Hi All. I'm new to the forum

[thuban]

Fredintoon, "rototiller" bars. Hahaha Now that I think about it, I ran a tiller the other day ( No S*it!) and your right-on! I only have a sneaky 27 miles on it. Got Insurance but no Insp or tag yet so...Texas, black and white, Big Namu would be beached on my tail light ! Woof!
Oops, spoke too soon. My wrist are face down but my knuckles and arm bones are not 90 degrees so I have to cant my wrist. ( I got to say, these bars let me sit back in the saddle without leaning over and keeps me off it's withers.) A good set of factory bars, not bent and in good shape, is hard to find. I think I need to put some miles on it.

 

[fredintoon]

Fredintoon, "rototiller" bars. Hahaha Now that I think about it, I ran a tiller the other day ( No S*it!) and your right-on! I only have a sneaky 27 miles on it. Got Insurance but no Insp or tag yet so...Texas, black and white, Big Namu would be beached on my tail light ! Woof!

Hi thuban,
those that love them call themselves "The Buckhorn Gang"
And for all I know their physique may be suited to that particular handlebar.
What I reckon is that particular bar shape is far better suited to an agricultural implement that it is to a motorcycle.

 

[thuban]

Fredintoon, Oh, man, your making me go out on a limb here and in a public forum and only a few miles on the bike. My ole lady is well endowed. Slow, plush and comfortable, kinda like a city bus. Sometimes you gota have small, fast and sporty. so before I say for sure, "I'm with those guys over there, Butch Cassidy and the buckhorn gang" I need to run these around the block... just a little more. I think Paul agrees with you.

Thu

 

[Jim]

Fredintoon, Oh, man, your making me go out on a limb here and in a public forum and only a few miles on the bike.

Nah... Fred's got it in for the buckhorns... never misses a chance to diss 'em... he relishes in it actually. I think Fred's of the opinion that we're all built jus' like him and by gawd should all be good little robots and use the same bars he prefers. Feel free to correct me here Fred.
If I built a dirt bike, I'd put scrambler bars on it. Cafe? Clip-ons most likely. Chopper... gotta be the ape hangers. I restored my SG for cruising. For that purpose, the buckhorns suit me just fine... in spite of Fred remindin' me to change 'em out every chance he gets.

Thu, put some miles behind 'em... make up your own mind.

 

[thuban]

Roger that, Jim.

 

[59Tebo]

Chopper... gotta be the ape hangers.

Hi Thu,
"The Basketcase" ('75) will have a "chopper-ish" profile, with forward controls, and a much lower seat position. As I do mock-ups, I'm finding that bars with a 5" to 7-1/2" rise will give me the laid-back, hands "high enough", stance I'm looking for. Everybody's different, and "...there's an ass for every seat.".
If I wanted to make a zillion bucks, I'd design a set of bars, that you can change the geometries (rise, width, pull-back, width, etc.). For fancy shotguns, they call it a "try gun", so a stock maker can carve a (beautifully grained work of black walnut art) stock that perfectly fits an individual. Once I had all of those dimensions, I'd toss a piece of 7/8" DOM tubing into a bender, then send it to the chromer. Sounds like great plan, but I'll either use the stock bars from the '75, or repro bars for a Royal Enfield.
Sorry. You'll get there. Good luck.

 

[thuban]

Thanks, 59Tebo I just took it out about 5 miles and back. Tack won't read over 2 K. Speedo won't read over 20 mph. Gona give it a chance. I'm in no hurry. I did learn something from Maxpete. I put blue lock tite on my Alt cover screws.

 

[59Tebo]

Ahhh... but they are reading something. Better than flat-line...

 

[Superjet]

Tack won't read over 2 K. Speedo won't read over 20 mph.

Gonna need to lube up those cables for them to work. Just make sure before you do that the ends are square and not rounded could be the cables are shot too.

 

[5twins]

I also noticed that along with the buckhorn bars, the angled Special master cylinder has been installed. This could present an issue if you change to lower, normal bars. The solution is Euro bend bars, lower than stock but not too low, and the way they droop down slightly on the ends accepts the angled Special MC quite nicely .....

Not to mention the fact that I consider them to be about the most comfortable handlebar bend on the planet, lol. The way they droop down slightly on the ends turns your wrists to a very natural and comfortable angle. The way the buckhorn bars stick almost straight back is truly awful from a comfort standpoint. And just wait until you come to some turns, lol. They give very little steering "feel" and input. I rode a local guy's bike that still had them. It was OK until I got to one of the traffic circles up town. They were terrible going around that thing. Granted, his steering bearings were shot, which probably added to the issue, but the thing is, I couldn't feel them being bad at all. Those buckhorn bars gave me no inkling of a bearing problem because of their lack of steering "feel". I finally talked the guy into letting me install lower bars for him. When I test drove the bike, I didn't get more than 50 feet down the road before noticing how bad the steering bearings were. With the buckhorns, I couldn't feel a thing.

 

[fredintoon]

Nah... Fred's got it in for the buckhorns... never misses a chance to diss 'em... he relishes in it actually. I think Fred's of the opinion that we're all built jus' like him and by gawd should all be good little robots and use the same bars he prefers. Feel free to correct me here Fred.
Thu, put some miles behind 'em... make up your own mind.

Hi Jim,
thing is, I wasn't always timid, law-abiding and elderly, eh?
And in my wild youth Curly Forbes let me ride his Series C Vincent Black Shadow.
Mind you, riding Curly's Vincent up Filton Hill (30mph limit) at 90mph and getting it stopped
before reaching the police station at the top is a thing best done long ago by a teenager.
Not the least of the Vincent's perfections was it's superb riding position, which has permanently
spoiled me for riding with the hi-rise &/or pullback bars that modern fashion claims are comfortable.
Which, unless your wrists are put on sideways, those ugly fucking buckhorns ain't.
Try a set of 5Twin's Eurobars and take your own advice, put some miles behind 'em.

 

[Jim]

Well I'm just gonna throw this out there and then politely bow out of this one....
These buckhorns came to me on an XS parts bike I picked up a while back......

Yes, these things are awful... and do indeed point straight back. I can't imagine anyone actually using these, which is why I "repurposed" them for my torch rig.

These are the ones that came with my SG.....

As you can see, they don't actually point straight back as some people claim. Wrist position (for me) is natural.

I can't imagine someone riding a bike with an unnatural wrist position, liking it.... and actually coming out here trying to defend such stupidity. I get good road feel and I can flick the SG back and forth from one side to the other as good as anyone.
I'm not trying to defend the buckhorns here, all I'm saying is, if they're comfortable for you.. that works. I can't understand the need to constantly try and convince people how awful they are... when that actually falls under the realm what feel right for the individual. Don't like 'em? Don't use 'em... 'nuff said.

Try a set of 5Twin's Eurobars and take your own advice, put some miles behind 'em.

Fred, I been riding since 68. The number of bikes I've owned is closer to 100 than it is to zero.... and bikes ridden is well into the hundreds. I've rode behind 5T's Eurobars and yes they are comfortable... had several bikes with 'em... I've never disputed that. And that's not the point..... point is, let people decide on there own and quit trying to convince 'em on how gawdawful the buckhorns are. They were gawdaful for you.... we get that (and are constantly reminded of it). Be a nice chap and let others decide for themselves. Cheers.

 

[peanut]

I agree with Jim about these bars but I think its really important what angle the bars are set at for the wrists and arms to be comfortable.

I read an article somewhere about bike fitting and the writer suggested a novel way of finding the most comfortable wrist position . He suggested that you grip a pen or pencil in your hands like you would hold a hammer handle with arms straight down by your sides completely relaxed .....then, keeping your arms perfectly straight , raise your arms until they are horizontal in front and note the angle of the pencils . That will indicate the most natural position of your handlebar grips .

They always come up exactly at the angle of the grips on my special which is close to how Jim has his set.

The other aspect of bike fitting that is getting overlooked here is the position of your weight on the bike. With Eurobars you will be sitting upright but slightly leaning forwards with some of your upper body weight on the handlebars and front wheel. This position can cause fatigue on longer rides and touring

With a buckhorn or special high bars you are leaning back slightly with no weight on the bars and consequently there will be considerably less engine vibration transmitted through the grips and considerably less arm fatigue and wrist ache.

 

[5twins]

If you've done any touring on a naked bike with Euro bars then you'd know they are not tiring. At speed, the force of the wind against your torso counteracts the leaning forward that you're doing. Upright bars are more tiring in this situation because the wind force is constantly pushing you back, stretching your arms, and you have to really hold on. Euro bars were specifically designed with this wind force in mind. My all time favorites, a pair of Tommesellis I have on my SR500. They're Italian, they make me go faster, lol .....

 

[peanut]

you must ride a lot faster than I do like most people in the UK I spend the greater part of my time riding at sub 40 mph where there is negligible wind resistance. In the US I expect you spend the greater part of your time riding endless motorways at high cruising speeds so it almost certainly effects your riding comfort more.

 

[David Toll]

Skull may correct me here but I wasn't aware that the '77 came with those bars. I believe someone has gone to a lot of trouble to achieve that look. In your case Thuban, you could replace them, not only for their "ergonomically disastrous" design, but also in search of the originality which your lovely motorcycle represents. For the Special owner, the "roto-tiller" bars are a dilemma. I am yet to have the pleasure of putting in a couple of hours behind the grips of my SE but, just by performing a "seat" test, one can see the the shape was designed by an arthritic Japanese automotive draftsman doing his small part to take revenge for the American victory in '45. However, (there nearly always is a "however"), the bars represent the classic custom shape of the Special - that subtle reference to the "Easy Rider" image that so grabbed our imagination in 1978. As such, the purist must consider retaining them as part of his restoration project. The XS was only the second production motorcycle to present in this "custom" guise. Fred waxes lyrical about the bars shortcomings and I have no doubt that he is right but, they are part of the original design and to replace them with CB 750 bars, Kawasaki Z1s, Euros or some of the wider, flatter styles reminiscent of a '69 Bonneville, is to compromise the motorcycle's integrity and screw with the basics of its appearance. "Sentimentalist bullshit!" I hear you say. "Let's see you ride them!" you suggest, but some of us can be members of the "Buckhorn Gang" without necessarily loving the bars. I may sing a different tune after a return trip to Cairns, but for now, they stay on mine. As for your bike Thub, if a couple of hours in the saddle leaves you with a gait like Quasimodo, I'd search the forum for recommended replacements or better yet, go original after all, that's the way God planned it!
Hello and welcome by the way, I personally love the way she looks.

 

[TwoManyXS1Bs]

Back in the day, I liked choice, versatility, suitability for the task-at-hand.
My favorite was low-rise Z-bars, they offered a duality.
For around-town cruising, run 'em upside.


For boulevard bruising, flip 'em down.


For long-range travels, pullbacks, since I'll be leaning on the backpack.
Hand and grip position same as Jim's, above.
Not my bike, but quite similar.


On my stocker, for wrestling the local rural roads,
The stock early bars.


Best position is to have the bar's uprights in-line and parallel with the forks...

 

[thuban]

Jim; 5Twins, When I started the rebuild, the triple tree, forks and fender were bent. The gages, turn signals, were trashed. The right lead-down pipe was dented. The mufflers, pegs and both side covers were scuffed. The headlight bucket and mount ears came off of I don't know what. I looks like the brother-in-law spent as much time sliding down the road on each side of the bike as he did riding it. Lucky the frame was straight.
I don't know what these bars are off of. They don't point straight back and don't have that buckhorn roll to them. Jim, the hand placement looks exactly like those you have pictured. With these bars the original master cylinder was at such a tilt very little fluid could be added without spilling over the back. I was afraid the front hole in the master cylinder might get air in the system, that and the master cylinder was not in good shape. I did manage to salvage it but I like the canted one for these bars.

David Toll, You bring back a lot of memories of the 60's and 70's. Always a blast! I never changed bars on any of my bikes. I admit I really like the look these bars give to the bike. And its not just a look for me, but I'm wondering if the bars will do their part and support my weight in a full panic stop as the straighter bars would. So in a day or two I'm up to get it inspected and then the registration and I can get some time behind the bars.

Peanut, I don't think you have roads. More like rabbit runs. I've watched some of Oldbiker's vids and it scares the S*it outa me. Anything could bolt outa the hedge rows. I hit a basketball that spiraled under the front tire of my Harley one night in a residential section. I was only going about 15 MPH but it dumped me pronto! I never saw it till it entered the fan of light at my front wheel.
2Many is right. I think, from what little I've ridden these, they let me sit up straighter. Easier on my back and I can also scoot back or forward a bit without throwing the weight on my arms.
I did manage to pick up an almost brand new set of instruments and they both work! The speedo odom reads within a couple of hundred miles of mine. That's my job for today.

You guys are great! Thanks a lot!
Thu

 

[peanut]

J

Peanut, I don't think you have roads. More like rabbit runs. I've watched some of Oldbiker's vids and it scares the S*it outa me. Anything could bolt outa the hedge rows. I hit a basketball that spiraled under the front tire of my Harley one night in a residential section. I was only going about 15 MPH but it dumped me pronto! I never saw it till it entered the fan of light at my front wheel.

Thu

Thu ...so you've found Cliff's channel at oldbiker vids I love watching those vids in the Winter when I'm stuck indoors and can't ride

You're so right about the roads over here they can be very challenging. You really need to keep your wits about you every second as most of these rural country roads haven't the room for 2x small cars to pass . Then there is the lack of curbs , deep ditches, tractor and farm vehicle mud and the tarmac breaking up at the edges .

I try to even the odds a little by not riding in the rain or when roads are wet .

The one good thing about these remote rural roads in the UK is I can blast up my local hill at 70mph and not get a ticket

 

[thuban]

Peanut, Yeah, I ran across Cliff and his doings and it was he that first made me go look at what I had stuffed in the barn 30 years ago. Then I found this forum, Mikesxs, partsZilla, Hugh's, boats.net and all the parts on E-bay. Who would have thunk it? So I drug it out and began reading and working.

Yep, I thought, Cliff can't be going too fast? I was looking at his speedo and doing the conversion. Every 60 seconds or so he would have to round a round-a-bout. I kept thinking he would hit a straight piece of hi-way and finally he did but it wasn't very long and he was back in the thicket. Hahaha. I figure his bikes should run forever at the slower speeds and lower RPMs.
70 mph! I see a lot of posts about vibration and speed. I'm thinking, these bikes should be capable of running with the traffic and I suppose they can, but really vibrate at anything over 65 mph. Mailman's part of the country, I'm sure, has speed limits of 85 MPH in places. I wouldn't go cross country on this thing but 150 miles would put me in some very nice areas of the state. I would be required to move with the traffic at hi-way speed, between 65 and 85 mph there abouts. I'm like 2Many, kinda in the country and not a lot of heavy traffic. Makes for nice riding. But I do love the English country side!

Thu