Anyone flipped their bars?

So, I'm looking into doing some modifications to my bike, turning it into a sort of soft tail bobber-racer thing. I was looking at some of the pics on here of XJs with clubman bars, and I really like the look. But, being a penniless college student, I'm not sure I want to buy anything purely aesthetic at this point. I read that some of you had flipped the stock handlebars to create a pseudo-clubman look, so I was wondering if I could see some pics of those. As always, any posts are greatly appreciated.

 

on my 82 XJ650 maxim I flipped the bars and it worked nicely. Was not too comfortable as a Maxim does not have rear sets like a sportbike so your upper body is hunched like a sportbike but lower body is in a standard UJM riding position so my hips hurt after any decent length ride. Granted though I am also 6'3....

Did not work on my XJ750 maxim though as the bars are angled in the wrong way when they are flipped so I could not get it comfortable for my wrists as one way or the other it was not straight enough out from the clamps to be really rideable...

Hope that helps you though I don't know much about your 550

Cheers
Dave

 

Thanks, I'm looking into raising the seat a bit anyway so maybe that'll help with the hip problems? I'm about 6'1" (6'2" with boots) and the 550 is a little bit cramped in the leg area. Plus a higher seat would give it a more aggressive look...anyway, I'll give it a try and let you know how it turns out.

 

Raising the seat could certainly help as most cafe modding guys seem not to have issues with faux-clipon placed handlebars. One god send I did find is that I would ride with my feet on the passenger pegs once I reached top gear or cruising speed. This was kinda sketchy though as it meant I had no quick rear brake which is no good if you come into a corner a little too hot...

But it is an easy experiment. I have changed my handle bars 3 times this week with new styles.... so it is one of the nicer jobs to tackle....

Cheers
Dave

 

Alright, so last night I flipped the handlebars, and WOW what a difference. The bike handles so much more sharply, like I imagine a sportbike would (the Maxim is my first bike, period). The only problem I see is that I can't lock the handlebars since the choke lever comes into contact with the tank. I might try to re-arrange some of the instruments, but overall I'm very happy with them, both the look and the feel.

 

Glad it worked out for you. It certainly does give you a more controlled and racey feel of the bike.
I have swapped between some dragbars and some old honda CB bars which gives me a close feeling to that without killing my joints.... the joys of growing up playing rugby I guess

 

Poor college student or not, you can't afford $35 for some ebay clubmans? I'm flat arse broke and have spent maybe $200 on my bike in the form of repairs and modifications. All that's left is a seat. I painted it, added a cafe headlight and changed the front/rear signals, custom gauges meant for an xs650, r6 master cylinder, stainless lines, etc. The only thing left to turn it into a proper cafe is the seat. I'm probably going to spend $150 on it.

They'll really improve the bike's look/handling over flipped bars: the flipped bars are waaaaaaaaaaaaaay too wide.

that said, I haven't ridden mine in probably six months. Stupid wiring project.

 

Take some pics would love to see how it looks.

 

As requested, some pics.

I was having a problem with the choke lever hitting the tank when maneuvering through parking lots and stuff, causing the idle to skyrocket. Not really a huge issue, but kind of annoying. so I relocated that instrument cluster. my signals weren't working anyway, and the horn can barely be heard over the engine, so I think it'll work fine on my 2-mile around-campus trips. Still can't lock the bars though.

 

as I suspected- too wide. I bet it handles great in parking lots, but the steering is probably not very precise elsewhere.

If you like the way it feels now, clubmans will make it feel infinitely better. And they're only $35.

 

Yeah, I'm really looking forward to getting some clubmans on it. I've just got some things higher on my to-do list (getting the valves in spec, replacing the rear tire). Will the clubmans give me more clearance for the tank? I'd really like to be able to lock up my bike

 

nope they wont. I have clubmans, and instead of pointing down they point outward, they dont look as cool, but i have about 1/4" of clearence with them pointed outward and not down.

 

You could also look into a set of clip-ons on ebay as well. Might even be cheaper and you can adjust the angle for whatever you need to be able to lock it AND steer!

here:
http://motors.shop.ebay.com/i.html?...&_osacat=6028&bkBtn=&_trksid=p4506.m270.l1313