Evolution II windscreen

[bjt]

I got my Evolution II installed this morning. Well, actually I got it installed this afternoon. I started it in the morning but I had one of the windscreen screws, with a flat washer and a rubber washer on it, fall off the dash, go through the steering column hole and land somewhere in the innards of the Spyder. Just looking for the screw through the steering column hole and through various holes, nooks, etc. at other points on the Spyder yielded no results so I started removing panels, one at a time, and continued the search. The longer I looked and surmised where it could have bounced to, lodged, fell into, rolled down, etc. the more determined I got to find that screw.

**** WARNING ****
If you are installing your new Evolution II windscreen and your Spyder looks like this, something has probably gone very wrong.

Now I really wanted to post this whole experience on here and get around to the point where I say, "and it was in the last place I looked." but that wasn't to be. The missing screw whooped me. I figured the Spyder must have ate it or one of lamonster's coons slipped into my garage and made off with it. I resigned myself to putting the Spyder back together, putting on the stock windscreen with three screws and going to the hardware store to buy another screw. So I started slowly putting all the stuff I took off back on, hoping I got all the screws, clips, sensors and wiring that I removed back in the right places. After I put each panel back on, I gave one more quick check for the screw in each area. What can I say? Persistence pays off. I found the little bugger lodged between some module and the frame.

It looks pretty noticeable in the picture but I had pulled it up a little by the time I took the picture. It was down a little deeper, the flat washer was not visible at all and the screw was at the perfect angle so when I looked at it, all I saw was the dark rubber washer that blended in with its surroundings.

So, after my three hour Evolution II install, my Spyder looks like this.

And this is my view, eye level, from seated on the spyder. In my normal seated position, I am looking through the top third of the Evo II. BTW, I'm 6'4" tall. If I was 6'7" or so, I would be looking over the top of the Evo II.

I'm not geeked about the looks but I bought it strictly for higher speed riding comfort on long trips. I took it for a test ride and it performed wonderfully. I constantly caught myself going 20 MPH over the speed limit as I was used to getting the "wind in my chest" speed feedback to help gauge my speed. With this shield, I had no wind in my chest, in my face or on my helmet. I sat as tall as I could to look over the Evo II and still had no wind buffeting my helmet. What I did notice was a bit of air pressure on my back, pushing me forward, as my speed got up around 50 or 60 MPH. The back pressure increased as my speed increased. I'm not sure if Marcel's recommended tweaking of the upper lip of the screen would change or eliminate this effect. It's not too bad and I think I might get used to it after a while but it is there, and it is a little discombobulating at first. I will say, it is much, much better than the buffeting the front of my body took when riding at highway speeds with the stock windscreen.

After riding around town with it this evening, I appreciate how smooth it makes the ride feel in comparison to how it felt riding with the stock windscreen. It is quieter too and I can ride in complete comfort with my face shield up and no bugs or debris hit my face.

 

[pphantom538]

great to here. I also just received my clear EVO 2 but the bike's not here yet - boohoo! Great pics and thanks for the ride report.

 

[Danimal]

bjt..... so how does it perform at hwy speeds..... 80+ ???

Is this the 31" ???

Have you been using the vents?

How is Debs working out? I know she originally had the same head-popping sound that I do.

Marcel is making a new unit for me....28" tall instead of the 24" that I have now.

Can't wait to try it out!

 

[bjt]

bjt..... so how does it perform at hwy speeds..... 80+ ???

It is good at 80+ so far. I haven't been on the expressway with it yet but on the backroads, I was doing 80 - 85 MPH without even realizing it. ;D The ride was so smooth and a lot quieter.

Is this the 31" ???

30, 31, 32, something like that. It is very large.

Have you been using the vents?

I tried manipulating the vents but I didn't notice any difference in air movement in front of me no matter how I twisted and turned the vents. When my hand was right up to them, I could feel air coming through them. It was pretty cool out today and I had my liner in my riding jacket so maybe that is why I couldn't feel the air through the vents.

How is Debs working out? I know she originally had the same head-popping sound that I do.

She said she did Marcel's tweak on Friday before she left for a horse show she was working at this weekend and it made a huge difference for her. She really likes it now and feels that adding just a tad bit more tweak to the upper lip will be perfect.

 

[Lamonster]

Great writeup Bro. Man you have my luck when it comes to dropping bolts but I never took mine apart that far to look for them. :yikes:

I use the shake the snot out of it trick and start the bike trick. If that don't work I refer back to the Black Hole excuse. ;D : :dontknow:

 

[joelin]

The way you take all the staff out you just need another 20 minutes to instal the fog light .It took me about 3 hours to instal it .

 

[bjt]

The way you take all the staff out you just need another 20 minutes to instal the fog light .It took me about 3 hours to instal it .

Yeah, that thought popped into my mind yesterday when I was "experiencing" the bolt search. At least I'll have some prior experience when I come up with an extra $500 to buy the fog light kit. ;D

 

[joelin]

Yeah, that thought popped into my mind yesterday when I was "experiencing" the bolt search. At least I'll have some prior experience when I come up with an extra $500 to buy the fog light kit. ;D

Make sure you do 12 v powerlet at the same time .

 

[bjt]

12 volt powerlets are going to be so easy to install now. We are thinking of putting them in the same place that heavnbound did, just to the lower right of gauge cluster. That pops out in a minute. With my Powerbus installed, the powerlet should install in only a couple of minutes. Bing, bam, boom, ready to go. :doorag:

 

[billclemen]

The information you give to Marcel regarding your height, inseam, and preference for an ideal speed for the windshield to perform at seem to be important. I have a dead airspace right at eye level that is uncanny. My windshield does not have the oval vents but I seem to have plenty of air swirling around for summer ventilation, below eye level. Couldn't be happier. I am open to suggestons for creative things to do with the stock and the BRP touring windshields, however.

 

[Putt-Putt]

I didn't see the post on tweaking the Evo II. I got my Evo II also and I had my problems too. The holes did not line up. After 2hrs of trimming filing and sanding I got it to fit. The problem was were the bottom of the shield fits in the Spyder recess. About 1/4' too wide on one side and 1/8" on the other side. Holding the holes up too high. Now it fits like it is supposed to. It does seem to perform pretty good. Now if don't get too scratched up from sand and stuff kicked up by semi trucks & not too many bugs too see though everything should be fine. Had the same problem with the F1. But I didn't drop any screws got lucky there.

 

[retread]

I got an Evo II from Marcel about 3 weeks ago, dark tint, 29 inches high. It was way too high for me, I like looking over the windshield, so I called Marcel, and he tole me to mark where I wanted it cut and send it back. Got it back yesterday, (June 1) after some judicious Dremel work along the bottom edge, it fits, it works better than expected, and Marcel included some VERY large head screws to attach it with. There are 3 other Spyder owners in this area, (south of Indy) and I'm telling them to get windshields from Marcel. It'd be good if everybody's service was as good as his.

 

[pphantom538]

Marcel is a very nice and knowledgable gentleman.

 

[spyder-dude]

I received my replacement Evo II yesterday. After about 10 minutes of grinding the bottom right (if looking from the front) I got it to fit. I think there is something wrong with Marcels template because everyone that I know has had to trim the bottom right side.

Other than that it worked fine. Took it out for a 20 minute spin on the highway.

 

[dltang]

I received my replacement Evo II yesterday. After about 10 minutes of grinding the bottom right (if looking from the front) I got it to fit. I think there is something wrong with Marcels template because everyone that I know has had to trim the bottom right side.

Other than that it worked fine. Took it out for a 20 minute spin on the highway.

You know you are right. I realize Marcel has said only 9 windshields didn't fit. I think most of us have just sanded, grinded or dremeled down the bottom part at the "v" that was just a bit too long instead of complaining. For the price and the service it is a nice product. So Marcel if you are reading this, one thing that could be improved upon is the bottom edges. They just don't quite fit into the "v" and sometimes the outer edges are just over the edge of the lines. I think the holes would line up better too if the bottom edges were cut just a bit shorter. Just my .02. We sanded the bottom edges of both our windshields.

 

[Putt-Putt]

You know you are right. I realize Marcel has said only 9 windshields didn't fit. I think most of us have just sanded, grinded or dremeled down the bottom part at the "v" that was just a bit too long instead of complaining. For the price and the service it is a nice product. So Marcel if you are reading this, one thing that could be improved upon is the bottom edges. They just don't quite fit into the "v" and sometimes the outer edges are just over the edge of the lines. I think the holes would line up better too if the bottom edges were cut just a bit shorter. Just my .02. We sanded the bottom edges of both our windshields.

You are right. Only I had to do both sides to get it to fit.