Just got my new 2013, need a bigger windscreen

[DeaninMilwaukee]

I've been lurking here for a few months and this forum is part of why I decided to pull the trigger on a new leftover pcx a few weeks ago. A local dealer gave me an outstanding out the door price ( tax, title, setup, and plates mounted before I left ) of $2700. It was fun watching the first 1/10th mile click over on the odometer as I left their parking lot.

I've had mine up in the 65 mph range a couple times already and realize I'm going to need a windscreen. I have read through all the info here on givi's ect, but had not seen National Cycle screens reviewed at all. There are three sizes and the shortest 12.75" one appeals to me. It appears to be a bit taller than the Givi 322, and does without the origami-like folding along the edges.

Here it is on Amazon : http://www.amazon.com/National-Cycle-Re ... a%3Apcx150

I am hoping someone has some experience with these and will chime in here.

[SECoda]

I have the Givi 322. Since the PCX is only a 150 and weighs about 286 lbs. the wind and gusts can have quite an effect at high speeds above say 40 mph. The mid Givi is kind of a compromise between some protection and minimum effect on speed/stability and from wind/gusts. If you plan on being primarily a slow city user or slower touring (maybe under 40 or so ) it becomes much less of an issue. The Givi edge protrusions are to blow air past the hand grips - especially in the winter. They are only so so on effectiveness on the mid but very effective on my Forza. The real tall windshields can act like a rudder or sail in the wind. I have the tall Givi on my Forza but it has enough weight and power to plow through pretty much anything reasonable and provides a higher level of protection. The average speed is higher with the Forza for me.

For my scenic cruising which is primarily 30-40 mph the mid is perfect on the PCX. I don't know much about that National. My Honda dealer pretty much uses all Givi accessories if Honda are not available including windshields on brand new bikes even though I bought the Givi aftermarket. Others mileage may vary.

[DeaninMilwaukee]

My primary use is commuting, which takes me on the freeway for about 5 miles each way. The speed limit is 55 so the pcx's 65 mph top speed is enough. As I already found out, the windblast at 60+ is just way too much, and with the temps in the 30's here right now its also mighty cold.

The National Cycle windscreens look great but I'm having no luck finding reviews for them other than the ones on the amazon link I gave. Those are positive but I always wonder if they were cherry picked by the seller.

Dean

[DeaninMilwaukee]

I should add I'm looking for the most wind protection I can get that won't slow the bike down.

[SECoda]

That was exactly my goal.

[sendler2112]

I have the Givi 322 and actually ended up trimming it down. There can be conplaints of increased noise from screens that move the wind blast over the top, up to the face. I trimmed mine to get the wind blast just to the collar bone. And also bent it back with a heat gun to make it more aero.
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It is now at the perfect height so that when I am on the highway I can scoot back on the seat (hump removed) and crouch down so I am looking just a few inches over the top. This achieves quite a few beneficial things. Adding the windshield actually makes the bike more aero so you will easily hit top speed. When you crouch forward with a windshield just under your eyes, there is a magic blow dryer effect above 40mph that makes any rain bead off of your face shield and blow straight down, leaving you with perfect vision without ever wiping. Sidewind and buffeting performance is also improved when you crouch forward behind a windshield since now the wind can't act on your upper body which would tend to blow you over to lean and steer the bike the same way as the wind. Since you are now not pulling on the handle bars you will experience the beautiful sensation of the front end geometry of the bike automatically correcting by leaning it's self into the wind. This is a very addicting feeling and you will find riding in wind to be more entertaining than calm days.
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Too bad the Givi's are so expensive. If I were to do it again I would start with the tall Givi in order to get the increased hand protection and then trim that to the optimum height. The Fabri also looks like a good starting point.
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http://www.carpimoto.it/EN/39041_2810-E ... CX-125.htm
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The Biondi looks nice also but these Euro screens are hard to find in the USA.
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http://www.amazon.co.uk/BIONDI-FULL-WIN ... B00698XOCS
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[kcpcx]

My dad has the tall Givi on his 2013, and seems to like it a lot better than how it came stock.

[DeaninMilwaukee]

The Fabri's hand protection looks good, but its overall height seems like it might be too much. Always hard to tell from pics alone.

Apparently they are a bigger company than I realized. This is a quote from their home page. :

National Cycle, Inc. is the world leader in windshield
manufacturing, with more distribution than any other
windshield company in the world. We are the OEM
supplier to BMW, Harley-Davidson, Honda, Kawasaki,
Polaris, Suzuki, Triumph, and Yamaha-- companies who
share our philosophy of quality design and manufacturing.

[SECoda]

That Nationals do resemble the Honda OEM windshields IMO. It was actually less expensive for the tall Honda OEM on my Forza than the Givi was.

[DeaninMilwaukee]

Ok I did some measuring, and realized the sizes that National cycle gives for each of the 3 screens, 12.75", 14.75" and 16.5", actually refer to the vertical height of the screen above the topmost edge of the " dashboard " which is also the top of the handlebar right at the grip ends.

I sat on my bike in a normal posture with a straightedge and a tape measure, and found that I could just see over the top of the 14.75 size. Because I can see over the top, and because this size has two different and favorable reviews, I'm thinking this one might be the best choice for me.

Here's the review comments:

1) Very Nice replacement windshield for the Honda PCX150 2013 model. I order it not knowing since no body has wrote a review but I am so glad I did. It looks better than expected and surely performs better than I thought it would. This model keeps off all wind even my head.

2) Easy installation. Looks great. Very effective wind barrier. Well worth the money.

I'm close to placing an order for the 14.75 size and would love to hear thoughts on this before I do.

Thanks,
Dean
http://www.amazon.com/National-Cycle-Re ... JYKXF5CK2H

[sendler2112]

The price is right. Maybe you could add a couple pieces for hand protection.

[Mel46]

My wife's bike had the Givi 322 mid size windshield on it for a short time before she complained about the wind hitting her in the face. She is only 5 feet tall. I added a section to it to help divert the wind and it helped, but we decided to just go ahead and buy the Givi tall windshield to replace the mid size one. Now she and i both have pcx 150's with the tall windshields on them and we go on the freeway a lot. They track well until we hit 60 to 65 mph. Then they feel light, but i don't falt the wind shield for that. They are just light bikes. The tall windshield works out well for us, but the choice has to be yours. If you opt for the National and it doesn't work out, you will just have to save up for a replacement or add a section above it if you are mechanically inclined.

[DeaninMilwaukee]

Well, I wouldn't really have to save up for a replacement, its more a matter of just trying to get the right one the first time.
Sendler, you are right about possibly adding hand protection. I have been looking around on that for a bit now trying to find separate handguards from a USA source, something like these: http://www.worldoftriumph.com/product.p ... and_guards would be perfect as they have good coverage and can be easily removed in hot summer months.

I think I'm going to go ahead and order the 14.75 tall version. If I can get it and install it before the snow shows up permanently for the winter, I will report back on how well or not so well it works. At least there will then be one real review online on the National Cycle windscreens that's not on the sellers amazon ad.

Thanks for all the feedback folks. This forum is really valuable for this sort of thing.

Dean

[DeaninMilwaukee]

Got it ordered, hopefully will show up in the next week or so. If it turns out that its too slippery to ride, I'll still get it installed and post pics.

I sure do hope I don't have to wait till spring to try it out!

Dean

[Mel46]

20141207_183827.jpg (26.58 KiB) Viewed 2369 times

Look what i finished tonight.. :-) Hope you can see it. Here is a picture of the scooter with them on.

20141207_183756.jpg (29.06 KiB) Viewed 2369 times

[Mel46]

http://m.instructables.com/id/Motorcycl ... ersion-21/
I followed these instructions.

[DeaninMilwaukee]

Cool link, thanks!

[DeaninMilwaukee]

I got home from work tonight and was surprised because the National Cycle windscreen was already here. Less than 48 hours from order to delivery coming UPS ground.

Of course I had to get it on the bike and take a ride. I have to thank whoever here it was that suggested to use a frosting knife to pop off the trim cover, it worked very well. The screen was a perfect fit, going on as easily as the stocker came off. I was finished in under 10 minutes.

It is only 30 degrees here tonight, but there is no ice so out I went to a deadending stretch of the expressway near my house where I was able to pin it and leave it for about 3 miles, a u turn at the end and 3 miles back the same way.

If I sit up straight, I can easily see over the top ( I'm 5'9" ) and get some wind noise at the top of my helmet. If I crouch down a tiny bit to where I'm just barely looking through the windscreen, it suddenly became completely quiet. No wind, no noise, no buffeting. My front was staying warm, ( although my back felt a draft ), and it was very comfortable. I topped it out both ways and got about 64mph one way and 63 coming back, about the same as I got in the past on this stretch with the stock screen. Not the most scientific method I know, but it does show the drag must at least be similar to stock.

I will post more riding impressions as I get more saddle time, but overall I'm pretty happy with this purchase.

I am trying to post pics but my images are too big.
Dean

[DeaninMilwaukee]

A picture cropped down to fit.

[buchaneer.nl]

I have the 16.50" National Cycle windscreen for my 2013 but have not installed it yet. I will wait till spring. Current temp here is -10 Celsius and roads are ice covered. I have only 85 kms on my bike.