Tusk bar risers

[Ray Mooney]

Any reason these wouldn't work on a Bandit 1250? They're $20! http://www.rockymountainatv.com/productDetail.do?navType=type&webTypeId=70&navTitle=Control&webCatId=12&prodFamilyId=12976

[Red01]

As long as your front brake hose is long enough. 

If not, it's a perfect excuse to install steel braided lines which improve feel and last longer than the OEM hoses.

[Ray Mooney]

I got an email back from Rocky Mountain ATV. They say these won't fit street bikes. Not sure why, but I'll take their word for it.

[Katamaniac]

I don't know why those wouldn't work for street bikes. The only issue would be the distance between the bolt holes and you could elongate them to fit if need be. I tell you what, I'll order a set and let everyone know how they work. I am planning on putting bar risers on anyway.

[dhcolesj]

The other problem may be strength ratings, either the bolts, or the risers or both may be less than approved for street use.  Even if they are "strong" enough the company may be trying to remove some litigation possibilities if you know what I mean.

[Katamaniac]

I ordered the bar risers yeserday. They are on back order and will ship 8/22. I did some looking on the net and found lots of risers for 7/8" bars for less than $100

[Katamaniac]

OK, my Tusk bar risers came in today and it happened to be my day off, so I got right down to putting them on the Bandit. I added a few pictures to the post.
Here is a shot of what comes with the bar risers. You get one set of risers that fill the cradle, where the bars went, two different sets of shims and one set of handlebar cradles and three sets of Stainless Steel hex bolts. You have to use the caps that are original to the bike.



I use a scraper that is sharpened on the grinder to remove the hex head covers. Make sure you put an old towel or something else on the tank to keep it from getting scratched.



Remove the handlebars and set them up on the front of the triple tree.



Insert the risers and the desired amount of shims.Reinstall the handlebars. As you can see, I had no problems with brake line lengths, it does help that I have the bike lowered, which brings the brake calipers closer to the handlebars anyway.  I used all but the smallest set of shims and I came up with a rise of 1 ¼”. If I added the last shim, the rise would have been just over 1 ½”. Now I have to wait until the other half gets home, so I Can go out and test them out.



The only issue that I have with the new bar risers, are that they are slightly smaller in girth that the original handlebar cradle and cap are. I pulled on the bars as hard as I could and there was no evidence of play or weakness. with the exception of the rubber mounts on the triple trees. The hex is also slightly larger than the originals, so the chrome caps will just fall out.

[Ray Mooney]

Yeah, I can see that there's less mass to the risers than the original cradle and cap. How does it look in person? Is it particularly noticeable?

So now I'm wondering why those folks told me they wouldn't work for street bikes. There is the question of tensile strength, but wouldn't off-road applications be just as stressful as street applications, and maybe even tougher considering triple jumps and the like. Maybe it is a liability issue.

   Thanks for taking one for the team and let us know how they work out. I may be next in line. 

Ray

[CWO4GUNNER]

I can not see why there would be a strength difference with the pounding dirt bikes take and even though they are not exactly excellent looking they certainly look no worse then some of the over priced import hardware sold by some popular Bandit vendors. I think the only concerns might be the ridiculously low price which makes them an extremely great find and value. Very well done, you have certainly struck a blow for street bike consumers on that one. I hope this doesn't sound condescending but I'm proud of you..Bravo Zulu!

[Katamaniac]

You definatley do notice the differance in girth of the risers, but it's not unatractive or anything. I am not woried about the strength of the risiers since they are under compressional stresses anyway. I forgot to mention, the holes in the riisers are a slightly oblonged to compensate for various dimensions in bolt seperation.

I rode it to work today and I did not notice any change in vibration or performance. The comfort is better with the bars a little closer to the ride.

I am pretty happy with these risers, especialy considering the price.

[Ray Mooney]

Excellent. Thanks for the report. I'm ordering a set.

[dhcolesj]

Yep, I think the issue is they don't want people putting them on the street where the liability goes way up.  If those things break off while you're riding in dirt, your chances are good.  If those things break off while your doing 80 MPH, your chances are very bad.  On dirt, you break a leg, on the street you could die.  BIG difference there.  That's how they avoid the high price tag that could come from possible lawsuits. 

The other problem is that they could be thinking "stunters" who put their forks, breaks and bars under tremendous stress, and these things create another potential weakness.  I would imagine, however, that for normal riding with a little curve carving, you would not put any more stress on them than the average dirt bike rider would.  Gotta learn to ignore this thread . . . its another something to spend money on (even if it really isn't that much).

[CWO4GUNNER]

So then why are the one's made for the street outsourced for manufacturing to the lowest bidder in Tianjin China where those companies are exempt from liability and therefore the vendors that sell them here are also.

Yep, I think the issue is they don't want people putting them on the street where the liability goes way up.  If those things break off while you're riding in dirt, your chances are good.  If those things break off while your doing 80 MPH, your chances are very bad.  On dirt, you break a leg, on the street you could die.  BIG difference there.  That's how they avoid the high price tag that could come from possible lawsuits. 

[Geoffwhite18]

because china sucks. We'll end up at war with them before too long. I think I'm going to try these things out!

[dhcolesj]

CWO4GUNNER, you answered your own question:

"where those companies are exempt from liability"

That's why.   The buggers don't want liability so they farm it out to a place where they are exempt.