Seat mods and maintenance.

Really liking my 2003 Silverwing so far, had it for 2 weeks now and put a little over 300 miles on so far. The seat has the same problem my Reflex does as I am 6' 3" tall and the butt rest takes up too much room. I dropped my seat off at a local upholstery shop a couple days ago to have it modified. I took the brackets off and showed him pictures of a Corbin seat, and he said he could make mine look similar. The whole thing is going to run $140, so I'm pretty happy about that. In the meantime I received my clutch weights, Dr. Pulley sliders and new air filter today. Gotta say this scooter is pretty easy to work on, got it all done in about 4 hours. Changed the final drive oil while I had it all apart also. I couldn't believe how dirty the air filter was, I'm sure it was original but only has 15,000 miles on it.  I'm surprised it would even run. Unfortunately I have to wait till Tuesday or Wednesday to get the seat back so I can test ride this project. I'll post pictures of the seat when I get it back. Still trying to decide if I like the Givi 214dt that came with the scooter. It really blocks the wind nice but I don't know about looking through the shield rather than  over it. I'm thinking about just cutting it down a few inches myself, and if I wreck it I'll probably get a Cee Bailey 24", it looks like  that would be about right. Have been reading a lot of the info on here, must say I'm impressed with the knowledge I've gained. I'll be back when I get the seat back, later, Mike.

I find the stock windshield is about 1/2" too high for me in a relaxed position. The top edge is right where I want to look and I'd rather be looking over the top. I have been thinking about taking it to a glass shop and see if they can cut a 1/2" off. Just wonder what kind of a job a pro could do.

It's pretty easy to cut down a windshield. I usually cover the front side, where the saber saw will be with masking tape and then draw the pattern on that. It's easier to see and prevents the saw from scratching the plastic. Use a slow speed and light pressure and don't let the cut off part to vibrate which can crack the plastic. I usually put some tape over the cut ends once the cut gets about 4" deep. Keeps the free end from vibrating and flapping. finish the cut by filing and sanding the cut making sure to put a bit of a radius on the sharp edges to prevent future cracking.

I tried a couple of windshields on SWs. My favorite by far was the GIVI adjustable. I won't ride with a screen I can't easily see over. Cee Bailey makes a nice shield, I put one on my old 1993 Goldwing. I ended up cutting it down 1 1/2". But on the SW I prefer the GIVI, nothing nicer than being able to adjust the windshield height to riding conditions and speed.

exavid wrote:

But on the SW I prefer the GIVI, nothing nicer than being able to adjust the windshield height to riding conditions and speed.

I've stayed with the same height on my Airflow since I fitted the second replacement top section in the summer of 2012. There's no need to adjust it at all, it's in a 'sweet spot' which I've marked on the runners and it's an ideal height for all weather riding.

I did temporary lower the Airflow when I mounted the Wunderlich spoiler to try various angles and heights, but an afternoon of riding proved I already had found the ideal screen height for me and the spoiler could fine tune that sweet spot even more.  


The settings I have aren't affected by crosswinds, there's enough cool air in hot weather, wind noise and turbulence aren't a problem even when overtaking convoys of trucks. It's in wet weather that the Airflow/spoiler combination really comes into it's own. I don't have a lot of rain drops hitting my visor even in heavy rain and the occasional movement my head to the left for a second clears them.

Looking over the top of the spoiler is normal practice, but when it's really sheeting it down I can lower my head slightly and look through the clear gap between the top of the Airflow and the top of the spoiler.

It works for me.

Well, I got my seat back from the upholstery shop and he did a great job. I can't seem to figure out how to post a picture in here, and I'm usually pretty good at this kind of stuff. I really like it without the butt stop, and he put a little extra padding in the seating area also. I also put in the Dr. Pulley sliders (28gm), and new clutch weights. I noticed when spin testing the clutches with the covers off, that the belt had way less flopping around with the new sliders compared to the original rollers. I could see a lot of signs of belt rubbing on the cases before the change. As steady as the belt looks now, I seriously doubt it will hit the cases any more. Starting from a stop is much smoother and just more civilized. I have not ridden it hard enough yet to notice any real change in acceleration, but it seems a bit quieter now. Going to ride a ways tomorrow and see how everything works.  Mike

I had great success cutting a windscreen with one of those "Multi-Tools". The ones that vibrate with semi-circular saw teeth and sanding attachments. After masking and covering the screen to protect it from scratches, I found it cut quite easily and cleanly. A final smoothing of the cut edge on a belt sander and the job was done.

Sounds good, but pix would be nice I use a Cee Bailey stock plus 5 inch windshield and am very happy with it. Their website show you how to measure to get correct size. Enjoy your scooter!!!

Hey, I think it worked this time. This is my custom upholstered Silverwing seat. I rode 118 miles yesterday and was very comfortable. My total cost was $137.

Looks good and is a good bit cheaper than the Corbin. Lucky you, you have the fastest color SW!