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Yamaha FZ1 Wind Protection
The Memphis Shades "Hell Cat" Windshield
will fit and function on the FZ1 offering adequate wind protection for long rides
and enjoyable riding without wind blast at all but race speeds and style.

  

Overview
Memphis Shades produces a very quality product in both the windshield and the hardware. 
The Hell Cat model like several of the small and intermediate models mount at only two points off the bars.
The shield rides very secure and solid, only showing minimal vibration.
The shield when angled at the same angle as the stock wind screen sits relatively close to the head of the rider,
 but is not an issue in contact or vision, plus the upright angle of the shield can be adjusted.

Memphis Hell Cat Catalog Description
20 inches wide and approximately 18 inches above the headlight area.
Sculpted full-body shape. 
Made of IDI Lucite for excellent clarity and scratch and weather resistance.
Available in six gradient translucent colors and solar.
Cost $110+

Shield Mounting Information

Factory Mounting Directions 1.  Attach the mounting rod/plate assemblies to the windshield using neoprene washers on both sides of the windshield (see above pic). 2.  Hold the shield up in the desired position so you can see where to mount the handlebar clamps. 3.  Loosely mount the handlebar clamps.  Use the plastic bands over the bars. 4.  Slip the mounting rods into the rod holders on the handlebar clamps. Lightly tighten the rod holders when the rods are the correct length. 5.  Tighten the handlebar clamps next. 6.  Set the desired windshield angle and tighten the pinch bolts at the windshield. Note:  I have tried the shield full forward and full to the back as far as positioning around the other equipment on the bike would allow. I have settled on a position with the top of the shield being 1-2 inches forward of the extreme back position.

....The bottom of the shield visually cuts across the instrument panel, but is only a minor distraction.
....The ignition key and reset buttons are not affected and easily reached.
....The shield does not hit any part of the bike when the bars are fully turned.

Care and Cleaning recommendations from Memphis Shades
Wash with warm water and mild dishwashing soap.
Use a soft cloth, as a tee shirt or piece of flannel.

Repair
Use NOVUS #2 to remove minor scratches, or polish designed for plastic.
Memphis Shades Shinola is recommended for light cleaning or polishing.

Cautions
Never use any petroleum-based chemicals, or cleansing agents with ammonia.
To include Rain-Z, brake fluid, acetone, gasoline.

Personal Impressions of the Windshield on an FZ1

....The Hell Cat arrived in 6 days for ordering from MAW.
....Mounting was very simple.  Normally taking between 10-20 minutes.  No modifications are needed.  Nothing on the bars must be rearranged.  It is as simple as following the hardware mounting directions and then adjusting the angle and alignment to please.  The shield sits between the bars and the stock screen/fairing.  There is no contact with the screen/fairing when the bars are turned full left or right.  Nothing to change or worry about.  Just mount the shield and ride off.
....If one hurried and everything went right, the shield could be mounted and the bike on the road in 10 minutes.  It is that easy.
....And the shield can be taken off with only a 3/16 Allen wrench in a minute or two.
....The shield mounts very firm and secure using only two points off the bars.
....On the first ride, the initial impression was the top of the shield was close to the face, but that sensation quickly disappeared.  A rider of medium height will be able to easily see over the top of the shield.  In fact, I would like it about an inch higher, but wind protection to the chest is good and very acceptable around the head.  A full face helmet is not needed.  The sounds of the bike, motor, etc., can be heard.  The shield allows the rider to sit up as tall as the FZ1 normally allows, while turning the head to look and the surroundings and the hear/smell normal environmental sensations.  I ran the bike up to 100, the shield functioning perfectly.  When the bike has some more miles, I will push it on up and report of any instabilities in the shield or wobbles created in the bike. 
....After the first ride with the shield, it would appear I have the solution to providing some wind protection for the long trip days.  No wind protection on a sit-up bike does not cut it on long trips of 7-10 days, 300-600 miles per day.  If looks over function is a personal issue than one may not be able to accept the second shield on the FZ1.  I want relief from the windblast, and can take the shield off if on a squid kick.  The look is a secondary issue, and since the "double layer" appearance is unique, maybe the look is "cool."
....These things impress me with the Hell Cat; quality solid mounts and shield, ease of mounting, ease of removal, functionality.

....I rode 80 miles with a half helmet, without face shield. Very functional.  Wind protection is good for the chest and moderately good for the head.  The hands have very little wind protection and the upper arms are getting a moderate amount of wind whip.  My eyes look just over the shield in normal position, and can easily be dropped behind the shield.  The wind is off the face/body  from the eyes.  That does not mean no wind/breeze, just no direct wind blast.  Very comfortable at today's 50 degree temps.  One thing I did notice, bugs hit me in the forehead a several times.  They did not hit my glasses, but would if the head was lifted much more then just looking over the top of the shield. I tilted the shield a little forward at the top to get it away from the face just a bit.  Although this shield does not offer the hand/arm protection I would like it eliminates direct blast to all parts of the body and does a good job protecting the chest  and head.  You can look at what is going on around you and hear many outside sounds including better vision/audio of traffic.  

....1050 miles in three days behind the Hell Cat while race touring to Road America for Superbike Races.....After this past weekend of racetouring and long hauling behind the Hell Cat, I have better and better things to say about it.  The wind pocket is bigger and more useful than I first thought, recognizing that one tends to adjust to such things.  It provided very good touring protection at all speeds, in the rain, in the bugs, in the flying grit from trucks.  We ran the Interstates hard on the way up; 80-95mph almost all the way.  And just about as hard on the way back, only on the back roads and curves.  I would like just a bit more on the shoulders and head, but not much and then hand protection is needed for cold weather, but for summer riding in the 45 degree up range the Hell Cat more than satisfies my demands
....I did not notice any back draft of exhaust fumes with the Hell Cat.  None.  I am very sensitive to fumes and chemicals, so probably would have noticed.  There is some back pressure to the head but not enough to suck up the fumes.  The exhaust port sits a long way back on the big stock can however
.....I was in panic mode after riding the FZ "naked."  The "short changers"  in the design group was wearing too much spandex or too many race visions to understand real world riding.  The "fellows" need to get on the road,  7-10 days of 400-600 miles each, or get out and ride the streets and cruise the local 100 miles rides.  I am just mystified at designers not realizing how easy it is to solve little issues that bring their companies a lot of "bad mouthing."   It would have taken no major thought or design to do things right on either the FZ or the Vmax.  And I must not get started on Honda and the cover up of the severe oiling problem in the upper heads of their Magna, Sabre, Interceptors.  All of Honda's early V4's. 
....After fighting the Max and Magna for so long trying to correct factory errors, it is so refreshing to have performance/suspension done right for the street.  I just wish they would have taken care of a couple of little things.  Wind protection, poor instrument design, lack of tie down points and an open ended handle not useable for tie down.
....The Hell Cat will do the job. You have good clean protection.  Its mounting system is super solid and quality.  The Hell Cat does not produce  a big air pocket, but big enough.  I wore a half helmet or no helmet for the weekend.  I could look around,  hear the radar detector,  hear the environment, hear other bikes and cars, hear the soft howling of the stock exhaust at speed.
.....I  have not come up with any other ideas at present that will work better than the Hell Cat for race touring.  The next size up may and will find out when I order it for the Max.
....Enough of all this talk about sport touring, right now, I am set and can live with what I consider the best race tourer yet to come along, maybe the first race tourer :)) A road predator, a Mantid, a Raptor :))

Thoughts on the Memphis Shades Demon Shield.

....As of late July 2001, I have been running the Demon on the FZ.  I had thought it would just enough larger to offer more wind protection for cold weather, but wrong again.  The Demon is basically the same height at the Hell Cat and only slightly wider.  Although there is a flair near the hands it is not enough and in the wrong position to offer cold weather hand protection.  
....If you are going to add a shield either of these will work fine and do a similar job. And quite a good job at that, unless you are riding in really cold weather and want more hand and body protection. 
....The FZ fairing allow a great deal of air into the cockpit from around the headset, so that will also be a major cold weather issue.
....I am done playing with shields on the FZ and am basically happy with either Memphis Shades shield.  It can be ridden in all but the coldest of days in this area and the shields work super for all other weather and long hauling.
....I have run the FZ up to 148 actual about 160 on the speedo without any shake or deflection from the shield.  With the Givi sitting in front of the shield I suppose it is possible the air bubble created by the set-up is "slicker" than riding an FZ naked.  One thing is for sure, the FZ will run full out with a shield in place.

Thoughts on Wind Protection from down under in New Zealand, by Bruce Marshall, 8/2001
...G'day  - I'm a recent FZ convert here in Noo' Zealand, thought I'd offer some comments based on a thousands of Km's riding on two different FZ's, plus 35 years riding & mebbe' a couple hundred bikes owned/ridden etc ~ & I have'ta say that I reckon the FZ-1 is about as close to the ultimate mousetrap as I've come so far. I even ride it on dirt roads quite happily too, tho' that is likely coz I'm very at home in that environment anyway, & my usual ride is an 87 G/S R80 BMW.
....I also had a somewhat modified orange V-Max for a year or so ~ loved the engine but it lead me into life threatening 'out of envelope' experiences too easily (why I cant live with crusiers, I guess).
....My only complaints about the FZ are that;- 1-- It doesn't sound like a V twin, and 2-- When I get back on the BM it feels like a rattly old tractor for the
first 50 kms!
....I've done a couple longish day rides on the FZ, & my experience of the fairing/protection thing may give you some food for thought as I've solved the prob
from a totally different approach. For years I've been obsessed over wind-noise / comfort / ergos in general, & have actually quit or avoided a few bikes because of TOO MUCH protection, or at least one aspect of it - 'turbulence' / vibration on the helmet/screen. 
....However, ya have to see this in a very particular context, ie that because my primary enemy is wind NOISE  I always wear a open face hat around town (so, not much noise at town speeds) & otherwise wear a full face when 'on the road' but with EAR PLUGS!  I notice you didn't mention these at all. I know lot'sa folks think they are soft-stuff, but I got hearing damage anyway already (those years of open 2-stroke racing chambers, plus weapons/gunfire) so now I wear 'protection' & it changes the whole game.
....Ya' see, when ya running 'plugged' ya' don't depend upon the screen to cut noise - ya only want the screen to reduce windload off the torso & lots of experimentation will always prove that actually only quite small screens are needed to achieve this effectively. Two other advantages are that the small screen reduces wind-drag effects on the power/weight envelope (& also reduces possible plastic panel strain) but also & most importantly minimizes turbulence on the riders face! To check this, if you wear some earplugs (to kill the wind noise) then stand on the pegs at say 100kms/60mph so that ya face is in 'clean' air as well as silence, then slowly lower yourself towards normal/seated, ya find a zone where the actual turbulence starts to be experienced - altho' on a stock screened FZ this DOESN'T happen unless ya' a 4ft dwarf!
....So, where as I come from years of cutting & shaping perspex to fight this prob' on various bikes, I find that it is just another area of 'near perfection' on the FZ, simply by wearing those little ear "things"!
 ....The other extreme of screen shape and turbulence can be seen on the present generation of large dual purpose bikes which often have near-vertical screens about 3ft in front of the rider, & are absolute bloody hell to live behind BUT they are the shape required by real/proper desert racers who
spend most of their days STANDING at high speed, so the unaware road market schloks get to live in turbulence-hell coz that's how PROPER desert/racer bikes look', & that's what the marketing pricks build into the style/image package, along with lot'sa other bullshit as well of course!
.... I hope it offers a new avenue of research & development for ya. Oh, one other thing, after years of being the first guy to cut baffles or fit open pipes, I now find that somehow the FZ is about the first bike which I've decided to keep on its stock can, coz after turbulence & cold hands one of the other great energy drains on long rides is noise, & I find that one of the major delights of the FZ is the way I can go do a 4~500 mile day & still feel (almost) fresh! Its more like cruising thru the stratosphere in some kind'a aerospace device ~ & who wants a buzzy four intruding its squillion rpm wail into that serene space . . .

Demon Shield mounted on the bars and sitting behind the Givi Windscreen.

Demon Shield mounted on the bars and sitting behind the Givi Windscreen.

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