hydraglide
150+ Posts
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- #21
1000 Mile Update - After 48 years of two wheeled motorcycling… My first Impressions..
Here’s my update on mod’s, learned skills and other observations as I approach my first service at the 1000-mile mark on my 2021 Tri Glide.
I'm quite comfortable now after making the transition from 2 wheels to 3. As a matter of fact, I'm loving riding my Tri Glide more and more every time out!
So... I installed DK’s Cooling Wings, and as advertised, they may or may not do much for buffeting. My experience was no noticeable improvement regarding reducing buffeting for me.
Experimenting, I discovered that riding with my full face helmet (a Harley modular model) quite definitely helped with dealing with the buffeting versus my half helmet (even with the visor removed). That was a big deal, however, I really prefer riding with my half helmet unless it’s cold or wet. So the quest for reduced buffeting continues...
As the weather finally warmed up, I was able to comfortably open the lowers vent as well as open the batwing air deflectors. The best set up for the least amount of buffeting for me had the batwing deflectors pointed so that air was hitting my chest. Seemed like it kept the turbulence away from my head, so I didn’t feel like a bobble head quite as much. Quite tolerable, but only while riding with the full-face helmet.
With this setup, I took a 400-mile ride into and with a 30-40 mph wind and I felt fine afterward. The cross winds? That was another story! Thankfully my route had very few east/west deviations that day. The occasional 40+ MPH gusts made it feel like my head was gonna be detached from my shoulders in that cross wind!
Another observation… if I placed my head say 6 inches forward of my normal riding position, I was then “out of the turbulence zone” and the air was calm. Of course, I can’t ride like that, but it was interesting (at least to me) to find where the turbulence zone(s) were. Perhaps a 15” windshield might help but I don’t want to look through, I like looking over. Besides, my 10” “oversized” Freedom Shields windshield seems to be perfect. It’s not the wind over the windshield that is the issue.
No question the air is coming from around the tank sides and front and up from between the lower and batwing. And here’s something I never experienced on my Ultra Classic… you know the “biker wave” where you kind of just let your left hand kinda hang out from you side a bit all cool like to acknowledge another biker? Hah, of course you all know that ritual! Well, on my Tri Glide, at speed, I felt like my left arm was going to literally be ripped out of its socket while “doing the wave”! Is it because the rear fenders changing the aerodynamics along the sides of the trike? Whatever it is/was, I’m doing the dinosaur arm thing from here on out when at speed! There was a jet stream of air just outside the cockpit zone if you will. Anybody else ever notice this?
So… here’s where I’m at on my quest to make my Tri Glide a long riding machine. This is what I’ve got planned to have my local dealer install soon:
The consensus is strong in the trike community that the Fork Fangs are a great way to minimize or eliminate the buffeting… but at a price, and that being a hotter running motor due to less airflow.
That’s where the fans come in. I know some might scoff at the two fan set up, but I have reasons for both.
The CoolMasters for when running in higher ambient temps for sure, switched on/off as needed from the fairing switch I purchased
The Harley CoolFlow will be set up to run on auto, to “improve rider comfort” as they say. But I really believe that if they are sucking hot air away from the motor, they will also help cool the motor. Secondly, I feel that it may also help lessen the “hot air on the right leg” from the CoolMasters fan by helping pull the hot air down and away during low-speed riding.
Hey, I can’t image why two fans with different objectives can’t work together to improve not only my motor temps but also rider comfort on hot days, particularly while using the Fangs.
Why Harley Davidson can’t come up with a solution (they had the baffle under the triple tree for years and sold the fangs too) to improve the buffeting on their Touring models is beyond me. Do they test ride every bike with a full face helmet? Makes me wonder. They don’t feel what many of us are feeling? Come on… I miss that baffle under the triple tree!
I’ll keep you all posted as to what I find. Fingers crossed I’ll have come up with an acceptable solution to the buffeting while keeping engine temps within reason.
1000 Mile Update -
Here’s my update on mod’s, learned skills and other observations as I approach my first service at the 1000-mile mark on my 2021 Tri Glide.
I'm quite comfortable now after making the transition from 2 wheels to 3. As a matter of fact, I'm loving riding my Tri Glide more and more every time out!
So... I installed DK’s Cooling Wings, and as advertised, they may or may not do much for buffeting. My experience was no noticeable improvement regarding reducing buffeting for me.
Experimenting, I discovered that riding with my full face helmet (a Harley modular model) quite definitely helped with dealing with the buffeting versus my half helmet (even with the visor removed). That was a big deal, however, I really prefer riding with my half helmet unless it’s cold or wet. So the quest for reduced buffeting continues...
As the weather finally warmed up, I was able to comfortably open the lowers vent as well as open the batwing air deflectors. The best set up for the least amount of buffeting for me had the batwing deflectors pointed so that air was hitting my chest. Seemed like it kept the turbulence away from my head, so I didn’t feel like a bobble head quite as much. Quite tolerable, but only while riding with the full-face helmet.
With this setup, I took a 400-mile ride into and with a 30-40 mph wind and I felt fine afterward. The cross winds? That was another story! Thankfully my route had very few east/west deviations that day. The occasional 40+ MPH gusts made it feel like my head was gonna be detached from my shoulders in that cross wind!
Another observation… if I placed my head say 6 inches forward of my normal riding position, I was then “out of the turbulence zone” and the air was calm. Of course, I can’t ride like that, but it was interesting (at least to me) to find where the turbulence zone(s) were. Perhaps a 15” windshield might help but I don’t want to look through, I like looking over. Besides, my 10” “oversized” Freedom Shields windshield seems to be perfect. It’s not the wind over the windshield that is the issue.
No question the air is coming from around the tank sides and front and up from between the lower and batwing. And here’s something I never experienced on my Ultra Classic… you know the “biker wave” where you kind of just let your left hand kinda hang out from you side a bit all cool like to acknowledge another biker? Hah, of course you all know that ritual! Well, on my Tri Glide, at speed, I felt like my left arm was going to literally be ripped out of its socket while “doing the wave”! Is it because the rear fenders changing the aerodynamics along the sides of the trike? Whatever it is/was, I’m doing the dinosaur arm thing from here on out when at speed! There was a jet stream of air just outside the cockpit zone if you will. Anybody else ever notice this?
So… here’s where I’m at on my quest to make my Tri Glide a long riding machine. This is what I’ve got planned to have my local dealer install soon:
JES Fork Fangs
Love Jugs CoolMasters
Harley CoolFlow Fan Harley Accessory Switch Panel Set
Love Jugs CoolMasters
Harley CoolFlow Fan Harley Accessory Switch Panel Set
The consensus is strong in the trike community that the Fork Fangs are a great way to minimize or eliminate the buffeting… but at a price, and that being a hotter running motor due to less airflow.
That’s where the fans come in. I know some might scoff at the two fan set up, but I have reasons for both.
The CoolMasters for when running in higher ambient temps for sure, switched on/off as needed from the fairing switch I purchased
The Harley CoolFlow will be set up to run on auto, to “improve rider comfort” as they say. But I really believe that if they are sucking hot air away from the motor, they will also help cool the motor. Secondly, I feel that it may also help lessen the “hot air on the right leg” from the CoolMasters fan by helping pull the hot air down and away during low-speed riding.
Hey, I can’t image why two fans with different objectives can’t work together to improve not only my motor temps but also rider comfort on hot days, particularly while using the Fangs.
Why Harley Davidson can’t come up with a solution (they had the baffle under the triple tree for years and sold the fangs too) to improve the buffeting on their Touring models is beyond me. Do they test ride every bike with a full face helmet? Makes me wonder. They don’t feel what many of us are feeling? Come on… I miss that baffle under the triple tree!
I’ll keep you all posted as to what I find. Fingers crossed I’ll have come up with an acceptable solution to the buffeting while keeping engine temps within reason.
