Gustaffson Plastics St. Augustine, FL

[dduelin]

The 2007 RT has a very good fairing and windshield but like many fully faired bikes it can be too effective in the hotter part of the year. The engine gives off no heat I can feel when riding but without much airflow it's still warm in the cockpit when it's 90 degrees or more. So this year I'm experimenting with a smaller windshield. The stock electric screen is 24.8" tall and when set just below my line of sight it's quiet and calm in the cockpit. I bought a used Cee Bailey short for the RT that is 16.5" and a perfect stock one to experiment with. I came into both because both came up for sale the same day. The Cee Bailey Short is very noisy and I removed it after a couple of rides. I then applied a vertical strip of blue painter's tape to my new stock screen and marked it at 1/2" intervals. After riding with it a few hours I marked it approximately 4" below the top, removed it and boxed it for the trip to Gustaffson Plastics https://bikescreen.com/ in St. Augustine. This morning I strapped the box to the Goldwing and visited the Gustaffson factory. I expected to drop it off and leave it but Zack said they could do it in a couple hours. The time there was fascinating. I first met Leif Gustafsson in 1989 and they have done several windshield mods for me since. His son Zack runs the business now and it's a mixture of art and science, technology and artistry, that creates these 3D works of art. In 50+ years Gustaffson has built windshields for motorcycles, boats, trikes, Can Ams and dustbin-type fairings for bicycles and motorcycles. Aircraft & helicopter windows too. In a blend of old and new tech they have on the same production floor CAD machines and a band saw that was originally steam powered in Sweden. The band saw was converted to electric power and is still used today. On the table today I saw one-off creations for 70s era BMW R100RS sport tourers and a custom replacement screen for a 1974 Rickman Metisse Triumph as well as current Can Am 3 wheelers and saw acrylic sheet baked and blown into complex shapes then hand cut, sanded, and polished.

I got home with the 4" shorter stock shield, bolted on and went for a 25 mile ride. I think I will like it. It's quiet as stock when raised to line of sight and nearly the same noise with more wind when lowered 3 or 4".

 

[SMSW]

Years ago, Gustaffson was the only company that made windshields for Guzzis, and I've dealt with them a few times. Good company!