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Handlebar (backsweep?) angle...

  • Thread starter Thread starter CA180
  • Start date Start date
C

CA180

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I was wanting to make my own set of bars for my bike. I was going to do a V style drag bar (welded in the center), with about a 1 or 2 inch riser. I was curious as to what the most common, and comfortable, angle was used. Also want to verify that they are 7/8" diameter bars. I havent checked mine, I've just been brainstorming my project. Any help is appreciated. Thanks! I hope to post some new progress on my bike tomorrow or tonight... I've currently got it striped down to nothing but a frame and a motor!


EDIT: These are kinda what I'm going to do

handlebars-LicksVBar.jpg
 
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They are 7/8".

New bars are like $15, so you might consider just buying something tried-and-true.

I had Euro bars on my 750 which put me fairly far forward (Superbike bars are more forward still). If I had to do it over, I'd go with a Daytona touring bend.

http://store.azmusa.com/knclubhanbla.html
 
Good point, but I've been bored lately and want to make something "custom" I've got a plan as to what I'm going to do with the bike, but if all else fails (i.e. they dont turn out worth a crap) I'll probably break down and buy a set. $15 is pretty cheap.
 
what i would do, usualy when i make a custom set of handle bars, is where it clamps on, i cut off right where it starts to angle up, from there on you tack on whatever you wanna do, riser, lower, clip-on look, very lightly tack it so you can get the feel right and even, then tack it again so it stays in place, take the handle bars off and weld them up :) all 3 of my bikes are running custom handle bars :)
 
Good advice... I was only hoping to get a little pre-advice before cuting the bars smaller and smaller. Since I will be welding them in the center, I want to make the angle cut right the first, or atleast the second time.
 
keep track of the measurements you take and mock it up with some wood or pvc or something you can mess with and not care about :)
 
full of wisdom you are... yoda.... yoda man. lol

Good advice... Do they make 7/8th pvc?
 
They make 3/4", which is close enough to get a feel for it and measure angles. You have a tubing notcher, right?
 
It's basically a machine that cuts notches in tubing for various degrees of angles. The cheaper ones basically hold the tubing and you clamp your drill with a metal "hole cutter" attachment onto it, set the angle, and cut the tubing, while others are more inclusive and elaborate (and much more expensive). Do a Google for tubing notchers. Very, very handy machines, they make creating bike frames, roll cages and dune buggies much simpler.

If you want to see a really nice machine, put on a bib to catch all of the drool and look up Tube Shark. Extreme 4X4 on SpikeTV uses one for all of their roll cages and tubular jobs. Wonder how much I could sell a kidney for......
 
What's your plan for attaching them to the triple trees? The bars that you showed are Harley style where you have risers that bolt on to the tree. Suzuki doesen't use those. Just wondering. I've seen some people use dog bones with an extra tube attached at the base. I'm not sure that would work so good with what you're doing though.
 
I've seen people grind down the triple tree and drill them for risers. Not sure how structurally sound that would be. Plus you gotta weld threaded slugs inside the bars to mount them, not too hard.
 
I'm just going to weld another bar to the bottom of the risers to mount them up.

and tx, i wish i had one of those... i usually just use a drill press and a hole saw
 
like this, the grey part is where the handle bars bolt on, the black is the handle bars, and the red is like on off switch or whatever, you get the point, sorry for extremely crappy picture
handlebars.jpg
 
Basically, that's the "dogbone" mentioned previously. You want crappy pictures? Take a look at my idea sketchbook. Technical drawings I can do pretty well, but the initial idea looks like a third grader's rendition of Aliens.....

With a drill press and hole saw, you basically created your own notcher. There are attachments you can buy to mount to your base that holds the tubing at the specified angle, creating your own tubing notcher.

At least you have a welder, I'm scraping together the money to buy one and start learning. My goal is to build a universal frame jig and be able to weld up a frame for whatever engine I happen to have handy at the time.
 
Make sure you post pictures when you're done. It should be pretty cool. Better yet, post pictures of the process. That's always fun to watch too. I like seing how people choose to get from Point A to Point B.
 
maybe i need to just start making my own frames lol i swear, im just gonna take the one good vin number i have and cut it out and make it magnetic and just stick it on whatever bike i wanna ride. if all else fails though on your handle bars send me some demontions or what you want and i can weld some up :p
 
This is what I'm talking about.

handlebars-LicksVBarcopy.jpg


The bar clamps will mount on the "dog bone" lol

Also, no one every really said what a good degree of "pullback" was. How is it measured on most bars? They dont seem to use degrees, just in inches.
 
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Unfortunately there is no "good" degree of pullback. What's best for me, may not be best for you. There are what are considered "ideal" ergonomic positions for your body. But, because we are all shaped differently, the same bars won't put us all in the same position. People who put a lot of miles on their bikes tend to agree that you don't want high bars because the blood will leave your arms. You don't want your bars too low because your shoulders will get sore. You don't want the bars to far forward, that causes lower back pain and also puts weight on your hands. Of course all of this can change with addition or subtraction of fairings and other accessories.

The bars I have on one of my bikes are great at highway speeds. At around 50, the wind hits my chest and takes all of the weight of fof my hands. Below that speed, I tend to get numb hands. Since you're building bars from scratch, this might be your oppurtunity to make what are the perfect handlebars for you. I would say that the best way to do this would be to build a set of bars that are adjustable in all directions. Ride around with them for a while and find the position that works for you. After that, you can build a nice set that are in the exact posiotioin that you want. This is probably not the answer that you were looking for, but there really is no "magic" setup that is going to work for all people. That's why people customize their bikes in the first place.

You're lucky that you have access to the tools to do that kind of work. Most of us have to live with what's available on the market. For people like me, with Monkey arms, the selection is not that great.
 
Being 6' 3", I have to agree. Most metric bikes from the '70's to the early '90's were not made for tall people. However, the problem I encounter the most is not bars that are to tall, forward or back, but bars that are "squeezed" too close together. When I first got the GS, it had K&N staghorn bars on it. I took one look at them and thought "those bars have gotta go". However, once I actually sat on the bike and tested the fit, they are the most comfortable bars I've had so far. On all of the bikes I've had, I've changed the handlebars, normally by going to a bike junkyard and sitting on the various junkers trying out the bars (you want to wear old jeans for this!). My Shadow had Triumph bars on it when I got it, and I ended up with Yamaha bars. Actually, I've had the most success with Yamaha handlebars.

As far as building your own, I'd build a mockup out of 3/4" PVC and use fittings. Leave the fittings loose and you can move the bars around until you find the fit you like. If you go with risers, you can get 45 degree elbows, then cut various short lengths to swap out for the upward and back lengths. Once you've found your "ideal" position, you can figure out how to get the correct bends and lengths for the actual bars using your mockup. While you're making the bars, you might also look into drilling them to hide the switch wires. Heck, the sky's the limit when you're fabricating, you could even run an internal throttle. I've seen homemade rigs built using a left-hand drill bit and bearings that worked just as well as a $200 kit.
 
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