I bought the bike used, and it came with 13" Ape Hangers that are externally wired. I don't like looking at the handlebars and seeing zip ties to hold the wires in place (not the clutch, brake, etc wires). Any ideas on what I might be capable of? Can I drill the existing handlebars to run the wires internally?

Thanks for your help!

 

There's a ton of threads on here on internal wiring. All you have to do is remove, disconnect, re-route, and re-connect. Just be careful that your bars are sturdy enough. If they're cheap (i.e. thin metal) drilling them could weaken them enough to snap while you're riding. That sucks.

Anyway, just search "internal wiring".

 

Thanks for the help. I know the bars are 1" thick, how thick do the walls of the tube need to be in order to be deemed 'safe'?

I'll do a search for all other Q's I have.

 

That's up for debate, but it's really your call. I know HD will tell you not to drill thier mini apes because of how much it degrades them, but I know guys who have without a problem. You could figure out who the manufacturer is and give them a call. If you do it though, don't drill anything wider than 1/2". I believe it's a 'rule of thumb' that you don't drill more than 1/2 the diameter.
Good luck

 

Good luck! I just did that last weekend. Fortunately in my case the bars I had were pre-drilled. Remember, time and patience, you're gonna need it.

 

yes drill man it is pretty easy to do, in some cases you need to add extensions in there but some times you do not
pull wires though


solder extensions in


put plugs back on


done

 

Make sure you ream the holes or file the edges good and get all the burrs off so you don't scuff or cut the wires when you pull them through.

 

Currently the wires have a shield wrapping around them. I'm thinking it would be safer to just keep that on. What would I need to solder? Keep in mind I'm using everything existing, just pulling the wires through the inside.

 

What you can do is:

pull the mesh wire loom through the bars so it sticks out at both ends. Tape up the end of the harness where the connectors are so it's smooth. Then spray the wiring harness with a lil wd-40 and you should be able to push the harness down through the loom and out the other end. The mesh loom is stiff enough that you should be able to push it through the bars and when it gets to the bottom, I used a needlenose to grab it and pull it through.

I've done that a few times now and it works out pretty good plus the wd-40 doesn't hurt the wiring as far as I can tell.

That same technique was used recently when I relocated my front turn signals back to the controls from the forks. Don't rush, and it'll be fine. Sometimes you have to pull it out a lil to get just a hair of momentum behind it.

 

i am just not sue if you have enough room there without soldering in new ext