I'm convinced that my Nightrains dragbars were rotated a bit to far forward at delivery (equals too much upsweep/narrow profile)-been putting on a lot of miles and realized they probably needed to be rotated backwards about 1/3 to 1/2 an inch.

What did that do ?
When the dragbars are adjusted in (what I believe is)the optimal position (only a slight upsweep at the grips) the bars effectively become a bit wider,the grips shift slightly towards the riderand the rearview mirrors shift slightly more laterally (offers improved field of view,less obstruction from the rider's shoulders)

What else ?
Better handling-Increased leverage improves steering control and responsivness

Really surprised what a big difference a small adjustment in riding position makes.

I believe there's less room for error in achieving optimal riding position with the Train's drags,get 'em right and I think you'll see and feel the difference.

 

Unless you're a pigmy...the stock mirrors on a train are useless....the bar is too narrow.

I fixed mine.

 

i cant see **** out of my mirrors but i also have wide shoulders

 

The pigmys are thelittle guyswho don't have long enough arms to reachdrag bars....

Always loved the stock drag bars,after adjusting them,I can easilysee past myshoulders.

 

I can't get my mind around how its going to make a real difference in the view from the mirrors. Unless you can get the mirrors a few inches up or out, I'll still be looking at my shoulders.

 

If the bars were perfectly straight,rotating them either direction would do nothing for riding position or the mirror view,but there's a bend in the bars and the geometry works this way:Rotate the bars forward and it'll mean the mirrors are closer to midline,rotate the bars back and the mirrors position moves slightly toward the outside due to the bend of the bars.

Surprised the heck out of me.I adjusted the bars a little to change my riding position,wasn't trying to improve the function of the mirrors.

 

Very true. I installed 9 1/2" pullback risers. When I did, I couldn't get them perfectly straight: the bars were canted slightly right, perhaps 1/4 inch. I finally got them straight and it made a HUGE difference in handling and comfort.

You all have me curious now, I guess I'm gonna go out and mess with the rotation of the drag bar tonight!!!

Love the Forum! It keeps me dreaming up new **** to do to my Train!

 

I was having the same problem when I had the Drag bars on. My solution was to mount them under the bars. I had to heat them up a bit to bend them back a little but I thought it worked very well. I could see everything behind me. Here's a pic of how it looked when done.



I liked how it made it look more sleek......

 

I've heard of a few riders trying that,it's a clean look and I'm sure your view's good,but wonder if it wouldn't be more difficult to shift back and forth from the view ahead of me to that much lower beneath the bars to catch the view behind ?

What I noticed about your picture is that your drags are set up with almost exactly the same rotation and minimal upsweepas mine are currently..

(except my mirrors are the conventional way on top)

With them set that way my view is quite good (as evidenced by the great view I had of a huge Lexus SUV flying up behind me and barely stopping soon enough while I was waiting at a light earlier this evening.)

When I picked up my bike,whoever did the set up had the bars rotated too far forward and becausethe dragshave a bend,that brought the mirrors closer to the bike's center which greatly contributed to the obscured view mentioned by many Train riders....roll the bars back (about like they are in your pic) and the mirror's position(due to the bend)will shift outward and let you see more of what's behind you.

Getting rid of the dragbars altogether will definitely give you more leverage,make steering easier and provide a good position for your rearview mirrors,but if (like me) you really like dragbars on a Train and you're going to keep 'em,then you'll get more out of them by setting them up for maximum performance.

 

Mirrors are for looks.............gotta turn your head at all times..............