I feel like a monkey with three thumbs on each hand

[King Rat]

I have tried to remove the standard Adventure crash bars and replace them with those lovely castings of Steptoe origin.

Anyone else thinking of this, be prepared. It is not quite as straightforward as just undoing a few bolts and doing up a few again. I have just spent nearly 6 hours on this simple operation.

The crash bars require the removal of the tank to get them off - the top bolts are hidden very nicely up under the tank, they also hold the fairing and cockpit stanchions in place. These can simply be undone, move bar out of the way and then do the same bolt up again with a bit of grease on it while it is out, of course. Don't have a full tank of fuel when you come to take your crash bars off, like I did. It will tucker you out trying to hold it with one hand and undo the quick release clips with the other (no, I don't have somewhere to hang a piece of rope from, the sky is a long way up and there are no trees on the pavement.)

The rear mounting bolts for the crash bars look simple. An 8mm allen key is all it needs. Except for the right hand bar, whihc requires a 12" minimum extension bar and socket type allen key (I only have right angle allen keys) and no long extension long enough to reach down inside the tube. So, I trooped the whole rattling lot (wasn't spending an age putting those bits back on again) down to my friendly garage man and borrowed some tools. Got the long extension, allen bit and got the offending bolt out.

These top rear mounting bolts also hold your subframe /seat frame on. They are too long without the crash bars. Be prepared to have to either hack saw the bolts down, or have some a bit shorter ready to fit - I did neither and have thad to temporarily screw them in as far as they will go but not tight against the frame rails....asty asty until I can get this sorted, probably the other side of Christmas......

Next up, the bash plate. The bottom of the crash bars use the bash plate as part of the structure and as a frame/bracket across the bottom. Without the crash bars, there is nowhere at the front for the bash plate to fit to, unless you do some fabrication or have long bolts and bits to make it fit. I didn't, so my bash plate is now also sat on the garage mans shelf along with the fixing bolts for it.

Then I came to fit Steptoe's cast crash protectors along with their stainless fasteners supplied with them. Could I get them to fit, could I hell. In the end I gave up and phoned him. He gave me a few more pointers, but I am actually now too tired to go and try. I will give it an hour or so and then go and see if I can get them to go on. What seemed like an easy enough operation has turned out to be an all day job, provided you are tooled up for it and know what to expect. Hence this little bit of info for anyone else. I can't give any tips or pointers as to how to get the cast protectors to fit, as I haven't succeeded yet - and then there are the rubber strips to fit. You need some kind of glue for this, silicon Steptoe suggests, I am not sure what kind of silicon though. Never used it. Might try Sikaflex - sticks anything to GRP in boat building, no idea of heat resistence though, it isn't designed for that.

So all I am saying is - be prepared before you try to start., and set aside a day to do it, then you'll do it in an hour.

 

[Popeye]

Sorry about your problems King Rat.

I had the advantage of already not having the stock adventure "crash bars" on - I had Hepco & Becker instead.

Took my bars off in 20 mins.

Right side steptoe guard on in 5 minutes - left took a little longer at 10 minutes as I had a smoke in between jobs.

You can still fit the bash plate on without the adv. bars - 2 x 13mm bolts at the back, 2 x 10mm at the front from memory.

Sorry I'm not closer otherwise I'd come and give you a hand.

 

[Stewart H]

Another of those ten minute jobs eh

Stewart

 

[Steptoe]

You can still fit the bash plate on without the adv. bars - 2 x 13mm bolts at the back, 2 x 10mm at the front from memory.

.

That's correctomundo. Sump guard still fits without the bars

I've had two people swear they couldn't get the headguards to fit, they were going to an event the following week that i was also attending, they brought the headguards along and i fitted them in 5 minutes

 

[King Rat]

Yep, that is exactly what you said on the phone - but I am a totally stupid imbecile who can't line up two holes.

 

[Ogmios]

Yep, that is exactly what you said on the phone - but I am a totally stupid imbecile who can't line up two holes.

no. no - it would be so unfair......
to make a smart remark about your 'love life'.
so i wont.




sorry! - could not resist!

 

[King Rat]

I'll line them up, Stanley!

 

[Popeye]

Simon thanks for the pics you pm'd, they helped a bit.

They certainly don't line up do they !!

But consider the job at hand. Approach it with logic, it's not trying to fight you despite how it might feel.

You have three potential variables.

1. the guards
2. the holes you are fitting them to.
3. the fitting process.

The head guards are all cast from the same moulds so they are, within small shrinkage tolerances, all the same.

None of the hole positions have changed on the bike.

Therefore we need to look at the fitting process.

I've been out to the garage and taken mine off to see if I can replicate your problem and I can, almost perfectly. Offer the guards up to the holes and they appear to be out by a country mile.

Here's what to do.

Line up the bottom fixing first and loosely run one of the bolts PART WAY into the hole, use copperslip as Steptoes recommends. Don't tighten anything yet.

Now the guard will align onto the two side fixing points. You need to have a bit of "feel" here. You may need to spring the guard ever so slightly.

Make sure the holes in the headguard line up with the tapped holes you are fitting to. Don't rely on the bolts to pull the guard into position. Tapping the headguard with a mallet can help.

Get one bolt in, again PART WAY only at this stage and then the other.

BE VERY CAREFUL THAT THE STAINLESS STEEL BOLTS ARE PROPERLY THREADED INTO THE HOLES. IF YOU FEEL RESISTANCE AT ANY POINT BACK THEM OUT AND START AGAIN AS IT IS VERY EASY TO STRIP THE THREADS.

Tighten all the bolts down evenly, ie, don't tighten one bolt, then the next, then the last.

Hope that helps, shout if you're still having problems.

 

[King Rat]

Thanks Popeye. That is the system on the printed sheet that cam ewith them.

I have tried everything. I am giving it a rest today as I have a wedding to do, but I will have another go, they look so good and are so well made. I am just frustrated that they are not playing the game with me.

I should have said, Steptoe has also been very patient and helpful over this. Nobody should have any worries about him or his products. He has spent quite a few minutes on the phone while I tried to fit them with the phone under my chin! He is a top chap.

 

[Bronco Billy]

If you fancy a ride down to my shed tomorow we can put them on together

I have Fitted the Stantons on mine, they are the ones that provided the original mould for Steptoe ....

You can bell me on 07735527121.

 

[King Rat]

Thanks Bronco, very kind offer - I am working in Tetbury, then Cardiff tomorrow...another decent ride though!

No panic, I can live without anything for a day or two. Maybe if it isn't too late I'll look in in the eveiingng. Popeye has also ofered to help.

What a brilliant bunch this forum/club is.

 

[Bronco Billy]

Just for info I have the Original Stanton Headguards from Jim himself. Even they do not fit without a bit of jiggling. Dont use a washer on the bottom bolt and start this bolt first, just a few threads, then go to the other ones and just start them before going back and tightening em all up.

 

[Steptoe]

Just for info I have the Original Stanton Headguards from Jim himself. Even they do not fit without a bit of jiggling.

Woody has original stanton guards, and he had to phone jim stanton because he couldn't fit them. He had a bit more of a jiggle and suddenly they clicked into place.

Once they've been in place and got hot and cold a few times the next time you remove them and have to put them back on it's far easier.

. Dont use a washer on the bottom bolt and start this bolt first, just a few threads, .

As a matter of fact you don't really need the bottom bolt. Never used them on my own guards and they've been down the road.
They'd stay in place if you slid down the road with no bolts holding them due to the shape.

In the past i've had someone sell set because they said they wouldn't fit. The person they sold them to fitted them straight on in 10 minutes, and i've recently had someone snap the lower support trying to fit a set -
It puzzles me how someone can fit them in ten minutes and others can't, because they all come from the same mould

 

[Steptoe]

As tested yesterday at rockingham by dave ridgley (taz) - Hows the elbow Dave

 

[Bronco Billy]

Yes that my experience too, regarding re fitting them once they`ve been on and warmed up a bit ....

 

[thauma]

As tested yesterday at rockingham by......

The picture shows that these give pretty good protection.

I've got the standard BMW crash bars and plastic head covers on my bike, and while I dropped the bike today (just slipped, lost balance and over it went = 0mph drop ), the bars did bugger all and the plastic head cover just broke away from the mounts - did its job, but god knows how much a new one will cost

Maybe I need to get me some of these.

 

[elevensies]

mine took all of 10 mins to fit, very straight forward really.

took hour to spray em blue, then decided i liked black better

hope you got yours sorted

 

[fatnfast]

I must admit, mine didnt line up paticullary well, but a few modifications soon sorted them.
With the guard bottom allen loosely in, lift the guard as far as it will go and check underneath the barrell. I found the guard was touching the fins, and although forcing it would allow the upper two bolts to locate, I dont like the idea of putting stress on the bolts/threads.
Using a hacksaw I cut a grove in the head guard (its only a couple of mm's deep) which helped.
Also, do you have the aftermarket chrome bling circular covers at the rear of each barrel? I do (yes I know, waste of money but I was young and foolish when I bought the bike!). This is where I found the guards also snag. Out with the dremel and a few mm removed sorted this.
I also ever-so-slightly elongated the holes and now they fit well.

 

[Steptoe]

You don't really need to bother with the lower mounting bolt (under the cylinder) I haven't. And the guards will still stay in place if you slide along the road as they encase and grip the rocker cover harder; As mine did when i slid off

I've had someone snap off the lower arm trying to fit them.
As every set is the same and this is the only one out of 60 (ish) sets fitted, i can only presume he tried to pull them into position by tightening the bolt, which of course is putting strain in the opposite direction to which they're designed to take. Hey Ho.

 

[King Rat]

They have been sat in the box since, waiting for me to get another morning/afternoon/day to do nothing but fiddle....I am going to get a round file out and just open up the holes a tincy whincy bit, to give a bit more free play when trying to line the bolts up in their threads. They want to cross thread and I am not going to force them - it is probably less than 1mm needed, so a quick file stroke or two will do it.

Got to find somewhere to steal some silicon goo from too! My instant gasket had gone hard when I dug it out....it was only about 10 years old too and I had only used it once. Bloody rip off.