Added Heli Bars not sure I like the light steering feeling

[Trent]

Man I love the ergo but I do not like the light touch feeling of the steering up in the wind. I am going to run it for a little while but the bike feels way less sporty and I am not as engaged with the road. Anyone else have this initial feeling after install. Does it go away or am I not cut out for these?

[fallenarch]

I thought it was just me! It almost makes the bike feel like a completely different bike. I thought I was crazy so I'm glad someone else has the same reaction. I have started to get that nice carving feeling in the corners but I have to really transfer weight to get it. With the stock bars it was much more natural.

Amazing how such a little difference could feel so huge. The bike is 100% more comfortable but I don't know about the control of the bike.....

[GMbusa]

The new riding position moved your weight farther rearward. Adding a little rear spring preload might help the weight balance. That, or dropping the triples maybe 1/4 or 1/2 inch could help to put more weight over the frontend.

[Trent]

Darn, I am such a stock nazi that i really didnt want to start changing the aero or geometry by dropping the front, or are we talking too little to mess up what the engineers and the wind tunnel have created?

[crusty369]

Raise the rear +1. Shortens the wheelbase, puts your weight further forward, and you won't believe the difference. Handles like a totally different bike. I did the helibars out of necessity, as well as the Buell peg mod, due to the fact that I'm 6'4".....
+1 dog bones are relatively cheap as well. Dropping the front isn't recommended....crunch crunch....reducing your ground clearance can get expensive and painful fast, especially if you ride the twisties hard.
Just my opinion, but I researched it pretty extensively through the forum(s), and am totally pleased with the ride characteristics. "Go Go" now feels infinitely more flickable and nimble.
Good luck,
Shawn

[fallenarch]

I also did the +1 mod and completely agree, it's magic. The route we ride is pretty aggressive for street riding. There are 90 mph sweepers, 150+ mph straights, and a couple knee down 40 mph hair-pin 90's. I was embarassed to find myself running wide and landing on the wrong side of the white lines (our rule is stay in your lane no matter what). The bike just didn't seem to want to do what I was telling it to. About half way through the ride I started getting more weight on the inside of the bike before turning in and it fixed the issue immediately.

Bottom line is with the Heli bars the bike is easier to ride slow and harder to ride fast. This is actually as it should be for a sport tourer. We ride maybe 5 hours being good citizens on the public roads getting to and from 3 hours of ripping it through the back roads. It's great to get to the good roads and not have to stop for 30 minutes and stretch to get the kinks out before hitting the more physically demanding roads.

Trying to fix this issue by altering the geometry of the bike would defeat the purpose. It would put weight back on your arms and that stress leads to the discomfort. The next time you ride just move around a bit and you will find the same secure cutting feeling when cornering you had with the stock bars, it just takes a minor position adjustment.

[AJAY]

Yeah, I agree that I initially lost some of that "connected feeling" when going to higher bars (Helibars, Soupys, etc.). But you'll quickly get recalibrated and it will start to feel normal again, but without the strain on your wrists or lower back pain.

Been thinking about the +1 in the rear, though. Might be hard for me, as I'm pretty short as it is.

Has anybody had any kickstand issues raising the rear? Mine already leans too far on the sidestand.

[Sous]

They take a bit of seat time to get used to. I love mine now that they have been on for a while. I also lowered the pegs a bit, but the bars and Gen-Mar spacer is what really made a difference.

[kromdom]

My bike came with heli-bars already installed so I did not have a "past" reference point to compare with. I have zero complaints with how my bike rides/handles (also have a Scotts steering damper, not sure if this has anything to do with it??)
P.S. I did pay a shop to set up the suspension for my weight/riding preferences...now that made a very noticeable difference.

[skydivr]

It does make it harder to get into the right body position for spirited riding, but you will adjust just take it a little slower til you do. Certainly makes the riding BETWEEN spirited sessions much less painful!

[Trent]

Thanks for all the feedback guys. I am 6'2" and the stock config felt so perfect but I was getting some numbness in the wrist and didn't try a throttle lock yet. I put the Buell pegs on and that felt good so I went for the Helis too and find myself where I am today. I will try it for a while with a little more body input and see where I end up. It feels like I have almost no contact patch with the front wheel and that's no fun. I only have one day's riding with the new setup though.

[Rollin20z]

It'll take a couple rides to get used to the new feeling, just like switching bikes. But I found after that it all just falls back into place. When I bought my first busa it had heli's on it and I never even paid it any attention or noticed it really until I bought another and would jump from one to the other. Cause now when I go from the Gen 2 to the Gen 1 it feels like 2 totally different bikes all together and takes a lil bit to get back into the groove for each. Gen 1 feels 50/50 sport/tourer Gen 2 feels 75/25 sport/tourer. And both have heli's, aftermarket rearsets.

[jphilipson]

That's why I just did the 1 inch risers and not helibars - the one rise helps a bit but really does not change the riding position that much. Running a 55 profile tire on the rear would help some as well if you didn't want to raise the rear,

[Big E]

Yeah you're body will get used to it and love you for it. I feel as it gives more leverage, dirt bike feel and wider too.

[Trent]

Yeah you're body will get used to it and love you for it. I feel as it gives more leverage, dirt bike feel and wider too.

Actually that is an important thing to think about that I overlooked. The leverage increase!

[HillbillyTom]

This is great timing as I'm getting ready to get a set of Heli Bars. Going to slow it down a bit and go for more longer rides with quite a bit of 2 up this summer. Glad to see this talked about, as I will now be expecting the different feel and it will be a "no surprises" thing. Thanks for bringing it up.

[KvHotDog4]

I had that feeling at first with my risers but after a few hundred miles I liked it. I had to switch them back to factory after I ordered my braided brake lines (forgot to ask for +1") and I could really tell a difference the bike was uncomfortable going back to stock. After googleing the heli bars it seems like it would do the same thing as risers and I could keep my lines. I will be looking in to getting some now.

[fallenarch]

Went out for a long ride last Saturday. Really felt good with the helibars. You do get used to them quickly. Scared me for a minute there that they felt so different the first ride but the second time they felt normal and the bike was doing exactly what I wanted again.

[AJAY]

Here's an old post of mine comparing Helibars to GenMar risers (GenMar does the same thing as Soupy's or the "tube risers" sold on ebay).
https://www.hayabusa.org/forum/busa-mods/105603-risers-heli-bars-vs-genmar.html

I had that feeling at first with my risers but after a few hundred miles I liked it. I had to switch them back to factory after I ordered my braided brake lines (forgot to ask for +1") and I could really tell a difference the bike was uncomfortable going back to stock. After googleing the heli bars it seems like it would do the same thing as risers and I could keep my lines. I will be looking in to getting some now.

The Helibars will work fine with the stock lines or stock-length Galfer lines. You WILL need to reroute your "choke" cable between the bolts at the front of the gas tank. Otherwise your idle speed will pop up at the extreme turn limits. That could turn a dangerous tank slapper into an irrecoverable disaster if it suddenly gooses the throttle for you!

Went out for a long ride last Saturday. Really felt good with the helibars. You do get used to them quickly. Scared me for a minute there that they felt so different the first ride but the second time they felt normal and the bike was doing exactly what I wanted again.

Glad to hear they're working for you Arch. Just remember to tuck a bit before whomping on the throttle. The front end really wants to climb skyward with you sitting more upright.