Heed crash bars
- Thread starter HngrFatz
- Start date
Yes, some of us are in a bit of a rush, impatient. It is the cascading effect. I tore things down all the way to the top of the heads so I could plug in one bloody connection for the cruise control, and while I was in there installed the Eastern Beaver unit with one of the two always hot to the battery maintainer plug, one of the switched to my Garmin 595LM, one to my plug for heated gear (I know, you So. Cal guys don't need that) and while I was at it I added two extra power lines to the front right cowl for anything that comes to mind in the future. Then I cut in an wired a digital voltmeter in the far-left blank in the dash and tapped into the accessory plug that is on the Adventure sport (fit quite nicely) and have just finished the loom for my Fog Lights and Driving lights, with waterproof quick disconnect plugs under the front of the bike. So now I am waiting on the crash bars so that I can mount the lights and figure out the pigtail length for plugging into said quick-connects. A bit obsessive here in that when I start on a project I don't like leaving part of it undone, a character trait that my wife of 43 years doesn't quite understand and relate to. I am sure i will be a pain in the $&& when I retire next December. 
My brother. You remind me of... me. I like you already. BTW, we turn 35 in a couple weeks.
...A bit obsessive here in that when I start on a project I don't like leaving part of it undone, a character trait that my wife of 43 years doesn't quite understand and relate to. I am sure i will be a pain in the $&& when I retire next December.
I unwrapped mine last night. They really went to a lot of work to pack them well so that there was no damage in shipping. Every inch covered with foam pipe wrap, and then the two halves were interlaced and taped together. I will do a test ride on my bike for the cruise control before mounting the bars, just 1 thing less to remove if there is a problem.
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Some battle scars from this weeks ride with the Heed bunkers.
They seemed to perform perfectly. Got a good bashing, but the engine and rest of bike was untouched (as far as I could tell).
I'm very happy I installed them prior to last weeks ride
They seemed to perform perfectly. Got a good bashing, but the engine and rest of bike was untouched (as far as I could tell).
I'm very happy I installed them prior to last weeks ride
I am so happy with the crash bars, and not trusting of the small OEM skid plate, that I ended up the black steel heed skid plate too. Buying Heed again, helped me be sure it's a good fit with my Heed bunker bars.
I got the steel because I'm cheap, and only after I received it I realised it is significantly heavier than the small aluminium oem plate. But no worries, first thing I did was check if can pop a wheelie, and I'm happy to say that I feel no difference in riding or wheelies with the heavier plate
I guess that what will suffer most the additional plate + bars weight (I think they are at least 10 kilos together), is the suspension. I've already blown a fork seal once, when bottoming out, I guess I'll have to dial up the compression damping whenever off-roading to avoid further issues.
Today for the first time I also measured the sag setting on both front and rear, and discovered as others have that I need full preload on both, and still am not on the 30% sag point (I was hoping the bike will think I'm 75 kilos, even though the scales show closer to 90 with gear
). Perhaps some day I'll get stiffer springs, if I feel issues.
Here are a few pics of the bash plate from all sides, so you get to see what it looks like installed and compared to OEM.
While I was at it (i.e. the careless paypal buying button it), I bought myself a pair of heed bar bags too...
I got the steel because I'm cheap, and only after I received it I realised it is significantly heavier than the small aluminium oem plate. But no worries, first thing I did was check if can pop a wheelie, and I'm happy to say that I feel no difference in riding or wheelies with the heavier plate
I guess that what will suffer most the additional plate + bars weight (I think they are at least 10 kilos together), is the suspension. I've already blown a fork seal once, when bottoming out, I guess I'll have to dial up the compression damping whenever off-roading to avoid further issues.
Today for the first time I also measured the sag setting on both front and rear, and discovered as others have that I need full preload on both, and still am not on the 30% sag point (I was hoping the bike will think I'm 75 kilos, even though the scales show closer to 90 with gear
Here are a few pics of the bash plate from all sides, so you get to see what it looks like installed and compared to OEM.
While I was at it (i.e. the careless paypal buying button it), I bought myself a pair of heed bar bags too...
From your posts it sounds like you ride pretty hard, you’d love heavier springs, made a huge difference fo me.
I am so happy with the crash bars, and not trusting of the small OEM skid plate, that I ended up the black steel heed skid plate too. Buying Heed again, helped me be sure it's a good fit with my Heed bunker bars.
I got the steel because I'm cheap, and only after I received it I realised it is significantly heavier than the small aluminium oem plate. But no worries, first thing I did was check if can pop a wheelie, and I'm happy to say that I feel no difference in riding or wheelies with the heavier plate
I guess that what will suffer most the additional plate + bars weight (I think they are at least 10 kilos together), is the suspension. I've already blown a fork seal once, when bottoming out, I guess I'll have to dial up the compression damping whenever off-roading to avoid further issues.
Today for the first time I also measured the sag setting on both front and rear, and discovered as others have that I need full preload on both, and still am not on the 30% sag point (I was hoping the bike will think I'm 75 kilos, even though the scales show closer to 90 with gear). Perhaps some day I'll get stiffer springs, if I feel issues.
Here are a few pics of the bash plate from all sides, so you get to see what it looks like installed and compared to OEM.
While I was at it (i.e. the careless paypal buying button it), I bought myself a pair of heed bar bags too...
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I'm actually a real beginner in off-road riding (been riding road and racetrack for quite some time), don't get confused by me scratching up the bike it's not due to hard off-roading skills, more due to lack of skill
.That being said, most my friends ride 250-350 bikes, so that's the crowd I'll be hanging around with and it will be challenging to keep up on rough terrain with a big bike. But hey, when Chris Birch rides his bike it looks easy
.I saw sets of Hyperpro springs (same as used by Touratech) in Europe cost around 340$US. That's not the end of the world, cost wise, but not cheap either. I figure I'll try improving my skill with the current spring setup first, and only when I'm convinced that the springs are a real limiting factor, rather than my lack of skill, will I invest in improving them. No point in complaining I can't dance because the floor is uneven
Out of interest, which springs did you install?
And if I may... how much do you weigh?
Cogent springs. And if memory serves they had two choices for the front, I chose the heavier springs. I weigh 300 pounds, yes I’m a little thick in the middle but I’m a 6’1” Viking so I’m rather large framed anyway.