Build options for a tall guy?

[ChewsVolt]

I recently got my XS running, I am very happy with the power range and the brash nature of the vibrations. It's all stock configuration with slightly lower bars. My legs feel a bit cramped. I will be putting on larger bars, probably tracker style, which should alleviate some leg cramp as my upper body reclines with 7" of pull-back. I like to be up over the center or tank of my bike when riding twisties though. I don't want to just shift my weight over the rear wheel.
I will be customizing the bike as soon as it's running clean and reliably. I wanted to do a tracker or desert sled looking ride. Are there any options to increase the distance from my seat to pegs but keep my center of gravity centered on the bike? Best I can come up with is a thicker seat or some peg lowering. Not a great idea since I am already scraping in corners. And a thick seat just isn't the look I am going for. Maybe it would do me some good to actually raise the rear with longer shocks and build a seat for the new forward tilt of the bike. How high could I go with that before rake becomes an issue?
And my height is 6-2 average leg length I think and longer torso.
Just spitballing ideas, any suggestions are appreciated.

 

[fredintoon]

Hi ChewsVolt,
if your bike still has the stock rototiller bars on it, that's at least half of your stance problem right there.
I'd say swap them for a tracker bar and take a test ride before making decisions about the seat.
Besides lifting the bike's arse in the air, longer rear shocks will effectively lessen the frame rake and that in turn will quicken the steering.
The usual consensus is that perhaps an inch longer is OK.
And yeah, negatory on the peg lowering.
OK on a sidecar rig but not on a solo; like you say, they're already low enough to drag on enthusiastic cornering.
If you need more seat height and don't fancy a thicker seat pad
(My tall buddy tried that back in the day, yes, he sat 2" taller but the seat pad was all squiggly and tended to sag sideways. Perhaps modern hi-density foam would fix that?)
How about lifting the stock seat on struts?

 

[ChewsVolt]

Fred- thanks for the tips! I think you're right, I was out test riding yesterday and I really need to start with bars.
If I reduce the rake for sportier handling I will be fine with that, this bike will be for shorter joy rides, a couple of hours at a time. Long term highway performance won't be an issue. I am thinking fatter 18" wheel up front
If I really feel like lowering the peg is a necessity, I was thinking of swapping for some longer dirt forks/tubes. But that is a bit extreme, I want a scrambler/tracker look but not a retro-fitted dirt bike look.
What's a decent brand of rear shocks people around here have liked? I may drop the money for Hagon or Progressive when I decide the final height. I think i have some sportster shocks in the garage that are half inch longer, just need to see if the eye grommets are the right size and I can mount those

 

[ChewsVolt]

I got some #24 bend bars from Baracuda racing. Pretty nice, I went with the biggest flat rack bars they have, 5" rise and 10" pullback. I failed to consider that when riding I lean forward a bit into the wind, so it's a bit big, leaving more bend in my elbows than i predicted. But it does get my knees out of my chest. Nice thing is they are hand bent (I believe) and stainless steel. So I can keep a satin look instead of bright chrome. The rest of the bike is on hold currently while I suss out some PMA emergencies.
In terms of a seat I am thinking of going with an old school tracker looking bates style seat, I may be able to cheat some hegiht into that? Or slide it back a bit. It definitely would compress as much as a full thick foam

 

[pekka]

I'm about 6 feet tall (184cm). My current setup is:

• LSL Tracker bars with 1 inch risers.
• Seat height is about 6 inches from the frame seat rails (thick (hard) foam and mounted on rubber vibration dampers).
• Foot pegs are around 2 inches lower and 2 inches rear from stock.
• 340mm rear shocks (looking for 360mm units)
• Fork tubes dropped 10mm through the yokes.

Pic: http://pjl.kotipolttoinen.com/random/xs650_2015.jpg (the foot pegs have been lowered 2 inches after this photo)

With these mods I finally feel comfortable riding longer distances. The pegs do scrape in tight high speed corners but on the other hand riding gravel roads is fun now that standing up is much easier.

Pekka

 

[ChewsVolt]

Nice setup! That seat type was really what I was thinking for my first idea, old school dirt bike look, but thicker foam. Looks good too. The trend is to have crazy thin seats, but when your knees are in you pits, it tends to be less cool. how did you lower pegs? I was considering taking some peg mounts off of a dual sport or something. I want to run these Ascot pipes

I should get them on before trying to alter the pegs. That is the seat type I am considering now as well, I think it would compress less than stock, but raising it up may look silly

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[pekka]

Thanks! I tried that thin seat thing and did not like it. Even with rubber mounts the vibration was rather unpleasant. And also too low to be comfortable. Actually this is the fourth seat I built for this bike
It has three layers of 30mm foam and I should have used softer foam for the top layer.

I took some pics of the peg mounts: http://pjl.kotipolttoinen.com/random/pegs/ Last season I had the pegs higher but this spring I decided that I need to lower them. So I made a "quick and dirty" extra bracket on the right side to mount the peg to same level as the exhaust. The exhaust is in the way and this current solution does not look too clean. Next winter I may build something prettier. Notice the flat iron bar behind the motor holding the peg mounts together. I felt that the frame mounts alone may not be strong enough to stand on. Also had to rebuild the brake pedal to fit.

I like that Bates style seat. I've been thinking about getting one myself. However, bigger seat gives a little room to move around. Useful when going fast and turning left on dirt

Pekka

 

[Tomterrific]

Use 13.5 inch shocks (approximate). Use a seat pad. I. Made a pad out of a bath mat and it really helped. Bars are personal so don't spend much because you might end up with a collection finding the perfect fit. I have #10 flattrack bars on my XS but I pulled the Superbike bars off my SR500 and installed Euro bend bars. The Euro bends are very comfy, just perfect. I'd like to try Euro bends on the XS as the forks are the same so I expect they would be perfect on the XS also.

If you raise the back with shocks, the foot pegs will be higher off the road so you could drop the foot pegs a bit. If you do please post back with a description.

Tom, 34 inch inseam.

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