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Re: Handlebar replacement

Posted: 09:56 pm Jul 26 2013
by KDXohio
Postigo wrote:Its possible! If you learn to ride chainsaws. lol

Careful what you wish for.........


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Re: Handlebar replacement

Posted: 10:23 pm Jul 26 2013
by Postigo
As you can see we are not the only ones stopping with trees. lol

Re: Handlebar replacement

Posted: 11:32 pm Jul 26 2013
by diymirage
her one arm must be so much bigger then the other

having to pull start all those engines

Handlebar replacement

Posted: 11:40 pm Jul 26 2013
by jeeptech1
I'm with rbates. The extra cost of switching my handguard mounts and handle bar mounts over to fat bars isn't worth the negligible strength increase.

Re: Handlebar replacement

Posted: 11:52 pm Jul 26 2013
by diymirage
no extra cost in switching the handguard mounts, the inner diameter of fatbars is the same as 7/8 bars so that part slides right in
the center mounts need to be massaged over to about 1 inch (on mine at least)
I just screwed the caps on, placed them in the vice under a drill press and ran her through with a 1 inch drill bit

works like a charm


It is my opinion that fatbars have a lot more strength then regular bars
now, I don't think ive ever had name brand 7/8th bars but some of the ones I had were thickwalled aluminum and they did not compare to the pro tapers

Re: Handlebar replacement

Posted: 11:59 pm Jul 26 2013
by KDXohio
diymirage wrote:her one arm must be so much bigger then the other

having to pull start all those engines
There's only 24 now if only they were STIHL's :drool:

Re: Handlebar replacement

Posted: 12:15 am Jul 27 2013
by rbates9
diymirage wrote:
It is my opinion that fatbars have a lot more strength then regular bars
now, I don't think ive ever had name brand 7/8th bars but some of the ones I had were thickwalled aluminum and they did not compare to the pro tapers
Just so I understand you right, Pro Taper fat bars are much better then cheap knock off bars? I never would have guessed that...

Re: Handlebar replacement

Posted: 12:33 am Jul 27 2013
by KDXohio
rbates9 wrote:
diymirage wrote:
It is my opinion that fatbars have a lot more strength then regular bars
now, I don't think ive ever had name brand 7/8th bars but some of the ones I had were thickwalled aluminum and they did not compare to the pro tapers
Just so I understand you right, Pro Taper fat bars are much better then cheap knock off bars? I never would have guessed that...

Thats like comparing harbor freight to snap-on

Handlebar replacement

Posted: 12:35 am Jul 27 2013
by jeeptech1
Good point on drilling the inner clamps, never thought about doing that. I don't have anything against 1 1/8 bars. The cost just sucks to swap over! You can buy 2 sets of protaper se bars for the price of 1 1/8 bars with clamps.

Re: Handlebar replacement

Posted: 07:20 am Jul 27 2013
by royadams
Bates I would agree I would love to have rubber mounted bars I just don't have a choice for now, I am keeping a look out for a upper tree for my 2000 kx front end that has rubber mounts. My 7/8 pro taper bars I used to have took many falls with no problem. My first set of bars were tusk aluminum bars. One ride and they were toast. I now have flexx bars and they are tuff and help a ton with the vibration on my kdx 250.

Re: Handlebar replacement

Posted: 09:19 am Jul 27 2013
by diymirage
KDXohio wrote:
rbates9 wrote:
diymirage wrote:
It is my opinion that fatbars have a lot more strength then regular bars
now, I don't think ive ever had name brand 7/8th bars but some of the ones I had were thickwalled aluminum and they did not compare to the pro tapers
Just so I understand you right, Pro Taper fat bars are much better then cheap knock off bars? I never would have guessed that...

Thats like comparing harbor freight to snap-on

funny you should mention that, im planning on heading to harbor freight today to pick up some tools for work
(they wont buy me tools but if I bring in my own they will replace them should they break)

Re: Handlebar replacement

Posted: 09:59 am Jul 27 2013
by Postigo
Its a matter of preference and what ever make you feel comfortable during the ride.fat bars were designed to provide strength and allow the required flexibility at the same time. You can make a harder 7/8 but once you make it harder the flexibility will be compromised. There are plenty of 7/8 and fat bars choices in todays market go with the one that fits you better and enjoy the ride. At the end it doesn't matter how it looks or if it bends or not (probably the will bent either way) what really matters is how well the fit you during the ride.

Re: Handlebar replacement

Posted: 01:04 pm Jul 27 2013
by 2 Wheels
I want a near exact replacement of the bars I have now.
Where's these rubber cones you guys are talking about?

Re: Handlebar replacement

Posted: 01:11 pm Jul 27 2013
by Goofaroo
Well I dumped my bike, and the handlebars are a little tweaked. Barely noticeable, but I notice.
I did a small write-up in the injuries thread about the wipe-out. Nothing serious.
I reckon I wanna get new bars. That should be easy to do right?
Plus I was considering some of those guards I see on some of your bikes. The ones that look like they are designed to protect the controls if the bike goes down?
Any concerns or things I should know about before I attempt to swap handle bars out?
Thanks folks.
If you have the factory (or aftermarket) carbon steel bars and you are going to go to the trouble to replace them, then you should at least spend the extra $20 or so and get a set of aluminum bars. The steel bars can bend even in just a minor tip-over as you seem to have found out. The aluminum bars are much more durable and capable of surviving some pretty large impacts. A set of aluminum hand guards will also add some strength.

As for the brand, I have had expensive ones and cheap ones and they all have performed well. You'll also want to get a bend that fits you well. If you are somewhat tallish you will probably prefer a high bend. Like all Japanes bikes, a KDX is a great fit if you are about 5' 7" but if you are taller you will definitely feel more comfortable with a higher bar. I have always used a CR high bend but the YZ high bend is a good one as well.

Once you have your new bars and hand guards, start by loosely assembling everything and then see how much room you have to work with. Since all bars come pretty wide to fit multiple applications, you will probably want to cut some material off of each end. Since you own a KDX I will assume that you are doing mostly woods riding and you will find that narrowing the bars will make it much easier to slip through the trees. I usually end up cutting about 3/4" to 1 1/4" off of each end of the bar and it makes it dramatically easier to negotiate the tight stuff. Just be carefull when you mock it up and make sure that you don't remove so much material that everything won't bolt onto the bars properly.

Also, as some have said, it could very well be that your forks are just tweaked a bit in the clamps. This is normal with a set of convential forks and even happens with USD forks. On the trail when this happens, you can just put the front wheel against a tree or between your knees and straighten them out. Conventional forks are much more succeptible to this but it is certainly nothing to worry about. The forks that came on your bike work great if they are set up properly and are very plush and forgiving.

Re: Handlebar replacement

Posted: 01:46 pm Jul 27 2013
by diymirage
2 Wheels wrote:I want a near exact replacement of the bars I have now.
Where's these rubber cones you guys are talking about?
the bars bolt unto the triples by 2 sets of caps
take the top caps off and the bars come off

but if you have the stock triples (on a H at least not sure about the other years) then the bottom caps are not molded to the triples like you may find on other bikes
instead, there is a bolt that goes through them and through the triples
inside the triples there are 2 cones on each side, they act as bushing and shock absorbers

go back to the first link I posted with the fat bar mounts, that should explain it

Handlebar replacement

Posted: 05:07 pm Aug 12 2013
by 2 Wheels
So I replaced the handlebars on my 96. Got some black Renthal's. I noticed in the brief instruction manual that it say there should be space left between the handlebar clamps after tightening. On mine there is barely any space. None in the front and maybe 2-3 sheets of paper space on the backend of the clamps.
Is this going to be ok or am I going to have a catastrophic event when I hit a rough spot?

Re: Handlebar replacement

Posted: 06:47 pm Aug 12 2013
by royadams
It will be fine. Arrows on clamps forward snug front bolts and tighten rear. As long as you have a small gap in the back you will be fine.

Handlebar replacement

Posted: 07:06 pm Aug 12 2013
by rbates9
The reason for the gap is to ensure that the bar clamps are not tight together and the bars are holding the clamps apart. If the clamps were tight (no gap) then the bars wouldn't be holding the clamps apart. If you run into a case that the clamps are tight together then you can file the clamps down so there is a gap. But as was said before, arrows lined up and tightened the front side then tighten the rear. But if you want you can rotate the bar clamp assembly (the complete stud / lower mount and the upper clamp) and it will move the bars ahead a little bit but the arrows would then face to the rear.

Handlebar replacement

Posted: 09:02 pm Aug 12 2013
by 2 Wheels
Thanks guys.

Re: Handlebar replacement

Posted: 02:41 pm Aug 19 2013
by terminatr
rbates9 wrote: I would never consider using the aluminum cones in place of the rubber. They are there for a reason. They reduce vibration and give flex to the bars in a crash.
+1.

My KLX-300 has solid mounts, and it twists the fork everytime the bike lay on the ground.

My KDX has never twisted the fork, and I crash it all the time. Rubber cones work!