Riders who have your bikes setup for touring...........

[Guest]

What handlebars are you running? The bars currently on the bike are pretty low and narrow and I'm looking for something that will sit me up a little more upright and give me more leverage over the bike. On one of my other bikes (Vstrom 650) I'm actually running some TUSK ATV bars and really like those on that specific bike. I've got a ton of cable/brake line slack so going up and back won't be a problem. When I originally acquired the bike it had buckhorns on it.

If it helps I'm 5' 8" and about 200 lbs. geared up (173cm and 91 kilos)

Thanks for any help.

[Gorminrider]

handlebars are like shoes. You really have to try them....and the angle at your wrist might be very important however "tall" the bars are... but I'd say generally something like these are a good bet overall -"Daytona" type. Your length of arm might be more important than your overall height.
If you have a scrapyard near, get some cheap off old bikes to try.

[Steve]

Do you have, or plan to get, a windshield? That will make as much of a difference as your physical size.

If you don't have a windshield, the "Daytona" bars are very will liked by most members here. However, since you mentioned "touring", I am guessing there might be some wind protection in your future. If you have a windshield, you will not need to lean into the wind, so the stock bars will likely do quite nicely. I don't know what differences there might be between the early "E" bars and the "G" bars from a few years later, but the shafties ("G" bikes) were intended for more touring duty and might have handlbars that are oriented for more-upright seating positions.

Get a message to tkent02. He likely has a couple dozen handlebars in the attic that he has removed from bikes so he can install his preferred lower bars.

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[Burque73]

I really like the stock "G" bars on the 850 and am 5'8" tall as well. I lack about 65 pounds to equal your weight though.

[trevor]

I use euro style bars...I don't like my hands to be turned in too much...prefer a more dirt bike style...better leverage.
As you can see...touring is not a problem on these bikes. They love it!
This was a few years ago when my cousin and I took our wives on a 7 day trip through BC...two up and loaded with gear...not a single issue!

Oh and as far as a fairing....meh...why ruin the experience?

[Downs]

I went ahead and ordered the same ATV bars I'm using on the Strom. They are pretty cheap so if I don't like them I'm not out much money and can probably resell them for very little loss on the STROM forums.

Wind protection is for now going to be a Slipstreamer "Turbo" windshield that I acquired from a pile of bike parts at my parent's house, I'm just waiting for a set of replacement mounting parts to come in from Dennis Kirk. Somewhere is a fairing that looks very similar to the ones on the KZ1000 police bikes, but if I remember right it was mounted to the forks instead of being stationary like the KZ's is. It's also in a pile of parts somewhere. I have my brother trying to track that down for me.

I still need to order one of the used OEM racks off of ebay and then decide what I'm going to do for side bags. I switched to hardbags on my other bikes long ago and swore I'd never go back but it's looking like soft luggage is going to be the easiest route on this one.

Thanks for the replies guys

[Steve]

Wind protection is for now going to be a Slipstreamer "Turbo" windshield that I acquired from a pile of bike parts at my parent's house, I'm just waiting for a set of replacement mounting parts to come in from Dennis Kirk. Somewhere is a fairing that looks very similar to the ones on the KZ1000 police bikes, but if I remember right it was mounted to the forks instead of being stationary like the KZ's is. It's also in a pile of parts somewhere. I have my brother trying to track that down for me.

Not sure how big the "Turbo" shield is, but click on the link in my sig for my son's 650L. You will see the National Cycle Street Shield EX. Nice, smaller shield. Takes most of the wind off your chest, but is not visually intrusive. Be careful going with anything that is very large mounted to the bars. If it's not set up properly, it can really affect stability, especially in a crosswind. Note that the "crosswind" might be temporary, like when you pass a semi.

I still need to order one of the used OEM racks off of ebay ...

There were many racks available "back in the day", but I don't know that any of them were "OEM".

There may have been some that were dealer-installed options, but I don't know that any carried a Suzuki brand.

I could be wrong (again).

.

[Downs]

Not sure how big the "Turbo" shield is, but click on the link in my sig for my son's 650L. You will see the National Cycle Street Shield EX. Nice, smaller shield. Takes most of the wind off your chest, but is not visually intrusive. Be careful going with anything that is very large mounted to the bars. If it's not set up properly, it can really affect stability, especially in a crosswind. Note that the "crosswind" might be temporary, like when you pass a semi.


There were many racks available "back in the day", but I don't know that any of them were "OEM".

There may have been some that were dealer-installed options, but I don't know that any carried a Suzuki brand.

I could be wrong (again).

.

They may not be OEM. I remember the bike had one on it when I originally acquired it and I took it off years and years ago and can't remember where it's at. My dad or brother might remember. They were square tube in build for the actual rack portion.

[Grimly]

In an attempt to emulate the riding position of the best long-distance tourer I'd ever used, the BMW R100RT, I fitted a set of anonymous bars from a scrap bike, which isn't much help to you, I know.
When I rebuilt the front end of that bike a couple of years ago, those bars were a bit bent from a fall-over many years earlier and I ended up replacing them with a set of Honda ST1100 bars and used a 1" riser to bring them perfectly up to where I had got used to.
The point has been mentioned that an unfaired bike suits slightly lower bars, where you're leaning into the wind a lot more. Behind a good screen or fairing you can sit much more comfortably.

[Downs]

I'm currently waiting on a reply about a vetter fairing and if the owner is willing to ship it. Somewhere in the big pileo bike parts at my parents is a KZ1000 looking fairing too. I'm trying to setup the bike as my touring/sport touring bike so absolute wind protection isn't necessary but some decent wind protection would be nice.

[Steve]

I'm currently waiting on a reply about a vetter fairing and if the owner is willing to ship it.

If you and your prospective seller are anywhere near a Greyhound Bus station, consider shipping via Greyhound.

Yes, the bus people. I had a fairing shipped from Colorado to oHIo several years ago. Shipping via UPS or FedEx ground would have been about $150. Greyhound shipped it for $55. And it took about three days. Note that if it's a popular route for people, their luggage has priority in the luggage bay, so your package might have to wait for the next bus (or the one after that).

Somewhere in the big pileo bike parts at my parents is a KZ1000 looking fairing too.

I would be interested in seeing that.

Yes, there was a police-version KZ1000P, but Kawasaki also had a deal with Vetter and sold fairings and luggage that had a "Kawasaki by Vetter" tag on them.

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[sam000lee]

Second on the Daytona bars. I did 10,000 miles over 6 weeks with this set up. Only thing I would have changed was a gel insert in the seat.