona 675 after the ride and it felt tiny!!

I am a bit of a Triumph fan having owned several with no real problems and have to confess to looking at the 1200 Explorer but the weight is putting me off a bit.

Any comments on the screen thing please?

The screen is manually adjustable as you probably know. I,ve got a 1200 GSA and found the buffeting uncomfortable but fitted a Touratech extender thingy and its now perfect

 

[yoxi675]

I came from a 675 and found the buffeting somewhat annoying. I found angling the screen lower worked for me but I'm a tad under 5'10.
The two bikes are worlds apart but equally fun to ride, even in poor weather

 

[jasperthehorse]

I came from a 675 and found the buffeting somewhat annoying. I found angling the screen lower worked for me but I'm a tad under 5'10.
The two bikes are worlds apart but equally fun to ride, even in poor weather

And theres the two words....

Poor Weather.

I do wonder if thats half the reason why the adventure class is growing so fast in the UK. Its no fun on those Pirelli Diablo Super corsas when the road gets shiny but I cant help but think that despite being 200kg + the GS will inspire confidence in the wet.

 

[jasperthehorse]

The screen is manually adjustable as you probably know. I,ve got a 1200 GSA and found the buffeting uncomfortable but fitted a Touratech extender thingy and its now perfect

So theres hope eh?

Really scared me to be honest. I found the noise incredible.

 

[Nutty]

I cant help but think that despite being 200kg + the GS will inspire confidence in the wet.

It does. I rode back from Devon on Monday in the howling rain, and my mate was on his Fazer, and I had to keep waiting for him

 

[Pip_UK]

Hi Jasper, a quick search of this site will reveal loads of multi-page threads on screens. The stock screen does adjust, but not by enough to give a sweet spot across the wide range of rider sizes! Consequently, aftermarket screens are a very popular and well-served mod on the GS: higher, lower, wider, more adjustable etc.

There are also cheaper options such as Tobinators (mounting kit which increases the range of adjustment of the stock screen), adjustable spoilers (which clamp to the top of the screen, effectively increasing its height) or even lopping a few inches off the screen with a bandsaw to drop the turbulence down to chest level, leaving your lid in clean airflow.

The seat height is adjustable on the GS, and this can make a difference in combination with screen adjustment, either dipping you under the worst of the turbulence or hoiking your head above it.

It's a solvable problem, but GS aeros are never going to be quite the same as a teardrop-shaped sportsbike. It's a very different riding experience, but sounds like you already appreciate a lot of what the GS has to offer.

 

[Nutty]

Just a thought, but the new watercooled GS will have an adjuster for the screen in the cockpit, so you'll be able to adjust the screen and find the correct position whilst on the move. Why didn't they do this years ago?

 

[red1]

I am a bit of a Triumph fan having owned several with no real problems and have to confess to looking at the 1200 Explorer but the weight is putting me off a bit.

I puzzle over all this weight thing. If weight was a major problem then we'd all buy the GS and not the GSA right?

Don't know the differences between Explorer, CrossDresser, etc. but the average GS has about 50kgs of touratwat/windymiller bling attached anyway so don't see the issue.

Weight only applies when you have to pick the bastard up so don't drop it and don't drop it off road (that's for the 0.002% of you that actually go over more than a grass verge).

If you are a rider you know that weight means nothing and that the important thing is balance so if the balance of the bike is right go for it! Triumph, Honda, BMW, whatever!

 

[Littledumptruck]

Why do BMW insist on putting flip up edges on all ther screens? Ive just cut the flip off my new to me 1150 and it's instantly better. Same as it is on my old 850 and the 1150 I had a few years back.
It's not perfect yet, I'll have to make adjustments to the mountings to get it laid flatter for that, like I did on my first 1150.
Got similar problem with the screen on my pan, just need to get that laid a bit flatter too. I know it just needs a little, I only have to sit up an inch or so and all goes quiet and still.

 

[Bendy toy]

Why do BMW insist on putting flip up edges on all ther screens? Ive just cut the flip off my new to me 1150 and it's instantly better. Same as it is on my old 850 and the 1150 I had a few years back.
It's not perfect yet, I'll have to make adjustments to the mountings to get it laid flatter for that, like I did on my first 1150.
Got similar problem with the screen on my pan, just need to get that laid a bit flatter too. I know it just needs a little, I only have to sit up an inch or so and all goes quiet and still.

+1

I'm still on a Diversion 900 but the original noisy and ridiculously small screen was hacked off a long time ago. Its now got the equally useless MRA screen mounted upside down on top of the original. The MRA bottom (now top) edge curves back towards the rider to smooth the airflow and the (now partly cut off) flip helps to scoop air under to reduce the low pressure space immediately behind the screen. It looks like I copied the Givi airflow but it was all down to trial & error.

 

[(RIP) Johno23]

I puzzle over all this weight thing. If weight was a major problem then we'd all buy the GS and not the GSA right?

Don't know the differences between Explorer, CrossDresser, etc. but the average GS has about 50kgs of touratwat/windymiller bling attached anyway so don't see the issue.

Weight only applies when you have to pick the bastard up so don't drop it and don't drop it off road (that's for the 0.002% of you that actually go over more than a grass verge).

If you are a rider you know that weight means nothing and that the important thing is balance so if the balance of the bike is right go for it! Triumph, Honda, BMW, whatever!

So effectively your saying a heavier bike makes no difference to handling

 

[red1]

So effectively your saying a heavier bike makes no difference to handling

In relation to the bikes being discussed here, yes. I'd say it has only a small effect, especially when you take into account the variables of the bike, rider, luggage and accessories.

We all know that when you stick on your panniers full of gear the handling changes. That's why manufacturers give you the option of adjusting your suspension, because even they know a 20 stone tosser has a different effect on the riding experience than a 10 stone lady. Isn't that obvious?

One of the biggest shocks I got was how well a Honda Goldwing 1800 handled. A half decent rider would keep up with a GS on sweepy A and B roads.

 

[red1]

As a PS to the above: I tested both a 1200GS and GSA before I chose the GSA. One of the reasons was I thought it handled better ........ even though it is heavier than the GS.

 

[BBB61]

One of the biggest shocks I got was how well a Honda Goldwing 1800 handled. A half decent rider would keep up with a GS on sweepy A and B roads.

Now that is funny! Do you honestly believe that??

 

[red1]

Now that is funny! Do you honestly believe that??

As I said, I was surprised how such a large bike handled. Not only do I believe it, I was riding it.

Don't be a fuckwit Bob, accept that there are other motorcycles out there apart from the GS that can go round corners.

 

[cookie]

I am gravitating to the GS, it will be a 13MY if I go this route...
....Any comments on the screen thing please?

am i missing something here? surely this is all academic as the 13MY is completely different, and no one outside bmw has ever ridden it. the screen may be perfect*


*bet won't be. the track record is not good.

 

[buster44]

Re: 2013 screen adjustment

I sat on the 2013 bike at the Intermot show and was very impressed. A BMW marketing man then asked me if I had any comments about the bike, so I queried why the screen adjuster is on the right hand side of the screen. He asked why this would matter, and when I suggested that the left side would be better as it's not your throttle hand, he told me that you should adjust the screen while stationary. Must admit it is very desirable, but I'm keeping my 10 year old GSA a good few years yet.

 

[Bendy toy]

One of the biggest shocks I got was how well a Honda Goldwing 1800 handled. A half decent rider would keep up with a GS on sweepy A and B roads.

The Goldwing is well known to handle far better than its weight suggests and 10x better than most owners will ever use.

 

[Bryn]

Never reached screen nirvana with a GS... with a bike about as aerodynamic as a brick you've got your work cut out