[Jedi Leba]

Hi Curler: did you order them from ebay or somewhere else? what did they cost?

I ordered from eBay, off the link at the top of the thread. When I bought, it was $200, plus $50 shipping.

 

[Curler]

I did get them from ebay. Item #264725442704. $199.98 + $49.98 shipping in US$ = +-$350 C$. Should be able to find them just by searching R-Gaza. Only been on the bike a few hours but fit & finish is top-notch and protection looks good. They do not over power the rest of the bike. 8 pounds apiece for the sides + maybe 2 for the cross member = 18 lbs.They do not restrict the brake or shifter operation. Maybe too early to tell but at the moment I am impressed and would recommend them. Attachment at the peg is simple. See pic. Take out the existing bolt, slide the guard under the bracket and install the new supplied bolt from the top. If you have floorboards and don't want to hassle with the spring that was a PITA when you put them on, push out the existing bolt from the bottom with a similar size bolt so the spring stays centered then push the new bolt down against the sacrificial bolt. Worked well for us.

 

[TLeventry]

Thanks for the pictures Curler.

The one thing I don't like about these is the way it attaches to the foot peg bracket. They should have made the attachment go over the bracket on the top and bottom.

 

[Curler]

Maybe a little helpful, but I don't think it's a problem. If you drop the bike the force on the bars will be lateral not perpendicular and supported by the cross member. Hopefully I don't ever find out again.

 

[TLeventry]

Probably so. I would only want them to add weather protection and farkle mounting anyway.

It looks like the TREX mount exactly the same.

 

[Curler]

A little off topic, but when I rode to my buddies yesterday it was the first ride since I dropped it 2 months ago. Holy cow! After a bike that has felt like part of me for 5 years it felt like a foreign body under my butt. Sub-conscious accident syndrome? Fact that I have put a few km's on the Spyder in the interim (a totally different ride)? Don't know but it was uncomfortable. Age ('m 84) may enter into the mix as well. Hopefully I get my mojo back. There are roads to travel still.

 

[Curler]

With the help of my neighbor I laid the bike down (purposely this time) to see how the guards worked. I'll let the pics speak for themselves.
Looks like the side stand, the center stand or the floorboard will nail your ankle (I think that is what happened to me) if you don't bail out, but the fairing etc should be well protected.
Good luck with whatever you choose.

 

[rossmcgrath]

Yesterday I took the bike out for a short ride and I tried to take some better pictures of the T-Rex Racing engine guards and the ready bag guards.
I don't know if I caught the pic that shows what I hoped to show, but you can get the idea:
Yeah, maybe you can see how the sliders stick out about as much as the rear bag guards do.
Really good protection, it looks to me.

 

[Curler]

Sliders are out to the edge of the peg; pretty much like the bars on mine. Should be good. I like the rear bag guards. Will chase that idea a little. Easy install?

 

[rossmcgrath]

I have posted on here about how easy they are to install.
The engineering is really cool.
It is different, but used natural mounting points on the bike.
Like foot peg mounts and engine mounts.
But truly, very easy.

 

[Jedi Leba]

Sweet! Got my bars just now! Haven’t unwrapped them yet though.

 

[Curler]

I'd be interested to hear about your install experience and any other comments. Watch out for the bushing on the back/upper right side. Easy to keep in place if you have a "magnet on a extendable stick" kind of tool.

 

[Jedi Leba]

Do you think this is a 2-person job, even if the second person is just extra hands? Or could a decently mechanical person handle it alone? You said you could actually get a second one done in 35-40 minutes, so I was thinking of trying it tonight.

 

[Curler]

2 people are always handy. It's not just the mechanical ability, it's the extra pair of hands and the 'why don't we try it this way' ideas. If some one was handy to help you I would suggest it would be a more pleasant experience.

 

[Curler]

Remember that there was 2 of us, one an experienced tech, and we were working with the bike on a lift rather than the garage floor; a huge plus. Left side is easiest. Suggest you do that first.

 

[Jedi Leba]

I started the install last night, by myself. Stumbled over a couple things, figured it out. Left side went fine, though I figured that a second set of hands would’ve helped a little at one point. The right side went ok, until I found out that the top bolt hid a washer/spacer that was loose. In trying to hold it just right while positioning the guard, it kept falling, and finally fell to the inside of the engine, where no fingers would reach, though I could at least see it from both sides of the bike. It was too late, so I called it for the night

Got back to it tonight. I used a cut & shaped coat hanger to hook the spacer and got it out. Then I managed to get it placed and the bolt through it with just a couple attempts. Here again was where an extra hand would’ve been nice, but not required. Then I had to put in the thin cross bar between the guards, and found that I really had to have another person to hold one side’s bolt while I turned the other side. Got my daughter to help me out, took all of about 2 minutes.

Overall, working mostly by myself, I’d say the install actually took a bit over an hour. I agree with Curler - having to do it again would probably take about 15 minutes. They look great, too!

Side note, the first thing I want to add to them are some highway pegs. But I sat on the bike and stretched out my legs, and I could actually put my feet right on the guards. Would doing that instead of installing highway pegs be a bad idea? I’ll test it out a little tomorrow on the way to work. I think the pegs are probably a better way to go, but I don’t know for sure.

 

[Curler]

On one of my posts I mentioned the right hand side bushing and how a 'magnet on an extendable stick' was a really handy tool to recover the bushing and keep it in place during install. Anyway, glad you got it done and I hope they work for you.

 

[Jedi Leba]

On one of my posts I mentioned the right hand side bushing and how a 'magnet on an extendable stick' was a really handy tool to recover the bushing and keep it in place during install. Anyway, glad you got it done and I hope they work for you.

Crap I totally missed (or at least forgot) that!

I wonder what that bushing is even there for. I mean, why isn’t it just welded to the mount or bracket or engine? Is it made to be replaced by something? If so, what?

Oh well. Bike looks great with the bars. I was over at a friend’s this afternoon and he remarked how they kind of balance out the bike. The bags on the back make it wider and somehow lopsided? The bars on the front kinda give the appearance of added bulk. They blend really well, like the bike just came with them. I’m really happy how they turned out.

 

[Professor*76]

Crap I totally missed (or at least forgot) that!

I wonder what that bushing is even there for. I mean, why isn’t it just welded to the mount or bracket or engine? Is it made to be replaced by something? If so, what?

Oh well. Bike looks great with the bars. I was over at a friend’s this afternoon and he remarked how they kind of balance out the bike. The bags on the back make it wider and somehow lopsided? The bars on the front kinda give the appearance of added bulk. They blend really well, like the bike just came with them. I’m really happy how they turned out.

I'd like to see some pics of how they look on your bike..

 

[Jedi Leba]

I'd like to see some pics of how they look on your bike..

Sorry for the long wait. When I had good light I forgot, and now I went ahead and took some with bad light in my garage. Not sure what pics you might want - any angle or detail in particular, just ask.