I'm still looking at new bikes, but I seem to have a problem with a lot of the new crop of "adventure" bikes. Their too wide. I need the handlebars to be no more than 900mm. I have been looking at handlebar spec for the past few weeks and it's just doing my head in.
Am I right in assuming that if I wish to avoid contact with the tank or screen, I would need a higher "rise" and a bigger "sweep". Is it that simple?
Bars are like choosing oils or gloves, everyone has their opinions. Personally I like bars high enough to stand on the pegs and reach comfortably, and very little sweep (very straight). I ended up with ProTaper SE XR50 bars (yes, minibike). I think lower rise wouldn't be an issue based on my experience. Stock bars have a lot of sweep, so if you like that, it shouldn't be an issue. My very straight bars "just" contact the windshield at the extremes of turn, but no big deal.
An old MX trick was to sit on the bike, close your eyes and reach out for the "would be" bars. Take note, or have someone else observe and note the position of your wrists (will tell how much or how little sweep you want), the natural rise and width.
+1 when I was mucking around with seat and risers, I got someone to take photos at three same time.
I have Rox Risors on my 955 and have been able to adjust the stock bar exactly how I want it.
I did have to remove one of the brake line anchors but didn't have to replace the lines
The width is the all important thing.
The Explorer is shown as 962mm wide at the bars. But like so many bikes these days it's not just a simple case of me cutting 63mm off the bars. Like I said, this would cause problems with the bars hitting the tank or screen. I had thought about risers, but I assume I would need bars with a bit more sweep.
I have also had a look round to see if I could find a custom bar manufacturer, but I am struggling to find anyone.
Buy a hacksaw! Making bars narrower is easy, but wider it trïcker :o Seriously though lot of enduro riders cut thiers bars down for woods riding. Just need to make sure there is enough space before the bend for controls and switches.
http://www.protaper.com/products/handlebars/se (http://www.protaper.com/products/handlebars/se)
Lots of bends, widths and heights here...or here
http://renthal.com/File/product1d.asp?productid=0&tabtype=5&zone=&biketype=&manufacturer=&model=&bikedate= (http://renthal.com/File/product1d.asp?productid=0&tabtype=5&zone=&biketype=&manufacturer=&model=&bikedate=)