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If you reuse the original foot peg bolts, they must be shortened so they don't run into the frame, the bolt that's in front of the kick stand bracket a little more than the rest. I used 16mm ARP bolts and only had to shorten the one bolt by about two threads. Use Loctite on all the fasteners here.
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| There is now 5 in. between the foot peg and the shifter, and size 13 motocross boots fit a lot better. Shifting is easy, smooth and reliable. Combined with the reversed handlebar mount, the change in foot peg position establishes a good relationship between foot pegs and handlebars. |
Armor
Projecting machines and watery sacks of protoplasm together through nature involves some risk. As for the protoplasm, “All the gear, all the time” are words to live by. There's a reasonable minimum for the machine, too. Hand controls, engine cases and radiators all need protection if you'd rather ride than walk.
Handguards significantly reduce the chances of your digits being crushed between the handlebar and stationary objects, as well as protecting the much-easier-to-replace brake and clutch levers.
Cycra Racing Probend guards are a widely recognized standard for quality. The Cycras' 6061 aluminum bars are a lot harder than some buttery budget-priced guards I've installed. The shields are generously sized, and some riders believe that the droop of the bars (compared to a straight loop) reduces the risk of one's hands getting caught in a crash.
The Cycras are usually sold as a modular system. The basic element is the bar pack, which includes the aluminum bars, hand shields with a range of plastic colors and bar-end inserts. Several different inboard mounts are available separately.
Installing hand guards can be a little fiddly. With the range of handlebar shapes, no guard can be a perfect fit on all of them. Even rotating the bars changes all the angles, so choosing the handlebar bend you like and getting it positioned before installing hand guards is a good idea.
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| The included expanding-wedge bar end inserts didn't fit inside the stock Husky handlebars, and I preferred a more secure mounting option anyway. I made steel threaded inserts before realizing similar parts are available inexpensively from Hyde Racing. Don't make your own – just buy them from Hyde Racing. It's much easier. I used grade 12.9 flat head socket screws to hold the bar ends, coating them with zinc and Rustoleum. |
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| Triple clamp mounts attach the inboard ends of the guards directly to the structure that holds the tops of the fork tubes. That creates less clutter on the bars and may make them less likely to rotate or get bent in a crash. I tried a set, and it looked like they would have worked well with the handlebar mounts in the stock position, but with the whole assembly shifted forward, the ends of the hand guards were just too far away from the triple clamps to bend back. |
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| I changed to the “U-clamp” option that connects to the handlebars themselves. This worked well with minimal bending of the guards. |
