Proper hand guards are a must if you are planning on taking any adventurous chances with the bike. I fully intend to take the bike to situations where a fall is quite possibly in the cards. A snapped lever bent out of commission is a sucky situation on an otherwise spectacular road trip.
The two things preventing breaking stuff mounted on the bars are mad skills and handquards. Since the first one eludes me, I threw cash at the potential problem.
INSTALLATION
*** Disclaimer: This is my first hand guard installation where I need to cut into the grips, so DO NOT use the information below as installation instructions***
Cut off the end of the bar with carpet knife
Morning! Nice description. Do the handguards hit the fairing/screen when you steer?
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No. I was a bit worried about that too, but it’s not even that close.
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Hi webbiker…between zeta,acerbis n barkbuster which one is the best n worth the money…n why u choose barkbuster…
Thanks..n goodjob….
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No idea. I just picked one and hoped for the best.
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Your guards look real nice .., but I like the look and functionality so far (from researching the web) of the Zeta armour guards (with bend) .., what I like is they offer a stronger option where the guard bolts to an nice adaptor that is fixed directly on to your top triple tree fork clamp instead of back to the handlebar.
The Armour version has a replaceable bolt on plastic outer ‘skid plate’ that hits the dirt / road if you drop the bike .., rather than your nice aluminium finish.
Zeta also offer a plastic hand guard version with LED lights incorporated within them that can either be used as replacement blinkers/ flashers , or as driving lights (for more visibility on the road) or both (you tube has some good installation vids for these – search SRmoto.com)
Not only is this triple tree clamp option stronger , but it frees up the clutter on the handlebars.
As I an tall 6’2″ with long arms .., I am also planning to dump the stock handlebars for a centre bar free – ‘Pro Taper’ Contour 1 1/8″ bars.
I will use Rox adaptor Risers, and also a taller height profile bar to get my preferred height for easier standing on the pegs riding.
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There doesn’t seem to be much extra lenght on the cables for risers, but I will have to see ehat others come up with. I’m not tall, but I would like som e rise too.
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I gave Zeta’s Triple clamp mount a try on my rally (with Zeta armour guards). Problematic.
The resulting mount point is further forward so that the hand guard bar must be mounted on the back of the mount rather than the front as intended in order to miss the center cluster (windshield is well clear) . Even so, clearance to instrument cluster is literally about 1mm at full lock,
Bending the Zeta bars to custom fit was possible… but the effort it required convinced me that the the Zetas are WAY stronger than the ancient Barkbusters on my XR350. Also, if you think the bars are crowded, take another look at the top of the Triple clamp. Clutch side went on OK but throttle side was nightmare. Reverted to the bar clamps and they went on with much less fiddlywork, less interference and feel plenty solid. I hope Revzilla will accept the return of the very nicely machined $58 no-go pair of brackets.
Bottom line
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Barkbusters and hand guards was the first thing I ordered for my L as well (Moose Racing,both the barkbusters and the plastic guards over them).
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You may not have intended this as a how to but having read this and liking the idea of a bit of crash protection for on or off road I used this as a guide and have fitted a pair of these to mine. I went for the red!
Chances are mine will not see much in the way of ‘proper off road’ work but a simple tip over can remove/damage the levers so thanks for this wouldn’t have know where to start without your page.
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Awesome job! I used your experience to add the acerbis x factory to my rally. They fit well! Thanks for the inspiration.
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