Topic: Case savers/crash bars....are they all they seem, and are they worth it?

[cben750f0]

ok so had a look in search, and found heaps of posts on, looking for crash bars, which ones are the best, but nothing definitive on whether they actually help? i have had a look at the way most mount, and for anything more than a roll off the side stand, i cant see that they would help.

the reason i ask , i am looking for a way to add a lil protection to my bike, with the wet season commin in far north queensland , Australia, but the guards i have been looking at, would bend at the mounts and smash the cases anyway?, i am more worried about the points side, then i am thining if it goes down on the points side, its gonna be toast anyway..... then i thought about perhaps retro fitting some chrome, or alloy crash bungs from a later model bike, with a sturdier mount, and better bolting system, but then i am worried about bending the frame!!.... so please throw your ideas, opinions, sarcasm, trolling etc etc out there, and get a list of PRO'S and CON'S going.

thanks for the time

peace

[cben750f0]

anyone?

[octagon]

i'd think of case savers (the kind with three mounting points, not the single loop that attaches in two places) in about the same class as a good fairing, or a good set of hard bags - in a low speed crash, or if the bike is knocked over, they can keep the bike off the pavement somewhat.   

[Rigid]

I sure have removed a bunch of scraped up ones over the years.  They can look good and provide protection for the case covers in a slide.  I like the Hondaline ones for fit and looks, nice and tight to the engine. 

[lone*X]

They do the job they were designed for.  I like the close fitting case guards myself.  The big loops have more daily utility as you can mount highway pegs off them and even use them with covers for chaps to keep spray off you legs,  but to me they look like crap.   No case or crash guard is going to save your bacon if you go down at speed, but they can save the cases in slow and medium speed get offs though. 

[scunny]

in racing back in the day, we just used to make up a plate of aluminuim that bolted to the frame and just covered the points and alternator covers. they were considered sacrificial so to speek.

[mick7504]

Yamiya list a couple of different styles here. http://www.yamiya750.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=40

Although not terribly cheap, the quality of their products is excellent and the shipping costs and time are usually quite good.

Mick

[cben750f0]

you guys are legends, thanks for the info.... will look into it closely, i was also thinking a polished set of modern crash bungs, might look good also...

peace

[CycleRanger]

I saw these on another bike and liked the look, small, close fitting.
I found them at David Silver Spares but they're made by Tarozzi in Italy.
http://www.tarozzipaolo.com/inglese/home.htm

[MCRider]

The 2 point mount style still work fine. But they will fold back on the engine. (Then you can bend them back) On the alt side, it will fold back to the alt cover. But by the time it has done that it will have absorbed quite a bit of energy. They also provide something to slide on, rather than the cover. I have crashed at speed with and without. Without, the cover will either break outright, or grind down to where a hole opens up and it leaks. Either case means you are not riding home.

With the guard, it will fold back to where it touches the cover. Then the pipe of the guard grinds down till the bike stops sliding. No harm done. Pick it up and ride home.

On the points side, again I've fallen with and without. Without, you get a pretty thourough destruction of the points/ignition. Additionally, you can bend or break the little drive shaft. In the worst case you'll chip a piece of the crankcase off which is unfortunate, but usually repairable. In no case (almost) will you be riding home.

With, it will fold back and smash into the steel points cover. But it pretty much survives. If you use an aluminum accessory points cover with the case guard, you'll have more protection. In virtually all cases you will ride home. With the steel cover you may have to rip it out and run without it.

I'm upgrading to 3 point mounts, but I have second thoughts about it. The 3 pointers will not give under any circumstances. That means all the energy will be transmitted into the frame. This may not be a good thing. AS with modern cars, may be better to have a "squish" engineered into it.

The Yamiya guards that are called 3 pointers really are HD 2 points. A lot of the tubes they include are of no value. True 3 pointers have 3 hard mounts to the frame. Not just extra tubes.

The big hoop "crash bars" are of no value to me, or the bike. IMO

I wouldn't ride without the case guards, if your doing more than just tooling around. Its too easy on a tour or overnight, to succumb to fatigue and drop the bike in a parking lot, or slide on an exit ramp, and ruin an otherwise perfectly good day.

[CycleRanger]

The 2 point mount style still work. But they will fold back on the engine. On the alt side, it will fold back to the alt cover. But by the time it has done that it will have absorbed quite a bit of energy. They also provide something to slide on, rather than the cover. I have crashed at speed with and without. Without, the cover will either break outright, or grind down to where a hole opens up and it leaks. Either case means you are not riding home.

I agree. I don't think for a second that these or most any bars will prevent all damage, especially in an incident at speed.
But they can help.
You're right, where they are the most help is in the event the bike just plain falls over for some reason or I drop it!

[MCRider]

The 2 point mount style still work. But they will fold back on the engine. On the alt side, it will fold back to the alt cover. But by the time it has done that it will have absorbed quite a bit of energy. They also provide something to slide on, rather than the cover. I have crashed at speed with and without. Without, the cover will either break outright, or grind down to where a hole opens up and it leaks. Either case means you are not riding home.

I agree. I don't think for a second that these or most any bars will prevent all damage, especially in an incident at speed.
But they can help.
You're right, where they are the most help is in the event the bike just plain falls over for some reason or I drop it!

Yeah the main thing is they work to get you home. Damage be danged.

I will say, from first hand experience: I fell on a left hand rising exit ramp in downtown St Louis at about 40mph. One of the scariest thing ever. I was tired after about 350 miles, but that probably didn't matter. i got into some water/fluids from traffic that had been previously moving slowly and lost the front end. It slid up the ramp and off the pavement thankfully. i was on my but right behind and hopped up and dragged it further off the side. On examination, the guard had folded back (BTW the fold is about an inch) to where it hit the alternator cover. The tube of the guard was worn all the way thru! leaving an open hole. It in turn put a small scratch in the cover, easily polished out. I bent the handlebars, broke the tip off the clutch lever, both still usable. The saddlebag provided some lift to the rear, but folded onto the seat at the end of the slide. Little damage.

Had some road rash and ripped my gloves. Patched up with my Boy scout first aid kit. Took a couple of aspirin. I rode home to Indy 200+ more miles. Without the guard, I'd been spending the night somewhere in a bad part of town.

[Scott S]

 I'm kind of surprised these things are getting such a positive response.

 I have these on my '78 CB550K project. I initially intended to remove them, even though there was a little voice in the back of my head saying to keep them.
 What do you think of these? I "think" they're what you're calling the 3-point type.

[MCRider]

Yeah, those are the official 3 pointers. I don't really recall the 500/550s having as much trouble surviving tip overs as the 750s.

Still, I'd keep them, if you really ride a lot. Fatigue is the main cause of tipovers.

[catsoup]

I have the single bar two point covers. They are nice, as the bike has tipped over and rested on those rather than the engine, however - If you do a lot of work on your engine, opening the alternator cover or points, they are a real pain as they have to be removed before the covers can be taken out.

[cben750f0]

cool thanx heaps guys, looks like i am gonna try a set of tarozzi's, i know they are expensive, but its all relative when considering the preice of replacement engine covers...

am thinking of also tinkering around with a cb seven fifty crash bungs also....will see


cheers

peace