When your handlebar is too tough to bend...

When your handlebar is too tough to bend, something else is likely to give instead.

I was leading a couple of other 650 dual sport riders through the back roads between Nevada City and Downieville, headed toward Sierra Buttes. My GPS was having problems guiding me through the section near Alleghany, so I used my paper National Geographic map to pick what looked like a direct route through to the road I wanted to be on.

Interestingly, the road we took is named "Hells Half Acre". After crossing Pliocene Ridge Rd, the second part of Hells Half Acre was quite narrow and didn't look like it was used very much, but what the heck, let's go see what's down there.

It turned into a steep, rough, rocky downhill made up of lots of loose rocks about three inches in diameter. At one extra steep part when I was trying to get the front wheel to steer left it went right and I dumped the bike. I probably could have saved it if it weighed about 100 pounds less or wasn't so tall, but I just sort of stepped off of it and was left standing next to the downed bike. Shut off the engine - one of the rare cases when I use the kill switch - turn off the key, start to pick it up. Ooh, those bars don't feel too solid anymore.

I couldn't tell exactly what had happened other than that the bars were no longer firmly attached. This is what had happened to them:




After taking the bar clamps all the way apart I could see that the force of the drop had broken off all four of the screw heads holding the larger ProTaper clamps to the original lower clamps. I don't think the ProTaper bar bent at all.

There was enough of the broken screws sticking up to hold things in place as long as I continued to push down rather than pull up. Heading back up that rocky road would have been difficult with unbroken bars, so I went very slowly down the rest of the way, which seemed like about half a mile, found paved roads back out, then rode it like that about 90 miles back home.

I guess it's things like that that turn a fairly normal ride into an "adventure".

Good to know...I have the same bike and same pro taper adapters

I'd replace those screws with some good grade 8 screws. No telling what they are made from. I've never found an advantage to having bars that bend easily, I've always preferred stronger as opposed to weaker bars. I have the same bars on my KTM, and had the same ones on my S4 Duc, too. When my brother flopped my Duc, the bars didn't bend, but they did twist the forks in the clamps enough to hit the tank with the switch on the left side.

Wow, all four?? Well done!

I'll be first looking for any screws that can work at all in there, and save those for spare parts, then I'll be looking for some nice strong ones.

The heads on the ones that broke are rounded on top and take a 6mm Allen Wrench to tighten. It is obviously way too weak between the bottom of the hex opening and where it attaches to the screw. I'm surprised that they lasted this long. I don't know if those were what originally held the Honda bars in place or if they came with the ProTaper kit.

I'll definitely track down something stronger.

Don't know why handlebars would have to be so strong just to accept steering input and occasionally tie down anchors.
If I were to continue using that setup I might consider creating a weak point with a hacksaw blade.

corndog67 said:

I'd replace those screws with some good grade 8 screws. No telling what they are made from. I've never found an advantage to having bars that bend easily, I've always preferred stronger as opposed to weaker bars. I have the same bars on my KTM, and had the same ones on my S4 Duc, too. When my brother flopped my Duc, the bars didn't bend, but they did twist the forks in the clamps enough to hit the tank with the switch on the left side.

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Grade 8 will do it, for sure.

Blankpage said:

Don't know why handlebars would have to be so strong just to accept steering input and occasionally tie down anchors.
If I were to continue using that setup I might consider creating a weak point with a hacksaw blade.

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If he gets some grade 8 bolts, I highly doubt it would happen again. To create a weak point in the bars seems like a bad idea to me. Riding with a snapped off bar would be pretty tricky.

I would just put another set of grade 5's in there, and carry an extra set in my kit.

Think of it as the fuse. A part that's easily replaced, but designed to pop before other, harder to fix and replace, parts break. If those bolts has not broken, most likely the clamps themselves would have been torn apart.

Congrats on riding 90 miles with bars you have to press down on and not pull up on: I guess a quick WOT and you'd be doing a lot more than a wheelie!

very true keep cheap bolts in use as a "fuse".

cheap to buy and carry a full set of 4??? more.
easy to replace on the trail even.
lots less cash than new bars? top tripple clamp, other?.

I would bet they were way over torqued, 16ft/lb is standard for the average bars and that is not very much for this exact reason. It is way easier to straighten out a mangled front end than deal with snapped bolts. Bummer man, glad you made it out ok!

Charles R said:

I would just put another set of grade 5's in there, and carry an extra set in my kit.

Think of it as the fuse. A part that's easily replaced, but designed to pop before other, harder to fix and replace, parts break. If those bolts has not broken, most likely the clamps themselves would have been torn apart.

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This sounds good to me, but in light of the OP's saying the amount of steel between the bolt shaft and the bottom of the Allen key hole was thin, I'd be inclined to replace with four hex head cap screws (which is what he looks like he did the the second image).

After a quick search of the local hardware stores, Orchard Supply and Lowe's both had cap screws that fit, but they're not grade 8. The only grade 8 bolts either store carries are SAE threads. Nobody at either store could tell me what grade the ones that I chose were.

Interestingly, Lowe's was about half as much as Orchard for the same item. I bought a set of four at each store anyway, so already have my spare set.

I'll probably have to grind the top down a little bit to keep the bars from rubbing against them. Problem temporarily solved.


I looked online a bit and can't find any M8x1.25 25mm grade 8 screws that will fit. A 10mm head would work, but a 12mm head won't. A socket cap screw that uses a 6mm Allen wrench would be the best.

Any of you know of a web site that carries such a screw? It's easy to find longer ones or ones with the wrong head.

corndog67 said:

I'd replace those screws with some good grade 8 screws. No telling what they are made from. I've never found an advantage to having bars that bend easily, I've always preferred stronger as opposed to weaker bars. I have the same bars on my KTM, and had the same ones on my S4 Duc, too. When my brother flopped my Duc, the bars didn't bend, but they did twist the forks in the clamps enough to hit the tank with the switch on the left side.

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The screws were junk.

Actually, I just thoroughly read your posts and noticed you mentioned they are Allen bolts. Most Allen bolts are already higher than grade 8, due to the need to be that hard for the Allen not to strip immediately. You should replace them with more Allen headed bolts.

Charles R said:

I would just put another set of grade 5's in there, and carry an extra set in my kit.

Think of it as the fuse. A part that's easily replaced, but designed to pop before other, harder to fix and replace, parts break. If those bolts has not broken, most likely the clamps themselves would have been torn apart.

Click to expand...

Yeah that's a better idea.

I have bent those bolts twice on my DR, never broken them and each time the get-off that caused it was rather nasty.
I was told they are designed to bend to prevent bigger damage down the line.
An explanation for sheering all 4? Dunno. Weird.

Funny story: My brothers GS1100E was heading towards the ground and when it got way past the point of saving it, my brother yanked the bars as hard as he could. The right side of the bar bent straight up. He had to ride home with the throttle pointed straight in the air. It was a funny sight.

Some of my favorite dirt roads are near allegheny, you can run the ridges. I've been on that road a few times on a dirtbike. My mom lives up in North San Juan, you probably went through there. I want a set of those bars on my bike, I've bent 3 sets of bars, the ones I use now are bent. I almost wonder if you were on tanaka creek creek rd, hells half isn't any narrow just bumpy and steep. If you make a left off hells half you hit tanaka creek and that is a wicked little road. Head up the hill towards german bar.

I believe Scott said it wasn't a real hard crash. I'd be a bit suspect of the screws all shearing off like that, chances are, lowest bidder Chinese screws orignally made for a barbeque or something. And most metric screws, Socket Head Cap Screws, are better than grade 8. Personally, I'd go for strength. Just can't imagine hauling ass along and having all 4 screws break while standing up. Ride 'em, cowboy.