Rookie Mistake (handlebars)
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Joined: Jun 2012
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From: Mass
Rookie Mistake (handlebars)
Hey all,
Being the cheap bastard I am, I decided to go ahead and try to swap my handle bars out myself. I have no sort of mechanical or motorcycle background but everyone I've spoke with said it's an easy job to do so I figured what the heck and went for it. I must say, while it's not painfully difficult, I wouldn't say it's a simple task for someone with no experience besides the few youtube videos I watched. That aside, I got everything done but where I'm 99% sure I screwed myself is the hoses/lines. The bars I put on were lower than the original ones I had so the only way to make everything fit was to have kinks in almost everything. Is there any way I can go about fixing these kinks because I'm sure they aren't safe. Right? Anyway, any help to a fellow rider who was just trying to do something himself would be great. Maybe saving a few bucks wasn't the best possible choice today.
Being the cheap bastard I am, I decided to go ahead and try to swap my handle bars out myself. I have no sort of mechanical or motorcycle background but everyone I've spoke with said it's an easy job to do so I figured what the heck and went for it. I must say, while it's not painfully difficult, I wouldn't say it's a simple task for someone with no experience besides the few youtube videos I watched. That aside, I got everything done but where I'm 99% sure I screwed myself is the hoses/lines. The bars I put on were lower than the original ones I had so the only way to make everything fit was to have kinks in almost everything. Is there any way I can go about fixing these kinks because I'm sure they aren't safe. Right? Anyway, any help to a fellow rider who was just trying to do something himself would be great. Maybe saving a few bucks wasn't the best possible choice today.
Last edited by CJP2876; Mar 9, 2013 at 03:00 PM.
Extreme HDF Member
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From: Big ol Titties
Kinks are bad. The only things you can really do are to either get creative on how you route your lines or purchase shorter ones. Shorter lines will give it a cleaner look but as long as your existing lines aren't kinked they should work. Also when I think of kinked when it comes to a throttle cable I'm thinking permanent damage, a pic of what the kinks look like would help.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Dec 2010
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From: Coromandel Peninsula New Zealand
If your hoses are attached to the lower triple tree you can undo that clamp and shake out a lot of the kinks but it won't necessarily look very pretty. Get yourself a braided hose of the right length.
Big Kahuna HDF Member
Joined: Dec 2012
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From: .....
I think this is why I don't try to do this stuff anymore. I did it on my first bikes but 30 years ago, everything was a lot simpler. Now days, it too complicated on modern bikes...to me.
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From: Big ol Titties
I would get a new braided brake line at the minimum, the throttle, idle, and clutch look like they will work. Are those bars drilled for internal wiring? It would help clean up the look of the bars without all the electrical hanging off. Magnum shielding have good quality brake lines you can order custom sizes, I have used them a couple times and have nothing good things to say about them.