Conventional Handlebar Conversion

[Chris216]

I just finished changing the bars on my 1250RS to "conventional" 1 1/8" taper style bars for improved ergonomics. The stock bars (with Helibar risers) were close, but not quite right for me (bars are a subjective fit, so what works for me may be totally wrong for some one else). I went with the 11/8" bars rather than the R's 32 mm bars for a few reasons.
1. multiple bends available, with the R bars only the one (that I know of).
2. availability, should you have a bad day on the road, most shops carry at least one bend of the taper style bars.
3. Price, I'm a cheap SOB and can't bring myself to pay almost $400 for a set of handle bars.

I went with Rizoma MA009 bars. Rizoma says these have a 55 mm rise. Revzilla $112
I got the R bar clamps from A&S Cycles, $75 ea.
32 71 8 540 803 left
32 71 8 540 804 right

The downside to going this route is there is some fabrication involved.
1. Spacers, I made these from a piece of 1 1/4" 6061 aluminum round stock. I took a small clean up pass on the OD and bored the ID to 1 1/8". I cut them to .85" length and made a cut down the length to allow the spacer to compress when clamped on.
2. Bar end plugs (if you wish to retain the BMW bar end weights). I made these out of 7/8" 6061 round stock.
3. holes must be drilled in the bars to locate and secure the grips.
More to follow.
Chris

[Chris216]

Here are the spacers (shown on bars).
   
Bar end plugs, I drilled and tapped them for 8-1.25 mm to work with the stock hardware. I used JB Weld steel filled 24 hour set epoxy to glue them into the bar ends (forgot to get a pic of this step ).
   
Next, mock up the handle bars to get the best position. With spacers in place tighten the front of the clamps first and then the back. Just snug the bars so you can rotate them. Mark things so you can repeat this position on final assembly.
   

[Chris216]

Next mock up the grips and controls to get their radial position on the bars, mark where the holes need to be. Make sure to check lever positions at the same time as there can be some interference between the throttle wiring harness and the front brake lever (you only want to drill the locating holes once ).
   
Next take everything back apart and mark the final hole position. I measured the distance between the end of the stock bars (where the bar end weight contacts) and the center of the hole to get the "length". I used a punch to mark the hole and a .136" drill bit. Note the holes need to go through both sides of the bars, so need to be 180 degrees apart. I used a V-block on the drill press to ensure this.
   

[Lee]

Nice.
I like that look better than the OEM cast assembly.

[Chris216]

Next reassemble everything, and check that every thing is in the right place, correct as necessary. Handle bar clamp torque 19 NM, Levers 8 NM, locating screws snug.
   
I'm running the Bark Buster Storms as well, and with a minor tweak at the mirrors and a small trim of the extension fairings I added for tank clearance everything works fine.
   
   
With the Rizoma MA009 bend the bars are a bout halfway between stock and with the Heibar risers height wise. They sit back towards the rider an inch or two and the angle is better for my wrists.
I'd love to get out for a test ride, but as this is the current view outside I may have to wait awhile...
   
Chris

[Chris216]

Lee, I agree on the looks. I'm not really into the look of the "Star Wars cruiser" bars.
Chris

[Lee]

The gadget shelf is a good idea.

[Chris216]

Thanks Lee

[Duccrazydave]

Nice work and great pics, Chris! Totally random question: Have you adjusted your fork height? Noticed a larger than "usual" (coming from a 1200RS perspective) amount of fork leg above the top clamp.

[Lee]

Nice work and great pics, Chris! Totally random question: Have you adjusted your fork height? Noticed a larger than "usual" (coming from a 1200RS perspective) amount of fork leg above the top clamp.

I was curious also.
Looks like he may have TracTive suspension.

[Grumpy Goat]

Christ216 - Thanks for this nice write-up. I resized all the photos to 800x600 pixels and reuploaded them to make it easier to see and eliminate side scrolling.

[Chris216]

Dave and Lee, yes I pulled the fork tubes up 1/2" to quicken steering, and yes I have the Tractive suspension.
GG thanks for the photo resize.
Chris

[Grumpy Goat]

This DIY conversion is now an article on the RSWasserboxer.com website. Thanks Chris.

[moparrob]

Nice installation.

I have a 2018 1200RS and the prior owner had put on Heli risers with the stock bars, but I find that I am still not as comfortable as I would like, as the bars sit a bit more forward and lower than I prefer. I do like the bar position on the 1250 GS models I have sat on though. I also have the Motorrad Nav mount which I would like to keep.





It looks like the Heli riser cannot be retained as it has a flat top.

Is there a way to retain the Nav mount with the bar adapters you have used?

Also, did you find any bars with a higher rise which may help to accomplish my goal?

Thanks in advance for your help.

[Chris216]

Interesting that you mention the Helibar risers for the RS not working for the conventional bars. I found after a couple of rides that my 65 yr old body wanted a bit higher and further back riding position. So I got a set of Helibar risers for the "R" model. Interestingly they appear to be identical to the ones for the "RS" but have the bore to fit conventional bars.
   
If you are thinking about adding Helibar risers to the standard bars AND think that one day you might play with conventional bars you might look at the "R" model Helibar risers. That way you don't end up with 2 sets (like me ). I think you should be able to retain the nav mount using the original hardware. As far as the bars themselves there are a lot of choices out there, Rizoma, Protaper, Etc. Check their websites they usually have all the different bends dimensions. You may be able to find one that gives enough rise without the Helibar risers. I found that I needed extra clutch line length, Helibar instructs you to reroute the line, but I don't like this approach so I ordered a Hornig adaptor (still waiting on this).
Chris

[moparrob]

Thanks for the input.

I ended up buying 1200R top clamps and some LSL Bars with 32 mm centers and taper to 22 mm bar ends, to fit the stock clamps. The bars have a 4 inch rise and will look like this:



Hopefully, this will help.

[Chris216]

Let us know how it goes.
Chris

[Podman]

Soooooooo any update on this topic particularly which setup gives the most upward and backward position.

[ESquared]

The best (and maybe only) claim on your "upward and backward" question comes from the Wunderlich bar kit.

"Changes from stock bar position: 2.25" Wider x 2.75" Higher x 1.25" Back"

Still a DIY proposition if you're so inclined.

https://www.wunderlichamerica.com/handle...00-rs.html

[moparrob]

I did complete my own version of the project, which included buying 1200R top clamps.  In addition, I used the Heli-bars 1200R adapters which move the bars up and rearward in conjunction with some LSL Bars with 32 mm centers and taper to 22 mm bar ends, to fit the Heli-bar adapters. The bars have a 4 inch rise on their own, but I did not measure the actual overall change.  


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This also required relocating the brake and clutch lines to the other, more rearward, side of the triple clamps. I found some smaller bar ends from the same site that sells the bars and they work quite well. Foam Grip Puppies were the last touch (not pictured here) and I really like the change in the grip.

The end result is that it is very comfortable for me and has taken the forward lean out of my driving, especially with my 35" sleeve length..  As expected though, the steering is slower but still provides me with the handling I require for canyon driving.  I am very pleased with the results and now enjoy cruising my big hot rod.

The last (maybe) modification will be having my standard seat re-upholstered with some additional foam to raise the seat height about .75 inch at the rear and have a thin layer of memory foam added for comfort, and to give my 34" inseam legs a bit more of a relaxed riding position and some additional comfort for longer rides.

As an aside, I now have an extra set of Heli-bar adapters for a 1200RS (for the stock bars), and an extra stock seat (standard height) for sale with 1500 miles on them, in as new condition.

The Heli adapters for sale look like this:


 PM if interested.