Clutch and throttle cables

[Kevin Werner]

I wasn't going to say anything about the bar choice but can now add my 2 cents. I went Honda SuperSport bars with tha 1 1/2 rise, maybe 2" rise. I do like them but sometime wish I had more rise. There are times while riding that I drop my left hand, shake it a bit and stretch as upright as I can with right hand still on the throttle. That doesn't happen while I am riding the Smokies or Ozarks. So this winter I will look for another option. Euro bars will go on my project "Red Bike" so I am in the position of needing 2 set of bars, can buy one and judge whether that is what I want (probably not) on both bikes. But all that being said, some of us are older, rounder and don't bend as well as we once did.

 

[jetmechmarty]

and don't bend as well as we once did

I don't care much for weight on my hands.

 

[Kevin Werner]

I don't care much for weight on my hands.

You are entirely right there. When I am in the hills and curves I do not notice it at all. It is only the slow riding around town. In the 40 mph- 70mph speed the wind on my body take most of the pressure off. As to my post, I don't get to do that riding often enough so I am considering some slightly highr bars.

 

[G_YamTech_314]

That's the problem with the drag bars - they're too low and narrow. That doesn't leave much room for cable routing and you end up cramming stuff in. Why do you want drag bars anyway? If you're doing it for the "look", then I guess you'll just have to deal with the consequences, lol (the cable routing will be bad and they will be uncomfortable). $222 for that DIY kit, I can buy lots of cables for that, lol.

I'm gonna learn from the experience one way or another. I'll weight the pros and cons but I do initially want to finish the build off of looks. Bars are easy enough to swap and if I need to swap cables when I do the bars so be it. As of right now I'm more concerned about finding hardware that's compatible with my throttle tube assy. I got from motion pro. In the end you're likely correct. But I won't be making the XS650 a daily rider, and if I do, the 20 minute ride to and from the shop doesn't have to be comfy. If it's a real back wrencher I'll let you say "I told ya so"

 

[jetmechmarty]

You are entirely right there. When I am in the hills and curves I do not notice it at all. It is only the slow riding around town. In the 40 mph- 70mph speed the wind on my body take most of the pressure off. As to my post, I don't get to do that riding often enough so I am considering some slightly highr bars.

I have an SH. It's parked remote, but not in much need. I have some American market Triumph bars to try. they have 8" rise as I recall

 

[jpdevol]

Yeah, as I've become old, I find that I want to be more upright and not have weight on my hands/wrists. I do remember, however, when I was young like "G" (OP) I wanted the weight off my tailbone and my spine straight; had an XS11F and distinctly remember a new fangled handlebar I added: "superbike bend" (pre-crotch rocket). So, the flat bars may be good here

 

[G_YamTech_314]

Yeah, as I've become old, I find that I want to be more upright and not have weight on my hands/wrists. I do remember, however, when I was young like "G" (OP) I wanted the weight off my tailbone and my spine straight; had an XS11F and distinctly remember a new fangled handlebar I added: "superbike bend" (pre-crotch rocket). So, the flat bars may be good here

I find myself pretty comfortable on the Ninja650 I have, but don't prefer taking it on long rides because though it has pretty upright bars, it does get to be a bit uncomfortable for my back (previous spinal injuries) I'm in no way doubting that I'll want to ride the Yamaha A LOT in my freetime. So time will tell. I'll throw the buckhorns on when I take her on the highway

 

[jetmechmarty]

I find myself pretty comfortable on the Ninja650 I have, but don't prefer taking it on long rides because though it has pretty upright bars, it does get to be a bit uncomfortable for my back (previous spinal injuries) I'm in no way doubting that I'll want to ride the Yamaha A LOT in my freetime. So time will tell. I'll throw the buckhorns on when I take her on the highway

Keep in mind, handlebars are purely subjective. What's comfortable for one, is miserable for the other.

 

[G_YamTech_314]

So, I ordered a clutch cable from motion pro, and a perch. They both fit and work well with the motorcycle for the most part. There's a slight issue with the bottom of the cable staying in the side cover, but I haven't really looked into what I can do about that yet because I'm too worried about making the throttle tube I bought work with the bike... I'm thinking I'm going to need a different one and I'll be building my own throttle cable as well. The motion pro cable I got was TOO SHORT. Which seemed odd to me considering I'm running drag bars... Anyone know of a sure-fire throttle tube and cable combo that will work for me? I'd like to get the bike ridable before digging through the Honda too intensely haha.

 

[Adamc]

Check out post #18 on this thread.
Venhill have all you need and are available in the USA.
Web: https://www.venhill.co.uk/

 

[Mailman]

These old bikes are fun to play around with. I was always trying out different riding positions, gearing, handlebars, grips windshields, mirrors and such.
In an effort to recreate the 70’s Triumph Bonneville vibe , like the old Bonny I had, I installed a set of Goldwing handlebars that had a lot more rise and pullback. These were a lot of fun riding around town but were miserable at highway speed, I put my windshield on and that was better but that very upright position was hard on my back.

https://www.xs650.com/threads/the-ergonomic-experiment.56712/

In an effort to create a sportier bike, I installed a set of Superbike bars, with bar end mirrors and a fly screen windshield and a smaller 31 tooth rear sprocket which gave the bike a much better top end and didn’t really sacrifice much in the way of city riding. I’ve gotta say this was actually a pretty good set up, it was reasonably comfortable at highway speeds and felt very sporty in the twisties.

In the end, I wound up going back to the factory original set up, ( with the exception of a 32 tooth rear sprocket ) as it turned out to be ( for me ) to be the most comfortable all around riding position. But change is fun!

 

[bosco659]

I too do not like weight on my wrists while riding and prefer more of an upright riding position. However, on the XS, the handlebar / seat / rear sets don’t give the best riding position, but the bike looks cool like this, so I put up with it and use it more for shorter rides. The new Ducati offers more of a vertical riding stance so it should be better on longer rides. Time will tell next spring.

 

[bosco659]

These old bikes are fun to play around with. I was always trying out different riding positions, gearing, handlebars, grips windshields, mirrors and such.
In an effort to recreate the 70’s Triumph Bonneville vibe , like the old Bonny I had, I installed a set of Goldwing handlebars that had a lot more rise and pullback. These were a lot of fun riding around town but were miserable at highway speed, I put my windshield on and that was better but that very upright position was hard on my back.

https://www.xs650.com/threads/the-ergonomic-experiment.56712/

View attachment 232919
View attachment 232921
In an effort to create a sportier bike, I installed a set of Superbike bars, with bar end mirrors and a fly screen windshield and a smaller 31 tooth rear sprocket which gave the bike a much better top end and didn’t really sacrifice much in the way of city riding. I’ve gotta say this was actually a pretty good set up, it was reasonably comfortable at highway speeds and felt very sporty in the twisties.
View attachment 232917
View attachment 232922

In the end, I wound up going back to the factory original set up, ( with the exception of a 32 tooth rear sprocket ) as it turned out to be ( for me ) to be the most comfortable all around riding position. But change is fun!
View attachment 232918

That was one nice looking bike. The configuration in the last pic looks most comfortable to me.

 

[G_YamTech_314]

@Adamc , Im taking your advice and looking through Venhill's inventory. I was wondering if you (or anyone here) knows what diameter cable jacket I'd need or if it would really even make a difference... I suppose I could use vernier calipers to measure the diameter of the motion pro cable I ordered... It was too short... and the throttle tube I got from MP was lacking in a few ways... Id like to build a cable with an inline adjuster in the event that I cut it just a tad short... Im also on the fence about trying another throttle tube... the MP one is nice, but it just seems that I have to do so much butchery to make it work. theres gotta be a tried and true throttle tube and cable set up that works with stock carbs and drag bars..