Just googled, there seems to be plenty of 35 mm clip on bars available. Seems the biggest obstacle is how much one wants to pay.
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Restoring & Modifying 1971 OIF TR120
- Thread starter NM Bonny
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Yeah, I've found several models on Scamazon machined from 6061-T6 aluminum without bars in the $20s and with in the $30s. The chief benefit of the Woodcraft seems to be it's machined in halves, so one doesn't have to R&R the fork tubes to install them--but that's a minor issue for me, as the bike isn't yet running. It's going to be hard for me to justify paying $200 for a name brand if I like the fit and finish of options like I've seen...
As for the issue of a more aggressive riding posture, two things: first, I've already got a more or less upright vintage cruiser in the '51 FL (see 1st pic) and don't want another; second, I hadn't thought about it but I'm actually used to riding for extended periods of time in such a posture (see 2nd pic). Now, that's a bit different because you're pedaling, in and out of the saddle, etc., but still.
At any rate, I've got the flat bar at the ready for whenever the fairing gets here, and am eager to experiment. Then there's the issue of the seat height--but again, I want a two-up seat for a passenger and for my soft tail trunk.
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Absolutely a point on the bicycle riding position. I’ve done a fair amount of riding in a forward position and think that may be one reason I’m pretty comfortable on my Thruxton.
You can always upgrade later if needed, but the inexpensive ones will let you get the setup together.
Okay, got the flat bars fitted, removed the gauges temporarily, headlight comes off tomorrow... now, where's my fairing?
It's 10-1/4" from the end of the grip to the inner edge of the master cylinder's banjo bolt, so if I have to resort to clip-ons, most have a 12" bar--though they sell longer ones, and for that matter I could just buy some 6061 tubing from an online metal store and cut it to length.
Good thing I didn't futz with the PO's lousy steering lock 'repair,' as with the flat bars the clearance is quite close... yikes.
It's 10-1/4" from the end of the grip to the inner edge of the master cylinder's banjo bolt, so if I have to resort to clip-ons, most have a 12" bar--though they sell longer ones, and for that matter I could just buy some 6061 tubing from an online metal store and cut it to length.
Good thing I didn't futz with the PO's lousy steering lock 'repair,' as with the flat bars the clearance is quite close... yikes.
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Apologies late to the party, escaped the British "summer" for a while. Been reading your thread but internet was too flaky to post, and there were other interesting things to do ... 
So, unless you are a very weird shape, flat bars or clip-ons, ime you will need rearsets; however, need not be too radical - my T160 has footrests about level with the swinging arm pivot ... Then I advise moving the pillion rests rearward a little unless you like footsie with your pillion at the beginning and end of rides ...
).
Another thing to keep in mind fitting real clip-ons is you might well need to restrict steering lock to prevent the clip-ons trapping thumbs against tank (or bashing the tank if you get your thumbs out of the way in time).
Hinckley could well have fitted the swan-necks to give the Thruxton both a suitably "sporty" looking riding position and sensible steering lock?
They can also be rotated in the P clamps to make further rise/drop differences between mounting and ends.
The final bend towards each end angles the standard master cylinder away from the gauge on that side, the length at each end is plenty long enough for the standard electrical switches and Lockheed master cylinder.
If these bars look interesting, beware of the nefarious and the ignorant selling mid-1960's T90/T100 bars as "M Bars" - they look similar but don't have the rise/drop, are only ~25" across the ends (true "M Bars" are 28"~29").
"M Bars"are (were?) also available in black, although you might need to look in the Hinckley section of the Hyde website.
Risking posting something you are aware of already, you can also consider 22 mm o.d. bars - the standard shims in the P-clamps reduce their 1" i.d. to 7/8" but there is obviously nothing stopping you making shims to reduce from 1" to 22 mm?
Having done what you are doing many years ago, your thread does not have enough thought given to footrest position (I have expressed it that way in case you have given it more thought than you have posted) ... Ime, standard Triumph rider's footrests position is much too far forward for anything but standard US bars; standard footrests were horribly uncomfortable even with standard "UK & General Export" bars.
So, unless you are a very weird shape, flat bars or clip-ons, ime you will need rearsets; however, need not be too radical - my T160 has footrests about level with the swinging arm pivot ... Then I advise moving the pillion rests rearward a little unless you like footsie with your pillion at the beginning and end of rides ... Aside, strictly speaking, they are not, they are "swan-necks" - while they mount on fork legs between upper and lower yokes like clip-ons, clip-ons keep the rider's hands below the upper yoke (Hinckley's appreciation of Triumph and British motorcycling history is generally poor
).Another thing to keep in mind fitting real clip-ons is you might well need to restrict steering lock to prevent the clip-ons trapping thumbs against tank (or bashing the tank if you get your thumbs out of the way in time).
Hinckley could well have fitted the swan-necks to give the Thruxton both a suitably "sporty" looking riding position and sensible steering lock?While I am spending your money, consider Norman Hyde "M Bars"? As Norman intended them, they have about a 1" rise between the mounting and the ends; flipped over, this obviously becomes a ~1" drop ...
They can also be rotated in the P clamps to make further rise/drop differences between mounting and ends.The final bend towards each end angles the standard master cylinder away from the gauge on that side, the length at each end is plenty long enough for the standard electrical switches and Lockheed master cylinder.
If these bars look interesting, beware of the nefarious and the ignorant selling mid-1960's T90/T100 bars as "M Bars" - they look similar but don't have the rise/drop, are only ~25" across the ends (true "M Bars" are 28"~29")."M Bars"are (were?) also available in black, although you might need to look in the Hinckley section of the Hyde website.
Risking posting something you are aware of already, you can also consider 22 mm o.d. bars - the standard shims in the P-clamps reduce their 1" i.d. to 7/8" but there is obviously nothing stopping you making shims to reduce from 1" to 22 mm?
The mounts might well not be reusable if you have spent enough time mounting the fairing on your bike well enough to prevent the vibration damaging the aluminium - British singles' and twins' vibration splits and cracks steel fenders, never mind aluminium, fibreglass, etc.; you will be very pissed indeed if anything similar happens to the fairing ...?
Do the steel gauge mounts not have "notches" to engage specific parts of the gauge rubbers? That would then prevent the gauges being realigned in the pivoted mounts?
Rudy:
- Yes, footpegs will be adjusted as needed (mentioned above), but my plan is to configure bars first, then dial in foot position after I've ridden a bit. Sitting on the bike with flat bars, the ball of my foot on the existing pegs doesn't feel bad at all;
- The Omega mounts have a rubber pad between the clamping surface and the steering neck, with U-bolts hooking around--but they are for a 'modern' air-cooled Bonneville, so I may be modifying numerous aspects of their mounting system. Good idea, though, to think about incorporating rubber pads wherever I can without the fairing flopping around at speed;
- Those Hyde Ms look interesting, and of course there are 'clubman' bars available. Indeed, simply flipping and reversing the lower bars that came on the bike would approximate the M equation--ending up about on par with zero-lift clip-ons. But if I'm going that low, the only benefit of a P-clamp mounted bar would be the isolation mounts--worth thinking about, as I've got new rubbers in there... though, hmmm, those could be used to rubber mount the dash...;
- Another item in favor of clip-ons is that I could R&R the fork tube caps without touching the handlebar(s). Cable routing will be greatly simplified without a headlamp bucket right there...;
- Yes, the steel gauge mounts are notched--but easy-peasy to make a new set of notches to enable moving them even closer together if need be (without the headlamp acorn nuts, they can move in as far as I wish).
But at that point, and given that I've got some aluminum sheet laying around from the side-cover exercise, I'd probably just make a custom dash and sell the mounts.
- Yes, footpegs will be adjusted as needed (mentioned above), but my plan is to configure bars first, then dial in foot position after I've ridden a bit. Sitting on the bike with flat bars, the ball of my foot on the existing pegs doesn't feel bad at all;
- The Omega mounts have a rubber pad between the clamping surface and the steering neck, with U-bolts hooking around--but they are for a 'modern' air-cooled Bonneville, so I may be modifying numerous aspects of their mounting system. Good idea, though, to think about incorporating rubber pads wherever I can without the fairing flopping around at speed;
- Those Hyde Ms look interesting, and of course there are 'clubman' bars available. Indeed, simply flipping and reversing the lower bars that came on the bike would approximate the M equation--ending up about on par with zero-lift clip-ons. But if I'm going that low, the only benefit of a P-clamp mounted bar would be the isolation mounts--worth thinking about, as I've got new rubbers in there... though, hmmm, those could be used to rubber mount the dash...;
- Another item in favor of clip-ons is that I could R&R the fork tube caps without touching the handlebar(s). Cable routing will be greatly simplified without a headlamp bucket right there...;
- Yes, the steel gauge mounts are notched--but easy-peasy to make a new set of notches to enable moving them even closer together if need be (without the headlamp acorn nuts, they can move in as far as I wish).
But at that point, and given that I've got some aluminum sheet laying around from the side-cover exercise, I'd probably just make a custom dash and sell the mounts.
Mounting plastic parts, I have adopted the system I found on Japanese bikes - hole in the plastic part for a grommet, steel bush in the centre of the grommet that is slightly longer than the thickness of the grommet. The bush then allows the mounting fastener to be done up tightly but will not allow the tight fastener to compress the grommet, grommet isolates the plastic part from the fastener's head, nut, washers and from the bush with the fastener through it. The Japanese size the hole in the plastic part quite closely to the o.d. of the middle of the grommet so there is little or no sideways movement of the plastic part.
I mainly use Honda parts as, when I started, I had one on hand, could use it to identify the grommets for a Honda dealer to supply by part number. Made the bushes from stainless round bar.
If you try these, ime pay the money for adjustables. I have never tried the fixed ones but read many posts on various forum where posters could not find a comfortable hand position, ended up discarding them. My adjustables came from a long-gone
British performance parts company called Anglobike. Had a semi circular one mounted on the two fork stanchion nuts. Still got it somewhere ...
When I installed the aluminum fairing from Omega Racer I used extra rubber padding where I thought it would rub. Also if you’re looking for a lay flat instrument panel try this company, Bonneville Brackets | For Hinckley Bonneville, Thruxton, Scrambler
. If they don’t have one already they might be able to make one that fits your bike. They had one for my new model.
. If they don’t have one already they might be able to make one that fits your bike. They had one for my new model.
Thanks for the resources and suggestions, guys.
Rudie - I've got an assortment of grommets, so that'll be useful re: the fairing mounts. On the bars, I guess we'll see what's what. I've taken measurements that suggest I'll need bars at or below the top of the triple clamp, but it's hard to be sure until I have the fairing in-hand.
Siktari - yeah, no way I want to rub off or gouge that paint job I worked so hard on. Glue-on pads where flat-to-flat surface rubbing is possible is a good idea. On the dash, I'll check out the linked stuff.
The 5032 H32 aluminum sheet I've got might be too thin for a dash, but I'll have to check it out. I actually bought a second, thinner piece for the side covers (.050"), because the first I got (.063") was too thick to form depressions in easily (like for the ignition switch) and bend sharp radii with my HF metal brake. So, the thicker sheet might well work, after all--plus I could cut notches to align the gauges...
Rudie - I've got an assortment of grommets, so that'll be useful re: the fairing mounts. On the bars, I guess we'll see what's what. I've taken measurements that suggest I'll need bars at or below the top of the triple clamp, but it's hard to be sure until I have the fairing in-hand.
Siktari - yeah, no way I want to rub off or gouge that paint job I worked so hard on. Glue-on pads where flat-to-flat surface rubbing is possible is a good idea. On the dash, I'll check out the linked stuff.
The 5032 H32 aluminum sheet I've got might be too thin for a dash, but I'll have to check it out. I actually bought a second, thinner piece for the side covers (.050"), because the first I got (.063") was too thick to form depressions in easily (like for the ignition switch) and bend sharp radii with my HF metal brake. So, the thicker sheet might well work, after all--plus I could cut notches to align the gauges...
I was looking at rear-set controls, and located two that are really nice and have folding pegs--necessary for the kick-start clearance.
Cognito Moto makes a really nice set, but they're proud of it. One nice thing is that it's got a 1.3" dog-leg design to help accommodate the flare of the primary case. Tec Bike Parts design is less than half as much--and still looks well-made--but has a nominal dog-leg. The Italian Tarrozi set has the same dog-leg clearance spec as Cognito Moto, is also adjustable, re: position of lever, and comes with rubbers and linkage ends attached. Similar price to Cognito Moto...
Cognito Moto makes a really nice set, but they're proud of it. One nice thing is that it's got a 1.3" dog-leg design to help accommodate the flare of the primary case. Tec Bike Parts design is less than half as much--and still looks well-made--but has a nominal dog-leg. The Italian Tarrozi set has the same dog-leg clearance spec as Cognito Moto, is also adjustable, re: position of lever, and comes with rubbers and linkage ends attached. Similar price to Cognito Moto...
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So, I changed my mind: I'm ordering a set of non-crossover pipes made by LF Harris (made in UK) from Kyle Jones. I've done a bunch more reading, and numerous engine tuners and racers seem to agree that so long as one is dispensing with the OEM airbox and mufflers, there's no particular benefit to retaining the crossover...
...other than noise reduction. That's not a big consideration for me. With the Dunstall replicas I'm 99% sure I'll be fitting after re-wrapping the cores with better insulation, and based on the Lemon Drizzle Gang's video of Dave's 750 with the identical mufflers, the exhaust note shouldn't be excessive.
The only other muffler I like after doing some more looking and listening is the Gold Star style many people fit to cafe bikes--which I think is a straight-through design, but the tapered megaphone really looks nice on this bike. Perhaps the fairing's looks will change this leaning but I don't think so...
Part of me wants to go with the swept-back style that many people upgrade sporting bikes with, but I don't like the idea of the engine covers being covered by the pipes. I also think the sweep of the stock-bend pipes looks great.
...other than noise reduction. That's not a big consideration for me. With the Dunstall replicas I'm 99% sure I'll be fitting after re-wrapping the cores with better insulation, and based on the Lemon Drizzle Gang's video of Dave's 750 with the identical mufflers, the exhaust note shouldn't be excessive.
The only other muffler I like after doing some more looking and listening is the Gold Star style many people fit to cafe bikes--which I think is a straight-through design, but the tapered megaphone really looks nice on this bike. Perhaps the fairing's looks will change this leaning but I don't think so...
Part of me wants to go with the swept-back style that many people upgrade sporting bikes with, but I don't like the idea of the engine covers being covered by the pipes. I also think the sweep of the stock-bend pipes looks great.
Covering the engine covers just adds extra work if you need to access anything for maintenance. Cool is nice, but I like the idea of not adding extra work without good reason.
I was reading a thread on another forum, and am now thinking it wouldn't be too difficult to fashion my own rear-set controls using Triumph parts that would look pretty close to stock.
Moving the brake rearward would simply mean making a triangular plate with positioning lugs to bolt into the passenger foot peg loop, and which would take the stock brake pedal and pivot (I could weld it but would be afraid of melting the loop - I'm not experienced with thin-wall tubing). Add a tab for the brake switch, and shorten the brake actuation rod.
Then, you'd just insert a passenger folding peg into the hole where the brake pivot resided originally, a simple matter of a bushing-type adapter, I would think.
I've got to ponder the shifter side, but there again the folding passenger foot peg idea solves the initial issue with some fiddling--and presumably would clear the arc of the kickstart lever...?
Moving the brake rearward would simply mean making a triangular plate with positioning lugs to bolt into the passenger foot peg loop, and which would take the stock brake pedal and pivot (I could weld it but would be afraid of melting the loop - I'm not experienced with thin-wall tubing). Add a tab for the brake switch, and shorten the brake actuation rod.
Then, you'd just insert a passenger folding peg into the hole where the brake pivot resided originally, a simple matter of a bushing-type adapter, I would think.
I've got to ponder the shifter side, but there again the folding passenger foot peg idea solves the initial issue with some fiddling--and presumably would clear the arc of the kickstart lever...?
For old Triumphs, ime the best are Triples Rule 2-gauge bracket or 3-gauge bracket - simply bolt on, hold speedo and tacho in the standard 71-78 rubber cups. He (Pat Brown) makes them for forks with stanchions 6-3/4" apart as on your bike.
Originally, British racers made them that way because, when braking and cornering hard, the bottom front curve of a standard pipe can touch down. Riding on public roads, do you think you might lean over that far when also braking?
Wow, those are fabulous brackets--thank you. I like the oil pressure gauge version. The only deficit is no provision for warning lights--but with the oil pressure gauge version, all I'd need is a high beam indicator, and that could be incorporated into the headlamp housing that comes with the fairing. Well, assuming I could see it down in there....
Thanks for the history on those swept-back pipes. I seriously doubt that I'll ride that aggressively; it's been a long time since I 'floated' the hinged footpegs and scraped the mufflers on my '71 XS1B Yamaha in the mountain twisties east of San Diego...
Hmmm... after looking at Sikatri's setup, my only concern is whether the above-linked brackets will fit inside the compound curve of the windscreen at full lock.
I've contacted the bracket's vendor and asked for a center-to-center measurement. The bracket may also push the gauges too far forward--toward the windscreen. But that'll be straightforward to determine when the fairing gets here.
Either way, very cool alternative!
I've contacted the bracket's vendor and asked for a center-to-center measurement. The bracket may also push the gauges too far forward--toward the windscreen. But that'll be straightforward to determine when the fairing gets here.
Either way, very cool alternative!
Conceptually if it’s lay flat it should work. You’ll get a better idea as you look at the rough attached fairing. It’ll give you an idea what needs modifying. I had to put in a different brake fluid reservoir. I didn’t find the one that would be ideal, but worked. Still looking for a better solution.
Both the two- and three-gauge versions are machined from a flat piece of aluminum plate (see pics). The OEM pressed steel gauge mounts tilt up slightly--though easily bent. But the advantage of those is that without the OEM headlamp mount's acorn nuts, I could pivot them inward even until touching if I wanted (just have to cut new notches to orient the gauges).
Yes, I'm a little concerned about the master, though mine is fairly low profile. Of course you're right: I just have to wait until the thing arrives...
