Replacement handle bars for 650 twin?

[Malcolm Leick]

Hi folks. Bent my bars. BM quote £90 for replacement. Has anyone fitted the Renthal 7/8 braced bars as they are much cheaper. I can't find the right spec for the bike though and their are multitude of shapes! Can anyone help?

I think I need a steering damper to keep me on course in ruts. I have seen them for the 800 but nothing for the 650 twin yet as far as I can see. Any ideas?

 

[argee]

hi,
you'll need the renthal fatbars for the ktm adventure.
and a drill.
and some nn bar risers.

did the same thing, have posted here and at adv riders about it somewhere.

anyhoo, have fun!

 

[MBronskill]

Malcolm,

The Ralle-Moto steering damper fits the F650GS twin as well as the F800GS. It has been extensively reviewed (http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=448366) and I have recently fitted one to my 650. It makes quite a difference. You will need to fabricate some proper shims for the 7/8" handlebars, or you could go directly to 1-1/8" handlebars for your replacement if you can get the Ralle-Moto unit quickly enough. It is, however, expensive!

Mike

 

[Malcolm Leick]

Mike, thanks for the link to the very clear pictures of the damper and surrounding debate. The only thing that is putting me off is cost. I could put the money towards a cheap s/h dirt bike! Looks like a great piece of kit though.

Wonky, what's your best price on the dampers??? I think you said £600 in your email. I'm about to become an impoverished trainee teacher so unless there is mystery benefactor out there I'm stuffed!

Wonky as a first move I need to sort out the bars. Your adapter looks like it is a riser only. I can't see from the pics and info if it converts from 7/8 to 1 1/8. Can you clarify please.

I found another possible option here

http://www.roxspeedfx.com/cgi-bin/cart/showitems.cgi?subcat_id=268

The 1R-P2SE 2 inch elite pivoting riser has reducers so that you can fit either 7/8 or fat bars. They also provide (at extra costs) a brake line which is 2" longer. It won't fit without this.

There is a link on their page to a good review on a KLR user site.

Any users here?

 

[Malcolm Leick]

The brake line is US 54 dollars plus 3 for shipping.

 

[old-man-andy]

Hey Malcolm

If you're having to relace your bars because they're bent, why go to the cost of riser clamps as well? Why not just go for taller bars? (If that's what you want).

Just done a not-very-scientific measurement of my 650GS bars and got a width of 760mm, rise of 55mm-ish and a height of 75mm-ish.

If you wanted braced bars (which you prob do) then the Renthal "Enduro" has a 790-101-71mm measurement, so you'd get approx 25mm rise. I'm sure I read on here that others had used 20mm riser clamps without having to re-route cables or get a longer brake hose.

If you're looking for similar dims to existing, then the "Enduro Medium" is 785-77-62mm, or the "streetfighter" (braced) is 755-100-60mm.

Alternatively, if you're after something cheaper......... I have a set of Renthal "Road Ultra Low" (used) and a set of "Road Low" (un-used) bars that were going to go on a popular internet auction site..........

Linky to bar sizes;

http://www.bandcexpress.co.uk/handlebar-dimensions

As regards the ruts/steering damper - don't ride in ruts ?? lighter grip on the bars

Cheers

Andy

 

[Malcolm Leick]

Many thanks Andy. Very useful and I shall explore further.

The costs of the pivoting riser start stacking up when you add shipping and the brake hose so I think I will forget that one.

Using a braced Enduro bar instead of a fat bar seems ok as long as I can still clamp my nav system somewhere onto the bars.

Cheap is cheerful!

 

[old-man-andy]

Cheap is cheerful!

Checked my Renthal "Road Ultra Low" and "Low" last night against the 650's bars. Both Road bars are swept back more than the 650's so may not be the best bet.

Have you got a local MX shop? You could always give them a call to see if they've got any braced MX/enduro bars on display/in stock and take your SATNAV round there and see if it would fit.

Are you still looking for some spare wheels? EBay has got a 2009 650GS cast wheel for £60+posting;

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/BMW-F-650-GS-...em&pt=UK_Motorcycle_Parts&hash=item255acad6ba

Cheers

Andy

 

[Malcolm Leick]

Wonky you sent me the wrong link to your riser. I have now found this on your site which will do the job.

http://www.adventure-spec.com/shop/...-riser-magura-f650gs-bmw-tenere/prod_229.html

I have ordered one with the fat bars.

Hope they don't foul my screen on full lock!

 

[Malcolm Leick]

Post script: I got the Wirtz Universal handlebar clamp set/size converter from Adventure Spec but annoyingly it wont fit on top of the bottom section of the original 65O twin bar clamp.

The bolt holes don't line up and the bulge which is intended to fill the semi-circle left by the original handlebar position is too big. I checked and the top and bottom of the original clamp are not symetrical so the cut out for the bars on the bottom is smaller than the top.

A further complication is that there is no bolt hole to take the BMW hand guards in the end of the Renthal Fatbars which would mean new handguards.

I'll post a pic in a mo. Adv Spec happy to have the clamps and bar back so I'm having a rethink. Any thought appreciated. I guess I could go for a stock BMW replacement but the Renthal bars are a hell of a lot lighter.

 

[Malcolm Leick]

Here's the pic.