| Author | Message | ||
     Berkshire |
The new bars (posted above) are a prototype from Berkshire Widget Co. - 44 oz. of beefy plate and solid bar. I expect them to be very sturdy, unlike the bars I'm replacing:  These bars were made by my bike's previous owner. They're too flexible, due to use of thin material and poor design in critical areas... they held up for 10K mi., but I always had the feeling I was just one rough ride away from a darwin award! Also, they were too narrow to allow the levers to be moved inboard any distance from the switches & throttle - everything had to be all crammed together. In comparison, the "widget" bars are only 1" wider (26"), but roomier for mounting controls because the center section is narrower. From looking at pics of Crossroads bars, I'd say the widget bars are angled back a bit more. Clearance should be decent. (Message edited by Berkshire on January 24, 2008) | ||
| Rockstarblast1 |
This is maybe a long strech but could you take some dimensions of the new ones and post it up for me? Or maybe even would you be intrested in selling the old set up jus so I can use it for some kind of reference to make new ones... | ||
| Rockstarblast1 |
guess not? | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
Send him a pm. Berki hasnt been on here in a while (excepting recent posts) and many arent as obsessive as EZ or me, they dont visit Badweb daily. (some other people who are also really into their Blasts rarely stop by-though they've posted a lot in the past) Raask makes the Laverda bars and some other interesting set ups you might want to check out. | ||
| Berkshire |
where does the break fluid resivor go? right here...  Old bars are 32 oz, 5/16" plate & 7/8" solid bar, bars angled back 27 deg, 25" wide. New bars are 1/2" plate, 25 deg, 26" wide, 44oz. The places where the bars are attached to the plate are just a little forward of the fork tubes, so handgrip position should be pretty similar to the profi's with spacers mentioned above. | ||
| Berkshire |
The horn has to be tight against the tank cover to lock the forks. Note the extra bar length - after taking this pic, I moved the grips & switches out to the bar ends for better lever feel.  | ||
| Berkshire |
updated pics - drilled bars to install bar-end mirrors.    | ||
| Ezblast |
You folks have noticed that the new Buell CR has a set of custom Clubmans on it - I am betting that they will fit and further that they will have no locking problems side to side. EZ | ||
| Jd110033 |
hey guys. been a while since ive been here. i was looking on ebay and found these...http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/CLIPONs-HANDLEBARS- UNIVERSAL-4-37mm-FORKS-CLAMPS_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_t rksidZp1713Q2em153Q2el1262QQcategoryZ35587QQihZ017 QQitemZ270217606750 im pretty sure i remember reading we had 37mm forks. can i get some input on what people think about going the "universal" approach with clip ons. thanks in advance | ||
| Berkshire |
Those should work, but you'd have to raise & support the front of the bike and loosen the fork clamps & slide the tubes down in order to get them on. Also, they don't appear to have any adjustments aside from the basic that all clip-ons have: moving them around on the fork tubes. | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
Most clip-ons are 'universal'. They look good to me. The shipping is outrageous, but that still only makes them $115 for the pair! Not a super good price, but I think I'd spend the extra $$ for the adjustables, unless you're just going racing. You will probably have tank clearance issues (steering wont lock) and you'll have to lower the headlight mounts (no big deal). | ||
| Jd110033 |
thanks guys. yea im on a budget right now and want a set of clip ons but dont have the 200+ to spend on a set at the moment. and im the type of person that if im going to change something, im going to do it once. unless what i change it to does not fit what i need. then i will switch it up again. | ||
| Ryblast52 |
Hey guys just curious to see how hard it is to put on a new set of bars and grips. im looking at the superbikes and the traction grips | ||
| Swampy |
Not hard at all, its the most beneficial $=fun hop-up | ||
| Reuel |
The hardest part is getting the grips off the stock bars. I jammed a screwdriver up there and worked it around until all the glue finally let go. | ||
| Roysbuell |
Ok, Just bought a '06 Buell Blast and would like to do a handlebar mod. Someone suggested Chaparral. I looked and was wondering if anyone has installed the 'superbike' bars. How was the fit and feel. Do the handlebars still have enough clearance to lock? | ||
| Evilbetty |
http://www.badweatherbikers.com/cgibin/discus/show .cgi?20164/20164 | ||
| Evilbetty |
Do you have to remove the grips in order to remove all of the controls? When I go to put on my SuperBike bars I had planned to leave the grips in place encase I wanted to put them back on. Using my new Traction Grips on the SuperBike bars. If they need to be removed, will they come off in one piece with a blow gun or other trick? | ||
| Ezblast |
Yes to the first Depends if you get lucky to the second. EZ | ||
| Pakcerfan |
I just got my superbike bars in (ordered in late August). I've seen somewhere on here that using sandpaper with the riser works for securing the bars in place. Do you just place the abrasive side to the bars and the paper to the riser? Also, is it critical that everything gets tightened to the ft-lbs that's listed in the service manual? I've tried searching for these answers but haven't found anything. Thanks for the help! | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
Sandpaper or sanding the bars is not necessary. Placing sandpaper between the bars and risers could potentially cause the bars to slip. A torque wrench is not necessary, but recommended if you are going to do this and/or any future work. Please let me know where you read the sandpaper bit on Badweb and I will delete that information immediately. FWIW: I and several other people have gone down and bent or broken the handlebars as a result, but the bars in the clamp never moved. Nothing extra was done to the bars except for clamping to the proper torque. | ||
| Evilbetty |
Sweet! Just checked and mine are on their way as well! Will be here Monday! Any tips before swapping this out? I have a set of Traction grips for the new bars, but I am going to try to save the old grips for the factory bars. Anything to watch out for when removing the controls? Putting them back on? | ||
| Pakcerfan |
It's mentioned under the section Questions from new buell blast riders. I then found it under the handlebar section. | ||
| Johnnymac |
Having replaced my handlebars with superbike bars a few months ago, I have a few tips to share that I could have used when I mounted mine. - Don't be too disappointed if you can't save your old grips. They are glued on from the factory. If you are lucky you might be able to save them but at what cost? They are not worth the effort when they can be replaced for less than $10. - When putting the controls on the new bar, leave the bar unmounted. It seems like a good idea at first to put the bar on first and clamp it loosely so the bar is held while you install the controls. If you try that you may find that there is not enough free travel side to side in the clamps to move the bar over enough to allow the controls to reach over the ends of the bar to be installed. The cabling and wiring is too short to allow the controls to be mounted after the bar is clamped on. Leave the bar unclamped & free until you slide the controls onto the bar. After that you can clamp & snug down the bar and then adjust the controls. - The controls have a nub on the inside that fits into a small hole in each end of the original bars that is used to keep the controls from slipping once installed. You could simply cut off the nubs and hope to get the controls tight enough on the bar to keep them from slipping. If you go this route, put a layer of duct tape on the bar under the controls to thicken the bar and give the controls more to grip. I chose to keep the nubs on my controls because I didn't feel comfortable with the chance of them slipping on me - especially the throttle housing. Measure carefully, not once, not twice, but at least three times before drilling the holes for the nubs. Once drilled it's hard to widen them in any one direction without making the whole thing wider which could lead to loose and sloppy controls. Mark the spot to be drilled with a sharpie. Unless you have access to a drill press with a nice clamping attachment, you will find it extremely hard to drill a hole in steel tubing without the bit wanting to skid all over creation. Try this trick I use: take a bastard mill file and, using not the flat of it but the edge, file an "X" over the center of the spot to be drilled. Now when you go to drill your holes, the bit will stay in the center of the "X" and not skitter around on you. Make a small pilot hole to start, 1/8" or less then redrill using a larger bit, then once more with your final bit. I can't remember the exact size of hole needed. Use the holes on the original bars to gauge what size bit should be used last. I managed to drill my holes after the bar was mounted and the mirror brackets were mounted loosely but before the switch and throttle housings were installed. You may want to have more foresight than I did and measure and drill your holes before mounting the bars to the bike. - Ignore the tip of putting sandpaper strips between the bar and the mounting clamps. As stated earlier, it can be very dangerous and the clamps alone are more than capable of holding the bar firmly in place if properly torqued down. - Before you start mounting the bar and putting the controls on it, you may want to first place the naked bar on the bike and center the bar. Now apply a single layer of masking to the exposed parts of the center areas of the bar (between, and left & right of the clamps). Later, when you have the controls on the bar and are making your adjustments, it will not only allow you to quickly center the bar in the correct position, but it will prevent any side to side sliding of the bar in loose clamps from creating fine scratches on the bars while you get everything else adjusted. This is especially useful if you are installing black or painted bars. | ||
| Ezblast |
Good Job! EZ | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
Wow, EZ beat me to it, Great job! 2 things I'd add: Cover your tank well with a towel or blanket. If you dont it'll be very hard not to scratch your tank up. You can drill the holes for the switch housing nubs, but they'll probably just shear off anyway. I've taken the lengthy time to drill the holes (in the correct location) and found the duct tape works just as well. Bar end mirrors or bar ends/weights will keep your grips from slipping off, if you're worried. I've never had a problem, but they're cheap insurance and look good! | ||
| Pakcerfan |
Thanks for all of the tips guys. The handlebars went on fairly easily and look great. One small problem, though. I had to re-route the clutch cable and the clutch is no longer working. Anybody have any ideas???? | ||
| Pakcerfan |
Scratch that. The clutch must work, because I can start it. It won't let me shift, however. I'm not sure where to start looking. | ||
| Pakcerfan |
One more clarification: What I mean by "it won't let me shift" is this. I can start the bike in neutral, but when I go to shift it'll grind and stall out. I'll then depress the clutch (while the bike is not running) and it won't let me move while in gear. I have to put it back in neutral. | ||
| Reuel |
Open that little cover on your clutch and watch as you pull the cable. Not sure what you did exactly to keep it from working normally, so I suggest you just go through the normal clutch adjustment procedures. If there is binding going on somewhere, it should show itself when you do this. |
