Risers or new bars?
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Risers or new bars?
I just got back from riding an hour ago, and whil Inwas out my handlebars felt wrong to me ... Again.
I went with some Wild 1 baby apes a few years ago, but today I was wishing I had a little more pullback and height.
Risers, of course, won't give me pullback unless I go with the pullback risers, but I've never been a fan of risers- to me they kind of look like a lazy attempt to a real solution.
14" apes look great but I'm not sure how comfortable that would be on a 2+ hour ride. The whole arms above the heart after a certain age thing is at play here. I've already rolled back my current bars and there's more to it than that.
I went with some Wild 1 baby apes a few years ago, but today I was wishing I had a little more pullback and height.
Risers, of course, won't give me pullback unless I go with the pullback risers, but I've never been a fan of risers- to me they kind of look like a lazy attempt to a real solution.
14" apes look great but I'm not sure how comfortable that would be on a 2+ hour ride. The whole arms above the heart after a certain age thing is at play here. I've already rolled back my current bars and there's more to it than that.
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I can only speak for myself because the idea about running apes is a personal thing with many people here. My 05 Springer came with stock bars and they really bothered my neck and shoulders after awhile. I have had 16" Wild 1 Chubbies on my bike for little over 10 years and for me it's like night and day when it comes to comfort. My bike came stock with 4" risers and combined with the 16" apes, the top of the bars come just above my shoulders but the grips are just about shoulder high. I am now 65 and I can ride all day like this without any issues with my neck, shoulders or back. Like I said, apes aren't for everybody but they did the job for me.
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Joined: May 2014
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From: Fort Worth, TX
I agree about the look of baby apes on tall risers, it doesn't look right. 14"s on 1.5" risers would do the trick for you nicely if your hands are at or just under shoulder height. Going over the shoulders can get a bit uncomfortable at times on long rides (4-5 hours) I have found. Mock up a set of 14's and see how they feel before pulling the trigger on the whole swap.
Road Master
Joined: Jul 2009
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From: Savannah, TN
I can only speak for myself because the idea about running apes is a personal thing with many people here. My 05 Springer came with stock bars and they really bothered my neck and shoulders after awhile. I have had 16" Wild 1 Chubbies on my bike for little over 10 years and for me it's like night and day when it comes to comfort. My bike came stock with 4" risers and combined with the 16" apes, the top of the bars come just above my shoulders but the grips are just about shoulder high. I am now 65 and I can ride all day like this without any issues with my neck, shoulders or back. Like I said, apes aren't for everybody but they did the job for me.
I just turned 62. Helped my bike posture and riding comfort as well. May be an age thing...
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Joined: Aug 2008
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From: Lafayette, Louisiana
Put a set of Heritage handlebars on it. You can test ride a Heritage at the dealer to see how you would like it. They can be had for relatively cheap and you won't need hideously long curved risers.
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From: Virginia
I just had a set of 5.5" risers with a 1.5" pullback put on my 2015 Fat Boy. The only line I needed was the lower ABS brake line. Now my bars sit high enough that I am not in a slightly forward riding position. Sure beats the 4" risers I had on my last Fatboy.
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I'll check the OEM diagrams for the heritage handlebars part number and look up the specs.
Last edited by user 46092; Jul 24, 2016 at 07:16 PM.
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The pullback on the baby apes I got from Wild 1 have a longer pullback and see taller than handlebars 56569-09 which is one of the set of handle bars the MOCO puts on a 2015 heritage, but the OEM parts diagrams show more than one different handlebar for each year, so it's hard to tell which Heritage bar you suggesting.
I'm going to to have to do the mock-up thing, but you can't ride with a mock-up. I may just say WTF and jump to 14".
I'm going to to have to do the mock-up thing, but you can't ride with a mock-up. I may just say WTF and jump to 14".
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