My Different Handlebar Mods

[SANGER_A2]

So I've made it no secret I'm not too happy with the stock bars. My first option was some horribly chromed back and up risers with flames on them. These were too ugly and too close to the tank.

I decided to buy the over-priced SW-Motech straight-up risers that bring the bars up by 30mm. These were much better than the stock and much nicer looking than the shiny back and up risers I had installed before that. I ordered them in black as I was planning to get the silver bits on my bike powder-coated black at some stage so it would all match.

Here is what you get:-


Here you can see them installed with the clamps and the bolts that came with them:-


Here you can see how much extra height they offer:-

[SANGER_A2]

I was planning to get taller bars to go with the straight-up risers as I had some give left in the clutch cable etc. I ordered Renthal high road bars as they looked nice and were higher than the stockers. It turned out that they were a LOT taller than the stockers. They are actually taller without the risers than the stock bars WITH the risers. They are really great and were actually much cheaper than the risers. I wasn't able to use them with the risers as the clutch and brake lines etc weren't long enough to reach with them both.

Here you can see how high they are:-


Here you can see the pull-back:-


And another view showing the height:-


I had to take off the barends when I installed my heated grips. I stupidly decided to use thread-lock when putting them back on to be safe. I then broke my socket wrench when trying to get them off. I managed to remove them in the end using an allen key with a long bar over it to provide more leverage:-


The control boxes on the bars have little nibs sticking out from them that fit into dents in the stock bars to hold them in place. The bits that fit round the bars with the nibs in come out easily:-


I removed the bits from each control box that fit round the bars and used my dremel to grind off the nibs:-

[SANGER_A2]

Here you can see the difference in the stock bars to the Renthals. They are MUCH taller:-


You can see that the Renthals have a bit more length than the stock bars:-


Here's another nice view comparing the bars:-


I got the bars installed on the bike eventually. I had to loosen the brake line where it was clamped down by the horn and move it up a bit. The stock horn was in the way so I removed it as I've installed louder Motrax Hootaz anyway:-


Here's another angle of them. you can see the extra height to stock:-


I got the grey bars and I think they look good:-

[SANGER_A2]

I didn't like the look or the comfort of the Roxter heated grips and they didn't work that well at keeping my hands warm. I'm planning to buy some EXO2 heated gloves next winter. I ordered some ProGrip 717 dual-density gel grips as they looked much nicer than the old heated ones and also were much more comfy:-

Here's the packet:-


I put paraffin on the bars and inside the grips to work as a lubricant while getting them on. It evaporated completely within an hour or so and the bars stuck on really well without needing glue:-


The grips were closed when I bought them, but I use a Stanley knife to cut holes for when I found some bar-ends I liked to fit. You can also see my Cramp-buster throttle rest. If anyone hasn't tried one yet I would recommend buying one to see:-


Here is the left grip installed:-


And the right:-

[dean owens]

so did you have to get any new cables or brake lines for the taller bars? i have the stock bars with the up 1/back 1 risers. it's nice, but i think another inch would be lovely. sounds like that is easily accomplished with those bars. it'd be really nice if you had a pic of you sitting on the bike before and after the bars for perspective.

thanks for the right up.

[frt96]

Do you have a part # for those bars??

Thanks

[SANGER_A2]

Originally Posted by dean owens

so did you have to get any new cables or brake lines for the taller bars? i have the stock bars with the up 1/back 1 risers. it's nice, but i think another inch would be lovely. sounds like that is easily accomplished with those bars. it'd be really nice if you had a pic of you sitting on the bike before and after the bars for perspective.

thanks for the right up.

Nope. I wanted to be able to use them with the 30mm risers but there was no chance the cables would reach. I had to remove all the cable ties etc holding them to the forks and they just fit. I couldn't get any height out of the bars without lengthening most of them. In 6 months or so I'm going to get braided brake lines and I'll make sure they're 6 inches or so longer than stock. Then I may lengthen any other cables that need it and install the risers as well. I can almost sit with my back perfectly straight on the bike now. It helps that I lowered the seat as it brings my shoulders lower and closer to the bars.

The only pic I've got of me sitting on the bike before is this one and you can't see much. Also, that is with the lowered seat and the back and up risers so a big difference from stock. I remember I was leant forward loads and had a lot of pressure on my hands with the stock seat and bars. It's massively more comfy now. Nothing like a sportsbike riding position and getting similar to a cruiser position. Next I'd like to see if I can move the pegs forwards!

[SANGER_A2]

Originally Posted by frt96

Do you have a part # for those bars??

Thanks

You can see the dimensions here and they are the ROAD HIGH 756-01 bars. I bought mine from M&P where I get most of my bits here for a mere £25.

[dean owens]

Originally Posted by SANGER_A2

... Next I'd like to see if I can move the pegs forwards!

starting from scratch this would be an expensive mod... but i bought my bike used and it came with an engine guard. two days ago i put highway pegs on the guard. they are nice and comfortable. and the nice thing is it's two positions for longer trips so i'm not stuck in one spot. if you could just rig up something like that it might suit your needs rather than looking for more mid/forward controls.

and thanks for the other info.

[SANGER_A2]

Originally Posted by dean owens

starting from scratch this would be an expensive mod... but i bought my bike used and it came with an engine guard. two days ago i put highway pegs on the guard. they are nice and comfortable. and the nice thing is it's two positions for longer trips so i'm not stuck in one spot. if you could just rig up something like that it might suit your needs rather than looking for more mid/forward controls.

and thanks for the other info.

Yeah, highway pegs would be a nice idea. Cheers. There are loads of options there. A few people had them installed on the forum for my last bike - but those were those who had removed the belly pan. I've got the full fairing and so that adds to difficulty. Also, it might look awful!