well i got my tusk handguards today and everything was goin fine until i took off the grips and tried to install them.well guess wat, theres sumthing welded on the inside of our handlebars and the handguards won't come close to fitting. this is a huge disappointment and i thought all handguards would fit a 7/8' bar. well anyways i guess i gotta send them back now.

http://www.rockymountainmc.com/viewL...lum-guards.jpg

 

Yeah, stock handlebars have a wieght in the ends that can be grounded off with a dremmel. OR you could opt for a more sturdy and secure handlebar now instead of finding out the stockers are crap 50 miles from home like I did. Not fun riding that far with bent bars.[:@]
There are many posts about how to do the handguards with stock bars.
But I would just get new handlebars and go from there. Stay away from any cheap steel bars because I just bent them too.
Dave

 

well the fit isn't good at all. even if i find a way to get the guards to attach to the bar it still doesn't look like the guards will attach to the clamps or anything. looks like this was a bad idea

 

Someone here, can't remember who, came up with the brilliant idea of drilling the slugs at the end of the bars and tapping them so that the hand guards attachment bolt would thread into that, instead of using the split bolt that the normally come with. You might give that a try.

But don't send the hand guards back, get new bars instead if you can't make them fit. Since you got Tusk guards, why not try a set of those slick looking Tusk handlebars.

 

thnx for the advice, i'll give it a try

 

I have the Tusk bars and guards and even then the fitment isn't perfect. You have to slowly tighten all the bolts to draw it together but once you get them twisted up or down to where they need to be they are very close. I was just as upset as you were at first but then I got them together.

 

I did some research on this over at thumpertalk. The general consensus is that you need to bend the guards some. It seems that they are universal and need some tweaking to work.

 

That was me!! Have a look at this link:

https://www.kawasakiforums.com/m_108777/tm.htm

also, the bars do need to bend a bit, the first attempt everyone seems to make is to secure the handlebar ends, then try to get the bars to mate to the clamps. The REVERSE is the best way to get the job done...[8D]

 

The handlebar ends are the fixed point... the clamps are the vairable "Custom" point. I don;t see how mounting hte clamps first would make it easier to fit the barends.

I would get new bars. The stock bars are cheap junk anyway. Aftermarket bars are stiffer, and you can get them wider or change your hand position if you want. they also look cooler.

 

I might have not been very clear, I'm referring to the guard bars that you attach to the stock handlebars. Also the link and my comments are specific to Tusk D-flex hand guards.

Most people, including me, start by attaching the guard bars loosely to the end of the stock handlebars (drilled out or tap & died) and then try to connect (or mate) the guard bar to the attachment clamps that are loosely set on the stock handlebars along the 'rise'.

For some reason (that rests in a higher form of physics then I am able to articulate), that becomes and exercise in frustration.

By reversing the process however, and loosely attaching the guard bar first to the attachment clamps, the guard bar then bends quite easily around to where it bolts onto the end of the stock handlebars.

Hope thats more clear.[8D]