I think my next mod to my bike is going to be new handle bars... I really want some nice and low handle bars to give it more of a supersport street bike.  I want bars that will be similar to a Yamaha R6, CBR RR's style (I'm sure you guys know what I'm talking about.

Now my question is would I be better off with a set of Vortex Clips-on's or should I go with a SM bar (type 1 because they are lower than the type 2, right?).  Are Clip-ons or SM bars lower?

Also I read that somone had a set of Clip-ons and it lowered the front end about an inch (which I would like to do to get the front down a little)....

Price on both of them are about the same... So which one should I get and why?  Help me out guys

You can't fit Suburban Machinery Type 1 bars on the GS. It doesn't work. You've got to go for Type 2. As for the differences: The Vortex bars are clip-ons, which means they have little tubes that clamp onto the forks. To put them on, you do have to drop the triple clamp down on the fork tubes in order to have a place to clamp the clip-ons. Dropping it an inch will really influence the handling characteristics of your bike. It changes the rake/trail numbers significantly. The SM2 bars are standard bars that clamp to where your normal bars are. You won't have to drop your fork tubes, but you'll still get a lower riding position. If you want to see how the bike handles differently with a lower front end, drop the triple a half centimeter and see how it changes; if you like it, drop it some more and see how that feels. Continue.

Will clipons sit lower than the sm2's?  I know that if I get clip ons the part in the center that holds the bars right now will be removed.  Won't it look ugly with that empty part in the center?  or if I keep that center part and put the clipon's on, will it still lower the front any?

do you mean the top triple??  w/ all the gauges and stuff?  someone else chime in on that one...

otherwise, alpha said it...

i personally was wondering the same things but in the end, i think i was gonna go w/ the sm bars.  they lower it enough w/o having to change the rake/trail w/o the super aggressive riding stance of clipons...

oh i heard that if you cut the hl bracket a lil, you could squeeze some clipons under the tree but it's hella aggressive but you won't have to lower the triple...there's a bike w/ clipons like that somewhere in the classified section of this forum...

*edit*
here it is...http://photobucket.com/albums/y265/MYgs500/?action=view&current=ad143d0e.jpg

question, if you lower the tripleclamps and you lower the rear w/ dogbones, will that fix the rake/trail numbers?  i remember hearing/reading somewhere when you lower the rear, the trail increases.  so can't that be fixed by lowering the front??[/url]

If you put clip-ons onto your bike you've got two options: put them above the top plate by dropping the triple down on the forks, or you can put the clip-ons UNDER the triple and headlight mounts, like they are in the picture what?! posted. Problem with the latter is you might get tank clearance issues and it's well over an inch lower than the normal clip-ons would be. That means you'd be dropping your bars somehere in the vicinity of 4 inches or so. That amount of change is DRASTIC and will alter your low speed handling like crazy. Also, that much change in position will shift your weight onto the front wheel a lot, and change your rake/trail numbers that way. If you go with the clip-ons, you'll retain your standard top plate with the places to put normal bars. It won't look pretty. Go with the SM2 bars. They lower the bars considerably and you don't have the super drastic change in rake/trail that you would with the clip-ons. I doubt you have need of the super-agressive riding stance clip-ons provide.

If I get clipon's and keep the stock top plate on, will the front be lowered any still?

Yes. You have to lower the front in order to put clip ons on, unless you want to put the clip-ons UNDER the top triple, in which case your riding stance goes forward and DOWN like crazy. Seriously. The bars would drop down well over 4 inches, minimum.

The only thing about keeping your top plate is that you'll have the mounting cups for regular tube style bars. It just isn't as clean. You can always make your own top plate, or buy one of the ones I might be making at some indefinite time in the future. Most people just leave the regular top plate on and don't worry about how it looks.

Or you could make a copy of the 89' style clipons

I'm going to try, man! Soon as finals finish up and I've got free time I'm going to get on it. Dave is going to ship me the ones off the '89 he got this winter and I'll model a bunch of different versions.

I'm personally getting the SM2 bars.

sm1 and sm2 bars both work on the gs. I had the 1's and others here have installed the 2's.

if you do clip ons above the top triple it will be the same body position with drastically altered steering geometry.

If you install the clip ons below the triple you have a much more aggressive sitting position (do-able though-many here have done it on race bikes). One problem with this setup is that if you go with the clip ons under the top triple you have issues with the headlight mounting ears and I think it requires some custom fabrication (might have that confused with the gsxr fork swap).

Either way, using clip ons leaves that bar clamp on top. My opinion is that the sm bars, while costly, are the best, cleanest long term solution. 15-30 minutes to install ( I installed them at my office during my lunch break) and a clean look since you're still using the bar clamp. The riding position, even with the sm bars will put more weight on the front and make the bike steer faster. I think its more comfortable than stock too. Check my site for photos of my bars installed.

pablo-

I looked around in the gallery and saw the SM bars and saw some of Srinath bar too.. But what will get me as close to looking as something like these..

If i get an SM1 Bar and rotate it down a little will i get this?  Or is what I want clip ons?  Are these clipons?  If so what type? and will they fit my 05' gs500f?

Quote from: AlphaFire X5The Vortex bars are clip-ons, which means they have little tubes that clamp onto the forks.

Like I said earlier, those are clip-ons. The literally do just that. CLIP-ON to the fork tubes.

If you get SM1, they will be close to clip-ons position, but not exactly. If you are so desperate as to get some, follow the instructions I listed earlier.

They will fit your GSF, but, as I said, you'll need to either drop the triple down on the forks or mount the clip ons underneath the triple, which could cause clearance issues.

The person in the picture doesn't have a top plate on his anymore, and he isn't running stock guages. There are a lot of differences between your bike and his.

Go with the SM1 or SM2 bars, as they will be much easier and cleaner.

that picture doesnt look like stock gs forks, or at least not the stock triple clamp-most likely a full front end from another bike, including the clip-ons from that bike.

try srinaths bars first-its only $40 or so and worth trying at least. clip ons will run you lots more to get it right.

Quote from: ddcstevenIf i get an SM1 Bar and rotate it down a little will i get this?

if you rotate it, it'll actually come up higher.

Quote from: pantablotry srinaths bars first-its only $40 or so and worth trying at least. clip ons will run you lots more to get it right.

i tried messaging him about getting a pair but he never got back with me.  i kinda assumed that he stopped making them or was too busy to take new orders...

he is still making the bars?  i would love to buy a set!

No, he's not making any more lately. You can put in an order, though. Check his thread (search for it, I'm too lazy right now).

Pablo - those forks look like the stock GS forks to me... it just looks like the silver top plate was taken off, that's all. The European bikes have adjusters on their forks, unlike us Americans, so that could be it.

wow do those gauges come w/ the gsr kit?  that guy spent a whole lot of time/money on his gs huh...he doesn't stop there...he even winds his lanyard around his triple...talk about dedication...