Got to talking with my dad over the weekend & he had listed his bike for sale (Kawasaki Vulcan S), as he gets a bit uncomfortable after about 1/2 hour. With no bites on the ad, he's decided to keep it at least through the summer & look into making it a more comfortable fit for him.

Kawasaki has their Ergo-fit system & he has the longest handlebars that are an OE option, but would still like an extra 1-2 inches back.
Similar with the foot controls, he's got the longest option there, but may look into fabbing up his own highway bars for it. Not an option he wants to pursue on the handlebars.

The Vulcan S doesn't have near the aftermarket as its V-twin siblings, so he hasn't been able to find any OE-style aftermarket bars.

Anyone have any experience with the bar risers I see on Revzilla/Cyclegear? Seems to fall into the category of a bushing style, with extended bolts; or a riser that mounts into the OE bar mount & has a separate bar mount in the riser.
Do these have any marked effect on handling, or are they about equivalent to replacement handlebars in that regard?

Riser:


Bushing style:


Alternatively, anyone have any suggestions on reputable handlebar mfgs that he could look into?

Thanks.

The Rox risers (in your top photo) seem to be pretty popular in the adventure bike arena. The nice thing about them is their adjustability. Any degree of up and/or back.

There should not be any adverse handling issues with them. Don't go stacking two or more together, of any kind.

Make sure the control wires and cables are long enough to turn fully lock to lock.

I’ve never used them, but I don’t see how they would effect the handling, since you aren’t altering the geometry of the bike.

I would definitely find out if you can keep the stock brake/clutch lines, or any wiring, that may cause issues with relocating the stock controls higher, and further back.

If the risers come with hardware torque specs..use them with a 3/8" torque wrench.

Just "feeling" tight enough may not be enough.

Thanks for the quick replies. I don't think he'd considered or knew about these & he's not a fan of the majority of aftermarket 'cruiser' style replacement bars.

I put risers on my Bonneville with no affect on handling. They gave me a slightly more upright riding position and made it more comfortable for me.

Lots and lots of riders use bar risers on all sorts of different types of motorcycles with no negative impact on handling. The key to success when it comes to bar risers is making sure all cables and lines are long enough to fully turn the handlebars to the left or right after the risers have been installed. You also have to make sure the risers are tall enough or provide enough set back that they achieve the purpose of making the bike comfortable to ride. You'd be surprised how just a half inch rise can make a world of difference between the bike being comfortable or uncomfortable to ride. I've never used bar risers so I can't comment on the quality of different brands.

I put a pair like the top picture on my FJ after going to a Corbin seat. The seat moved me back on the bike a couple of inches and made reaching for the handlebars noticeable.

Stock bars with those risers and tilted back just a hair is the perfect setup for me.

I was lucky and was able to re-route things so I didn't have to change any cables, wiring or hoses.

Thanks again. I'll pass this along to my dad as an option.

Get measured/fit for what riding position you want or need, *then* buy or have made some bars that have those dimensions. Height, Width, and Pullback... the rest is aesthetics and mounting style.

I've had one-off custom bars welded up and powder coated or whatever for under $200 on a handful of occasions., for ex., or there are umpteen flavors of pre-made bars.

But getting measured/fit is everything.

I dont like the adjustable ones, or risers, myself, but they work just fine.

I had risers for a SV650 Suzuki and they did help. No change in handling.

I have the Rox riser to move my bar back towards me an inch and a half so I'm not so stretched out arm-wise on my Yamaha FZ6. Works great and has never shifted or slipped once tightened down. Just make sure you have enough slack in the wires/cables for the extra length. Geenerally you should be able to get a couplr of inches of length by rearranging the wires/cables.

Another round of thanks to you all.

He's looked at the cables & thinks a re-route will give sufficient slack to not need replacements.

V-Tail, that's exactly what he's not a fan of with the majority of aftermarket bar options. Doesn't want some crazy look/position, just an OE-like option, which I think the risers would allow, since he could keep the current bars.

Edit: A new hiccup in this exercise.

The Vulcan S uses the top half of the bar clamps for the gauge cluster mount.
So, the new questions is if there is any issue with using the top clamp from the risers on the bottom & the OE top clamp on the top of the risers so he can still mount the gauges.

Can't find a good image of the mount, but it's like this

This message has been edited. Last edited by: P250UA5,

Looks like the bushing style might work with long enough bolts. If the kit doesn’t have long enough bolts a local industrial supply might. Actually “Fastenal” has an impressive selection and if they don’t have it they can get it.

Sent you an email,

My guess is you'd be better off to get a different set of bars and use the factory mounting brackets due to the gauge setup.

As long as the bars fit the stock mounting points in width/diameter, you should be able to get the rise and pullback he needs.

At some point you'll have to change out the cables, going longer means you order stock + cables ie +1, +2 from a cable company to get the extra length.

Heres a simple article for determining what he wants, How to Measure for new Handlebars

Even though it says Harley it's the same process for a metric bike.

I put 4", pull back risers on my C50. I originally installed them backwards to give me a little more reach, but I eventually went back to the conventional install. The did add a really cool look when on backwards.
As mentioned, cables could be an issue.