 bars_topside.jpg Tue Mar 2 13:03:41 2004  monster_bars_2.jpg Tue Mar 2 13:03:53 2004  suburban_bars_1.jpg Tue Mar 2 13:04:03 2004  suburban_bars_2.jpg Tue Mar 2 13:04:11 2004  suburban_bars_3.jpg Tue Mar 2 13:04:19 2004  suburban_bars_4.jpg Tue Mar 2 13:04:27 2004 |
The long-anticipated bar clamp arrived here a few days ago, and despite the delays from the machinist, I'm EXCEPTIONALLY happy with it. I designed it to be stout, massive, beefy, strong. Until I held it in my hands, I had no idea just HOW stout it was; as an example, that main piece is 1-1/4" thick. I like it, a lot. Reminds me (physically and visually) of the bar mounts on the Tuono, if I may be so bold. The whole idea here was to sidestep the usual practice of finding generic risers & drilling them into the stock upper triple clamp. There's nothing wrong with that, it's just a bit fiddly, and drilling into the triple isn't something that everyone wants to do. Neither is adapting risers made for some other make/model. Most upper clamps are scarred & weathered, so if figured it might be nice to cover that up too. The "overclamp" doesn't replace the upper triple, it covers it. The fork tubes are gripped with pinch bolts (one single 8mm on either side, on the prototype shown; production units will have 2x 6mm bolts per side, instead of the single 8mm). Those pinch bolt areas were aligned with the stock pinch bolts, just to look less obtrusive. Incidentally, I used 8mm bolts on the risers/cap as well, just because I wanted the extra strength. The threads in those holes reach all the way down through the base. The basic mounting procedure, then, it to remove the stock clipons and slide this down on top of the stock upper triple, tighten the pinch bolts, and bolt on the handlebar .. it's that simple. I also added a pair of c'sunk holes beneath the risers, to accommodate a pair of bolts thru the stock upper, AS AN OPTION. This is a redundant "feel good" sort of deal; if you wanna drill, go ahead. If not, you don't have to. I don't believe longer cables will be required with most handlebars, though it depends on what you're using & whether you alter the routing. I'm going to use the Suburban Machinery bars shown in most of the pics on this bike, and the clamp works well with them. Plenty of clearance with the top of the fork tubes (though the clutch cable / instrument clearance is a pain, though that's got nothing to do with the clamps). The other handlebar shown there is from a Ducati Monster, which gives the bike something of a Tuono / Speed Triple riding position. I may try each type & see which I like better. These are finished by bead blasting; the finish is semi-gloss/semi-matte, just a nice neutral and uniform appearance. Polishing them up would be a pretty simple affair. If there is enough interest, I'll order a batch of these; machinist says he'll give us a small price break with an order of 7 units (that's how many he can carve from one length of bar stock). He's figuring 4 weeks to complete. Final price is $120 apiece including shipping to your door (within the USA); bolts are not included, I'll have a list of lengths shortly, so you can pick what you like from where you like (titanium, or black hardware-store grade, whatever). If you're interested in one of these first seven, please contact me directly, immediately. Any questions, go ahead & ask. Regards, Robb