How to: Yamaha Front Cowl

[mjh937]

First point, this is not a windscreen.  If it made any difference in the wind it was negligible.  I bought it for looks and to make it easier to clean off bugs.  I like it for those reasons.
 
I was planning to follow the instructions to the letter, but by the second step I realized I was not.  I like my way better anyway.  It was a very easy install.
 
Here are all the pieces
 

 
First step is to remove the bolts at the top of the forks on both sides with a 6mm hex.  It is the bolt on the left in this image.  You will not need these bolts.  They will be replaced by bolts in the kit.

Here is the bolt after removal.

Next I screwed the brackets to the cowl (this is were i veered from the instructions.)  There are rubber pieces with a metal bolt in them.  They are inserted so the wider part is between the cowl and the bracket.

The above bracket goes on the right side with the longer part towards the front (it should be fairly obvious.  I only got it wrong once and it was easy to tell it was not correct). 

Above is the bracket installed.  Note the orientation of the bracket.

Here is the bracket from the inside.  Note how the rubber part expands to hold everything in place.
 
There is a rubber trim piece that fits along the top edge of the cowl.  The instructions say to put it on last.  I tried, but it was a bear to do so gave up.  I decided I liked it better without it anyway, but if you plan to use it then I recommend attaching it now.  It just presses on.
 
Next step is to use the new silver screws from the kit that will replace the screws that were removed in step one.  There is a spacer that goes between the fork and the cowl bracket.  It is a 5mm hex bolt (of course they could not make it 6mm like the one that was removed).

Make sure the cowl is placed how you want (I have mine with the bottom touching the bike) and tighten the bolt to 19 ft.lbs. (I estimated this based on how hard it was to remove.  I did not have a 5mm bit for my torque wrench. 
 
Here are the leftover/unneeded pieces.

And the final product!

After Incognito's comment below I cut two small pieces of the trim I did not use and use them to keep the cowl from scratching the bike. I took the photo below at night with my phone, so I am sorry about the quality. 

 

[hippiebikerchick]

Good job! Is it more difficult to access the ignition key area?

[hobbs]

Just as easy as without the cowl.

[Guru]

Nice "How to". Thanks for sharing.

[mjh937]

Like hobbs says the ignition key is easy to access. It is below the level of the cowl, but there is more than enough room to get to it.

[redrover]

a second thanks for posting the how to; I just got my cowl today, and will be installing it tomorrow. Having read the instructions that come with it, I think your approach is the better one. It's how I've installed flyscreens on other bikes as well!

[mjh937]

Glad I could be helpful. I fully intended to follow the directions, but accidentally messed up by step two. It seems to make a lot more sense to assemble the cowl and brackets first and it makes it easier to install. Also trying to get the trim on after it is on the bike is a PITA. I am glad I like it better without the trim or I would have been disassembling it.

[Incognito]

Good write up I have the Yamaha cowl installed too and it's worthwhile to point out that when you are torquing the bolts that hold the brackets in place the screen tends to dip a bit on the right side and rise a bit on the left side so it's tricky to get a uniform 7 mm clearance between the bottom edge of the cowl and the headlight housing (as shown in the instructions).
 
@mjh937, you mention that you have the bottom of the cowl touching the bike...Because of the torquing side effect I mentioned, I didn't realize the right side of mine was touching until I took the headlight housing off to install LED blinkers. There is a small mark there now from the two plastic surfaces vibrating against each other. Not a huge deal, but figured I'd mention it as you might want to reconsider the placement of yours--unless you don't mind little blemishes like these...

[mjh937]

Thanks Incofnito, I will adjust mine up a bit to stop that. I might consider cutting a couple of small pieces of the trim I did not use and use those as padding to prevent the scratching.

[coleman67]

You can use rubber washers (or some other soft material) as spacers to keep the cowl off of the headlight assembly. Once everything is tight, just slide them out.

[redrover]

I installed my cowling this afternoon, using the pre-assembly method to good effect.  I installed the rubber trim strip, as much to see if I could, and if it will hold up to regular use.
 
I put the rubber trim strip out in the hot Texas sun for about 10 minutes; it was very pliable in short order!  I used a little 'personal lubrication' (you laugh, but I learned that trick installing grips on MX bikes) along the top edge of the cowling, and worked the trim into place.  It was a pain, but ultimately successful.  
 
I set the angle of the cowling to stay clear of all the nearby body parts, plastic fittings, etc.
 
I like the rather mechanical look of the unadorned headlight assy and switch area, but it is a bug magnet, and the cowling definitely cleans up the area.
 

[redrover]

cowling stood up to doing the Ton; trim strip stayed on fine!  I think the cowling may help the aerodynamics up front a little.  It didn't hurt anyway...
 
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[Lusiphur]

Nice writeup
 
I installed the brackets to the cowl and then bolted that to the bike.
My cowl came with the old directions which apparently had different brackets.
 
I contacted the seller and they explained the change in brackets and sent me new directions.  Once I saw how they bolt on, I went my own way.
Nice to know I am not alone in my thought process. 

 

[Guest]

When I was fitting my screen I was having trouble with it moving as I was tightening the M8 fork bolts up to the correct torque. I fixed that by fitting a flat stainless steel washer under the head of each bolt. These washers should really have been supplied as part of the kit.
To fit the edge strip, start at the edge of the screen and bend the strip back about 90 degrees away from the opening slot, this will open the slot wider, and press it onto the edge of the screen as you go along. 
 
 

[Lildrumr]

Hello, I also received the old instructions with different clamps. What is the correct torque setting for the new bolts? Do I need to unload the weight on the forks before removing and then installing the new bolts for the fly screen?

[mjh937]

Hello, I also received the old instructions with different clamps. What is the correct torque setting for the new bolts? Do I need to unload the weight on the forks before removing and then installing the new bolts for the fly screen?

You can undo those bolts with the bike on its wheels. The other clamps will hold it just fine. I do not remember the torque value. I just did mine "rather  tight". So far almost a year later I have had no problems. 

[Lildrumr]

Thanks! The dealership sent me new instructions. The torque is 19 ft lbf.

[avanti]

I found a couple small, thin strips of wood (from a paint stirrer, in my case) kept the one side of the cowl from "torquing" down, and when holding the cowl against the other strip, kept that side from moving up while tightening... then, remove the strips.

[tlstaj]

hey all.
I bought one of these on eBay but it didn't come with the 2 two triple tree upper replacement bolts. does anyone have the part number for these or similar bolts?