[springer1994]

Have had my Black SFS for 3 months now and have put around 7300 Kilometers mostly on twisty roads and very few around town. Something on the bars did not fit me , bars seemed quite narrow as well as putting my wrists into an awkward position. The result was that after an hour and a half on the twisties my hands would go to sleep and I woud have to stop before i couldn t move them the way i should for my riding. Two weeks ago i bought a DP S4RS bars and fitted it on the bike. The bars are EXACTLY the same as far as bends go compared to the SF bars but are 75.1 cm wide as opposed to 72 cm of the standard SF bars.
Four days ago i received another order i had for RENTHAL fatbars which i fitted. These are RENTHAL 814-01 Streetfighter bend Tanium colored. These bars are 76.9 cm wide . I fitted these also and went for a short 100 Km ride at the twisties as well as a rather long 600 Km half freeway ,half twisties trip.
I took some pictures comparing and i ll add some comments at the end. It may help people to decide what they need.

DP S4RS fatbars installed

RENTHAL 814-01 installed

TOP is RENTHAL 814-01 BOTTOM is Standard SF bars 1

TOP is RENTHAL 814-01 BOTTOM is Standard SF bars 2

First of all the DP bars have what it seems to be missing for reasonably wide shoulders. 1 1/2 cm more width each side seems to decramp forearms and wrists. DP bars are still kind of low but in my opinion contribute well to the aggressive bike-hugging stance that is needed for riding of the SF. And when you want or need to go really fast and have to lay low on the tank your arms are not uncomfortable. Turn in is quite easier than the Standard SF bars but sensitivity and precision is not lost. One more thing. The DP bars have drilled holes for the switches and throttle but do not coincide with the SF ones , not even close. So what i did was to lose the little plastic thingies on the switches and throttle housing and I can move and fine tune the inclination of the bars , levers and switches to my taste.
Second , the RENTHALS. These bars are almost 2.5 cm wider each side than the standard SF bars. Their measurements can be seen at:
http://www.renthal.com/File/product...one=&biketype=&manufacturer=&model=&bikedate=
Their bend are slightly different than the 604-01 that Hedetrimmer has been using. 2 cm less wide overall and with a quite narrower center section.Almost same rise and height and a little bit more sweep.
These bars feel a lot more comfortable. You can sit more upright and leverage is way more on these. You can also tuck down flat on the tank for high speeds but then your arms are kind of folded , not so comfortable. Turn in is a lot easier than the standard or DP bars , at first a little bit too easy but easy to get used to. Tank clearance for the switches and levers is a lot bigger and you can try the bars in a variety of different inclinations to suit your style .
Overall i liked the RENTHALS. Took some time to get used to the extra leverage but my 600 Km trip was easier on my body and wrists compared to the standard or DP bars. I would say that if it was 2 cm less wide (same as the DP bar) it would be a lot better but i dont think it has the margin to be trimmed . Turn in was a little too easy and precision and sensitivity is a bit compromised.
On a final note , i ll keep the RENTHALS for some more days but i think the DP bars kept me a little more satisfied than the RENTHALS. Not perfect but gave me most of what was missing for the standard bars.

 

[zvez]

an exc. thread!! Thanks for posting. I need to go with a higher bar but undecided about which one.

Chris

 

[flynbulldog]

Springer, well thought-out and written - thanks.

 

[blackie]

Good post Springer, just curious as to why you cannot lop off 1 or 2cm each side of the renthals. seems like the easy thing to do ?

 

[Gilly]

there isnt enough or rather any extra straight bar, the bend starts just as soon as the last bit of hardware is attached.

 

[springer1994]

Well there is enough straight section , on the left side you can easily cut 2 cm . On the right you would have to put the lever clamp on the slightly bigger diameter of the bar and it will not be "perfect". If or when i am sure I am going to keep the RENTHALS I would do it, it won t be a problem. These 814-01s surely are better than the 604-01s as the have a shorter center section and longer end sections.

 

[Gilly]

I'll have to check to see if I'm referring to the same one you are mentioning, or at least the one that I was given. I may have the 604's.:think:

 

[RUPP]

Great post. I would love to see a side to side comparison picture between the DP bars and the standard SF bars.

 

[flynbulldog]

Has anybody tried the Rizoma bars?

 

[inlandjandl]

there isnt enough or rather any extra straight bar, the bend starts just as soon as the last bit of hardware is attached.

This is true. I have three sets of Pro Taper gold bars from past dirt bikes, and I got a little bored this weekend, so I wanted to put them on my SF. One set was cut down about 1/2" on each side, and you couldn't get the brake or clutch assemblies mounted up. You need to have a narrower center section, and full length outer sections. The bars that weren't cut were just too wide, but the gold does look good on an S model. Just a thought over black or silver.

 

[LaRossa]

What do you guys thing of these? Same lenght as stock, 29 mounting, 22 ends, straighter,..........

http://www.motostrano.com/ricoha.html

 

[flynbulldog]

I've got a set of Renthal Fatbar low motocross bend bars on my bike right now.
I've only got a few miles on them so far but here are my impressions from a very limited time (I reserve the right to change my findings as my experience grows).

The stock bars are around 28-1/4" wide, the Renthals around 31-1/2". I rotated the bars back to get the handles as flat as possible.
I had a hard time getting all the lines to route in a clean and scrub-free way and I still need to work on that a little bit.

I'm certainly in a more comfortable riding position but the bars feel too wide for me and the ends still need a slight down bend to feel right.
I think for me a riser would be the best solution.

Riding feels - well - like a dirtbike... I have quite a bit more leverage on the bars and the turn-in is quicker but the bike still feels pretty stable.
I've yet to ride a canyon with them or really ride the bike hard. My worry is that the bike could get touchy or twitchy when riding is pushed and more finesse is required.

I like them enough to keep them on for a while but I'll be looking for different solution that feels more appropriate to this bike.

 

[Motovation]

We have the Rizoma Conicals on ours. They fit quite nice. It is a bit wider than stock but we lopped of 3/4 inches off the end and kinda cranked it forward a bit. So it is now about 1/2 inch shorter than stock. The Rizomas are a little more swept back with less rise to them. They are also thicker at the ends which is supposed to reduce vibration.

Here are pics of the end result and pics of the two bars side by side.