I have a '11 FXDC and I like the reach and placement of the bars, not the look. A little more "pull back" would be nice too.
I've been reading a lot of posts about drag bars and I'm leaning towards Carlini Original T-Bar.
Can someone give me advise on what "rise" & "pull-back" I should look for in order too have the bars at about the same placement
or a bit further back? I'd like to reuse my cables as well.
Thanks in advance
Mike

 

Since nobody else is jumping in here to help, perhaps I can be of some assistance.

First, I must assume that your bars are buckhorns like came on my '07 FXD.

I hated my buckhorns, so swapped them out for drag bars and risers, using several different combinations before I figured out what fit me best. At that point, I ordered a set of (similar) T-bars to make the whole set-up one piece instead of four or five. Tall risers and drag bars are hard to align straight and I could never seem to get them straight.

You can use your stock cables with 4-1/2" risers with pullback along with 27 to 32" wide drag bars with around 3 to 4" of pullback. Your brake line will be a bit too long, but this will give you about the best handling you will ever find. Bear in mind that you will have to convert my riser and bar combos into the matching t-bars, but I used the trial and error method with the cheaper riser/bar combos to figure out what fit best.

To get your brake line to fit like stock will take about 8" risers with say 1-1/2" or more pullback and 30 to 32" wide bars with around 3 to 4" of pullback. I tried this combo, but in doing so I lost the finesse of the lower risers. However, this combo will give you what you are asking for. It will be way better than the buckhorns in every aspect with better wrist alignment, but in my opinion, not the best for low speed maneuvers like U-turns and the like.

I finally bought my t-bars with a happy medium, around 6-1/2 " rise and 6" or so pullback, 32" wide. The brake line is a bit "S" shaped, since it is too long, but the ergos are a pretty good compromise.

Ideally, my original 4-1/2" rise with say 32" wide bars would be the best handling of the bunch, but like you, I didn't want to shorten the cables. The front brake line is your main concern, but it can be bent to accompany most arrangements.

 

Harley street slammers. great bars, great grip location.

 

Thanks.That's exactly the info I needed.
Mike

 

Hey HemiOrange,

You may have already mentioned this on one of your previous posts, but what brand of T-bar did you end up with. I like the look of them.

Thanks man!

 

If you want more pull back than stock I dont think you will be happy with most T-Bars.

I had the Carlini 9 inch Super Sweeps and they gave nme the extra pull back that I was looking for. They were a little taller and a little farther back than stock. The Carlinis get a A+ for quality and appearance.

Wiring had to be extended and I went +2 on the throttle and Idle cables. Could of probally made them work but they were a little to short. I reworked the stock brake line and stock clutch cable worked fine.

A few pics

 

I bought then from Demon's Cycle, the receipt doesn't mention the part number, but the description says "Chrome 1-1/4" Fat Custom Drag Handlebars 6" Rise". They were just $64., drilled and strung for internal wiring, but I just extended the hole to allow clearance for external wiring. The bars were way too beefy to attempt dimpling. Excellent quality and finally eliminated the mirror vibrations that I had with past riser/bar combinations.

I don't know where the 6" rise description comes from, but they measure 7" from the bottom mount to the centerline of the bars, maybe it's because the bars have a downward bend instead being on a horizontal plane. Nonetheless, they are very tight, well positioned, and comfortable.
My FXD was able to use the factory cables and wiring with no mods.

 

Thanks for the info man, much appreciated. I'll get online and see if I can find them.

 

feel that a set of 8" risers with 11 pullback would be quite a bit? considering I'm 6'1" on my fxdwg would that make my arms bent? I'm trying to avoind changing cables$$$. there are a couple of sets of Santee's on eBay right now with free shipping and they are only $117 but a lot of pullback.
thanks Hemi

 

Being that we are both the same height, I'd go with 4.5" to 7" rise and no more than 8" of pullback with 28" to 32" of handlebar width.

I had the best handling with 4.5" risers w/1.5" pullback along with 27.4" wide drag bars with 3.5" pullback. No cable change, but the brake line was way "S" shaped. With this set-up, wider bars would have even been better, perfect for me.

Instead, I went next with 8" (1.5" pullback) risers and 31" drags (3.5" pullback), I lost the tight handling, but the cables fit fine. However, in addition to the loss of finesse, the compounded height, 4 (or 5) piece bar conglomeration and sloppy rubber bushings caused a handlebar alignment nightmare, not to mention the rubbery bar to fork feel. I then installed poly riser bushings, but I still had too much twisting in the riser/clamp/bar area to feel comfortable with.

However, I did learn that wide bars and low risers were the way to go for all around handling, but I was still reluctant to change my cables, lines and wires. That's when I ordered the t-bars. A happy medium that eliminated my 4-piece arrangement into 1 piece.

So, my t-bars are 32" wide, 7" tall and have about 6" of total pullback. A great fit for me. A better fit would be 5" tall, 32" wide and 6" pullback, but that brake line would need to be tweaked (bent) a bit and my 2" tank lift might interfere with the cables at full lock.

Your proposed 11" pullback/8" rise might fit w/o further mods, but that is a lot of pullback, way more than I'd ever want to do. It might also require lengthening some cables. 8" rise, 6" total pullback and 31" wide bars seemed to put the cables and wires back to where they fit right. Just don't get narrower bars to make the cables fit if you choose 11" pullback