Bonneville America Forums Forums Technical Forums Accessories Brents Buckhorn bars

Ok, I wanted to ask this b4 the purchase, but I finally went with "Trust Brent to have good stuff as always."

So that being said and the order going through, Who has a set of the buckhorn bars and how is it for control and comfort. Are they going to be like an old Virago? Or they very narrow so that I will have to use more umph cornering? Just curious.

Brents pictures look good but are there any closer up out there?
As always, thanks everyone!

Brent's Buckhorn bars are the same dimensions as the ones I have on my bike. I know, because he asked me to measure mine.
You will need more "oomph" moving about when parking because you lose the leverage of the wider stock bars, but on the road you shouldn't notice any difference.

Some things you may encounter - the different geometry of the bars may put your front brake reservoir at an angle, front to back. It will still work, but it will hold less fluid and topping it off can be tricky. You may have to grind a bit off the bottom inside of the reservoir as it may also not fit perfectly level left to right. The reservoir will hit the bar. None of this is rocket science and it all will depend on how you set the bars to fit your height and comfort.
Another issue is that these bars probably do not have the threaded inserts for remounting your stock grip end caps with the tiny little long allen head screws. You can get around this in a few ways. I originally bought some tapered rubber plugs from Lowes or Home Depot, drilled a very small hole thru them, then drove them into the bars and used the stock screws and end caps. The rubber held the screws tight enough to keep the end caps on.
Later, I installed some Manic Salamander bar end weights, which have their own expanding insert to hold them in the bars....

Manic Salamander

I'd post some pix of both but Photopost is fubar right now.

To me, the riding comfort is well worth it. The trick is to get them set to where your wrists are relaxed, but the bars don't hit the tank. Some risers or Jim's spacers may be needed.

Spacer Jim

Cables and the front brake hose may be an issue as well. The throttle cables can be mounted on the right side of the frame if there is a problem, or you may find that relocating them above the big wiring harness lump on the left side of the frame near the neck may be enough to give you clearance. You'll know if you need more clearance if the engine revs when you turn the bars all the way to the right. The clutch cable and the front brake hose will also need to be checked, but there is no re-routing solution for them. You will need longer ones if there's a problem. Brent can fix you up. I went with 4" over originally, then got a 6" over clutch cable to clear my Windvest windshield without scraping it on a turn.

I suspended my bars from my garage ceiling while I changed everything over to the Buckhorns. It's easier than asking someone to try to hold them while you fuss with all the pieces.
Other than that, it's a piece of cake...

Well so much for a direct replacement. I guess its never as easy as it seems.

That's my bike on Brent's site.

If you use the stock risers, the only thing you will have to do cable-wise is re-route the throttle cables to the right side of the frame. All other cables/lines will work. As deon points out, the bar ends are hollow so you cannot use the end caps. Might be a good time to go with aftermarket grips.

Slow speeds (parking lots, home, etc.) took a little getting used to. No big deal as the comfort FAR outweighs that. I have not noticed any problems with handling other than a little more counter steering. I've had mine on for a few years now and it feels completely natural.

Notice in the top picture that the bars are a little forward? After trial and error, I now have them a little towards the rear (from dead in line with the fork angle). Perfect...

I posted your prose in the tech vault. Mr. Deon.

When can I expect my royalty check??

Hi, I emailed Jim Spacers , to get a pair of his spacers for an America two times, but never got a responce from either time, is he still selling these parts?

Try calling him?
1-734-512-9937

Hey, thanks. That IS good news!

I already have a pair of after mkt grips (cheep but looks pretty good, EMGOs i think) and don't use the things inside the bars. Will I need to add some weight to the bars? I could put brass plugs in them I guess ?
Oh what about what was said with the master cylinder and its positioning. Did you run into that also?
NOW I CAN USE THE 30 BUCKS THE RISERS WOULD COST TO GET THE MIRROR ADAPTERS

You don't need to add weight to the bars. I was having a front end wobble at the time (turned out to be a cupped front tire) and added the MS bar end weights in an effort to correct that. The MS bar end weights did not fix the wobble of course, but they were chrome (+), and they gave me a bit more hand room. I can move my hands down over the end weights and let the friction of the area between my thumb and first finger against the throttle act as a throttle lock when cruising. It probably sounds dumb, but trust me, , it works.
If you do want to add weight for some reason, I can tell you that a Bar Snake won't work. Some guys fill the bars with lead shot. You will have to plug any holes in the bars first to do this... said Mr. Obvious...
If you shoot shotguns and reload your own shells - no problem.
If not, there is info on the web about what size shot to buy and you may find it's only sold in 20-25 lb bags, etc. etc.
For me the bar end weights are a more sensible solution.
As far as the reservoir position, a lot depends on how the bars fit you when you're sitting in the seat. You don't want to ride with your wrists cocked at some weird angle, so you have to position the bars accordingly.
That will determine where your reservoir ends up on the bars.

The above info is based on what I ran into when installing Buckhorns - your results may vary.

BTW, running with beer is bad, you may trip and have a major BEER FOUL. :-)

Can you E-mail me a closer up pic of your bars/ res? So you said you have your bars slightly aft of the fork angel. How tall are you? Im 5.9, so I'm thinking I wont have to tilt them very much to get good results.

2 pix email sent.
Again, you will have to sit on the bike, get the bars in a comfy position, then adjust from there.

Oh, btw.... the mirrors get all fubar too....

So I am now guessing that your bars are right on the sweet spot as far as being pulled back but not hitting the tank? So if I want to lay them back any further, then I have to get the risers?