newbie with foxeye windblast induced hearing issue

[dylanandmolly]

Hi. New here. I've just returned from a 340 mile round trip on motorway. After first 170 my ears were ringing and sore. Bought ear plugs and trip home slightly better. Have since read up on MRA x-creen and also drilling holes in windscreen to reduce low pressure area thereby reducing turbulence. Any comments appreciated. I'm 6'1" and dipping down behind screen for any length of time is uncomfortable. Paul.

[noggythenog]

Seriously i would change your helmet, not stuff on the bike.


Look for the quietest one that money can buy


I have a schuberth that is nice and quiet and i never wear ear plugs.


All of these screens etc could make a small difference but based on the extremity of the issue i dont think it would be significant enough for you.

[dylanandmolly]

Thanks for advice. I have a Caberg Duke flip up. Initially over the moon with look and features but as speed increases so does the wind noise. I've heard good things about Schubergs.

[noggythenog]

Worth a try anyway


I know its difficult with helmets as it can be hundreds of miles before you get an idea what they are like but if you look at reviews for tried and tested quiet helmets it'll give you a start.


I used to always think that it was the exhaust that damaged ears until i realised it was actually the wind noise so i went for a quiet helmet.

[slimwilly]

Hello there, the taller the screen at high speeds seems to cause more turbulence, i and alot of test pilots seem to find that clean undisturbed air is the quietest.


Earplugs are a must i rekon,


As for helmets , well i must try out other peoples first,,the HJC i think, has good ,good results ,Nick Crisp tells me,,and only £200 which aint alot for a good helmet...


umm my Christmas list has started(oops,,mentioned the Christmas word,,) naughty

[Robbus]

I feel your pain!! I've got an X-creen fitted, seems to help a bit but I think the fairing design is fundamentally bad and causes turbulence at motorway speed, I'm even thinking about ditching the fairing completely. It's pretty much the one downside about the Fazer, shame that about 70% of my commute riding is on motorways 


I wear a Shoei Qwest helmet that's supposed to be quiet, is it hell. Tried it with the chin curtain and whisper strip accessories, not much different. Now have a Windjammer II fitted with the vent holes taped over, that's noticeably better but I still wouldn't ride any distance without ear plugs, that's not going to be much use for a flip up helmet though. Schuberth always seem to be recommended as the quietest helmet but come at a serious price, with no guarantee that they will actually work for an individual, so a bit of a lottery.


Cheers,
Rob

[chaz]

Make sure the ear plugs are in right roll them and give them a suck and push them in, use the ones that look like nipples? it makes a lot of differance if they arn't in right

[dazza]

Caberg flip up lids are notoriously noisy I have found. +1 for a quieter lid and good quality earplug pushed right in.

[Punkstig]

http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&id=281147487490&alt=web

Much cheaper version of mould your own ear plugs

[stevierst]

Yep, helmet again is probably the major cause, although I did 30k/year on my first boxeye with a double bubble screen which as far as I remember wasn't too bad, it certainly didn't make me deaf!

I also used a roof helmet which was fairly quiet, and my current Shoei is pretty good.
I'm another one that likes shorter screens for clean air. I've experimented with allsorts of screens and designs, and my conclusion being 6'1" tall is that a very short screen is best. Big screens make big turbulence which creates big noise.

[unfazed]

Welcome to the fold,

I would be inclined to dump the Caberg, it is probably one of the noisiest if not the noisiest helmet money can buy, especially if it is not a very very tight fit.

I had one for a very very short while,  my hearing was worth more

[positron]

I agree - sometimes shorter screen is the answer!

Most of my commute is motorway too and I used have one of those tall and expensive MRA screens with an adjustable lip. There was a lot of turbulence and wind noise and I really didn't think it thru. I started getting minor tinnitus and I started wearing ear plugs, changed my helmet to schuberth sr1 (not quietest but very little drag). The helped, but then I had a little bump, cracked the MRA screen and ended up replacing it with a simple cheap visor (much shorter, more like a small double bubble), and it was a revelation! Air hitting my helmet was clean and it was way calmer and wind noise a lot less annoying.

[Robbus]

Got a pic, anymore info on this smaller screen?


Cheers,
Rob