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  #1  
Old 15 Jan 2009
NewAdventurerLee's Avatar
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XL650V Transalp crash bars
Hi all,

I am about to buy some crash / engine bars for my XL650V Transalp. I am considering, either Givi, SW Motech or Touratech.

The Touratech set are quite large and obtrusive to look at, though no doubt perfrom as designed for in the event of a drop.

The other two sets are small but must be designed to protect the vulnerable areas???

To summarise, i prefer the Givi but would like to know if anybody has got any of the above fitted to their Transalp and also how was the fitting and where are the anchor points.?

Any help greatly appreciated as always.

Lee
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Old 15 Jan 2009
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SW Motech
Hi Lee,

I have SW Motech bars fitted to my 600 TA. The main reason I chose them over the Givis was the mounting points. The Motech bars use a clamp that fits over the front frame tube whereas the Givis attach to the radiator mounting points with a small diameter bolt. Seemed a mite flimsy to me..!

I know the 650 is different but it's worth checking it out.

I was impressed with the quality and found them easy enough to fit in a couple of hours although another pair of hands would make lining them up much simpler.

And they work... in that the bike hasn't fallen over since I fitted them....!
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Old 17 Jan 2009
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I have 2 - 650 Alps, I purchased the Givi's for one of them, as I thought they looked better & looked like they'd protect more of the bike in the event of an 'off'.

My other 650 has SW Motech fitted, more compact but still offer good protection.

To me the SW Motech bars are far superior in terms of fit, rigidity and overall quality, the Givi's bend very easily - which ironically generally results in fairing damage!

Hope this helps, Phil
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Old 18 Jan 2009
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Thanks, I think the Sw bars will be the ones i go for, as you say they do look skimpy but the seem to protect in the right places.

The bike just 'fell over' in my garage about 2 hours ago while i was putting it on the centre stand on a painted floor which was wet and i lost my footing with my left leg and could'nt hold the bike. Fortunately i was able to sort of lower it to the floor gentlyish and there was no damage other than a bent rear brake lever which i have now straightened out.

So the bars are now a priority !

Thanks for the advice.
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Old 22 Jan 2009
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Motech bars bought
I have just bought the SW Motech bars and will endeavour to fit them shortly.

I will comment on their user friendliness, quality and aesthetics when i have fitted them.

I fitted a centre stand a couple of weeks back and the Honda parts catalogue stated about 1 hour to fit. It only took me an hour to fit the stand but a further three to get the springs on..........bloody hell, why are the so tight ?

I sat on the floor with some heavy duty strimmer cord tied around the spring with the other end looped around my foot. I put my back against the wall of the garage, got my father to hold the bike with the brakes on and then stretched my leg until the spring was past its locating point. Then my son poked the end of the spring over the hook on the stand while i strained to hold my leg straight......Then we did it agin for the secondary spring ...

I nearly gave up on motorcycling that day !!
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Old 22 Jan 2009
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NewAdventurerLee View Post
I sat on the floor with some heavy duty strimmer cord tied around the spring with the other end looped around my foot. I put my back against the wall of the garage, got my father to hold the bike with the brakes on and then stretched my leg until the spring was past its locating point. Then my son poked the end of the spring over the hook on the stand while i strained to hold my leg straight......Then we did it agin for the secondary spring ...

I nearly gave up on motorcycling that day !!
You did better than me then, I gave up after getting the larger spring on, decided the secondary spring could live in my box-o-bits instead!
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Old 2 Feb 2009
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fitting complete
SW Motech crash bars fitted successfully today.!

The fitting was relatively straight forward. I could do it twice as quick if i had another set to fit tomorrow but thats always the case whether its a flat pack wardrobe or a set of engine bars.

The bars are well made, have a good powder coating and quality fitments. The instructions are basic but adequate. You need to think for yourself a little bit with regards to the removal of panels and covers but no complaints.

All in all a good purchase.
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