CRASH BUNGS OR BARS

[trailguru]

Being vertically challenged and new to the V-Strom I'd like to give the bike a bit of 'drop' protection.

Do I go for bars or bungs?

Any recommendations for makes/designs?  On the bars I like the look of HEED and Givi bars.

[willbo]

Bars. More expensive for sure but much better protection. I've dropped mine 3 times and not a scratch on the body scratched tge bars a bit and the bar ends, broke a brake lever but that's it. A mate dropped his bandit the bar end snspped and damaged his engine. He was going 10mph at the time.

[kissofdeath]

BARS  do less damage if/when it is dropped

[pilky68]

Any recommendations of where to buy reasonably priced bars. Main dealer a little pricey.

For 2013 wee.

 

[kissofdeath]

just look online to be honest. I was looky enough to be in the dealers to get mine fixed when the mech asked if he wanted some removing for ebay, told him to put them on mine instead. £100 fitted with 2 small panniers and spot lights  

[Juvecu]

+1 for using crash bars instead of bungs. I have SW Motech ones, they are very sturdy, the Heed ones look similarly protective.

[Oop North John]

One downside of the crash bars is that they can accentuate the normal vibrations so that they become quite noticeable around 4800 rpm. BTW Suzuki call them "accessory bars", as I'm guessing the liability lawyers have been giving them grief.

IMO bungs or bars are only ever useful at really low speeds, as invariably the footrests / rear brake and or gear change indicators / handlebars / clutch and or front brake levers get damaged more, and most "crash bars" are only protecting the radiator when you look at them.

[Jacko]

Don't  they offer the same protection when you're not looking at them?

[Oop North John]

Don't  they offer the same protection when you're not looking at them?

Probably offer the same protection if you are looking at them then, logically  

[Juvecu]

I've only ever heard about vibration issues on the thin Suzuki bars and more particularly on the Glee. A while back there were some reports of Givi bars vibrating, I was one that had that issue and it was a spacer that was too short that was rattling around rather than a resonance issue. My Givi bars didn't cause any issues after that, and my SW Motech bars never had the issue either.

[trailguru]

I'm going for a set of bars from HEED.  They gave me a 5% discount for being a forum member.

Ref some of the useful answers I've had so far:

From reviews and YouTube demos bars are usually highly effective for v low speed/static drops.
Bungs often end up being a 'one use' only item.
More weight and fewer bends in bar design mostly equate to better protection.
SW Motech are highly rated (but you pay for it).

Ref the not so useful:

It is both impolite and unhelpful for the whole forum when someone attempts to high-jack a thread by posting a different question. Best to start a new thread.

[Juvecu]

You'll soon get used to the forum, off topic happens all the time and often turns into great discussions (often, but not always ) If you prefer a forum that's moderated to strict rules, there are some other V-Strom forums that do just that

[pilky68]

Just found some givi crash bars on web priced 89.95 delivered.

Ordered and hopefully will be fitting this weekend.

 

[trailguru]

I bought and fitted the HEED crash bars direct from HEED last week.  They were delivered 3 days after placing the order, took about 20mns to fit, no probs and look great.

Hopefully I'll never 'use' them but so far they're 'fit-n-forget' and I've not noticed their presence.  No vibration up to M-way cruising speeds.

Update after 2500 mile tour: The HEED bars work great.  No vibration at any time and, when I dropped the bike, they took the hit without marking, protecting everything including pannier. Of course there is 'dropping the bike' and 'DROPPING the bike!'.  This time it was classic touring 'I need a pee like NOW!' scenario and in my haste to relieve the pressure totally forgot to put the stand down - numpty!

[Brockett]

When my 750GSR went down the road the crash bung was the first thing to break off.
Errrrr quickly followed by everything else on the left side. And  I was only doing 55 (ish)