GS handgaurds

[fallingpines]

Yes, I know this has been discussed before, but I can't find it. I'm attaching a new set of GS guards on my R and recall a chat describing how to do it without trimming the openings. A couple of questions:
1-What adapters do I need to run with Throttlemeisters? I suppose that I can make something easy enough, just not sure what the correct ones look like.
2-How do you get the Left cover's wire hole over the hydraulic clutch line? There is a tab cast onto the perch that will not allow the hose to be rotated towards the bar, and the aluminum guard bracket contacts the hose ferrell not allowing the bracket to rotate into the correct location. I don't suppose the thing to do is to bend the hose, hope not anyhow.
Thanks.

[OU812]

I also wish to install GS guards on my R. Just not sure if it can be done w/o major problems. The older I get, The faster I was!

[MikeCam]

Can be done without mods.

Start by loosely fastening all connections: at bar end and around various wires, cables, and what not on the bar. Then as you slowly and methodically tighten everything up, twist, bend, move the plastic handguard to avoid pinching, clamping, rubbing of the cables and wires. The hardest part for me was getting the final, non-moving part to not rub the clutch/brake lever at rest. Took some wiggly fiddling (tech terms).


Others have done the minor cutouts to accomodate the various rub points and reported no serious problems with the final fit.

I do not recall what if anything was done about the Throttlemeister fit.

[johno]

DONT TRY BENDING THE CLUTCH LINE!!!!!!
I did, and broke it.
It will not bend, so be carefull. You will have to be patient and they will fit with a bit of a mod here and there.
In some ways, breaking mine worked out good, except for the cost, as I got a 2nd hand line off a later model from a wrecker, which was a braided line, so much better than the weak original one.

[fallingpines]

Thanks for the 'don't try bending the clutch line' advise. I really see that as a bad idea also. I think I will grind a little off the aluminum guard bracket and see how that goes, should only need to 1mm or so removed from what I see. No problem with the Right side guard, the brake line is able to rotate nicely out of the way without trouble.

[rupe]

I was able to fit GS Handguards with little modification. Be patient, and if you must, trim the guards around any rub points. I had to trim mine slightly to prevent rubbing the clutch and brake fluid reservoirs and also cables. Works fine and looks great to boot.

[CycleRob]

I re-installed my GS HandGuards 4 weeks ago and had no troubles. I remember that I had to use mechanic's logic (again) for the correct assembly order to get them back on without a hassle. That sentence I just said apparently is the key difference between "That was easy" -AND- "My handguards won't fit!"

I just now went into the garage for a look-see to refresh my 59 year old memory banks and stumbled on why everybody is having trouble with the clutch side's interference with the hydraulic line. I remember that I loudly protested that you don't have to cut or file ANYTHING (on the handguards) to put the handguards on -BUT- I see on mine that I SAWED OFF THE CLUTCH MASTER CYLINDER'S CAST IN LIMITING LUG so the hydraulic clutch line fitting could be loosened/rotated downward out of the way. I hacksawed it off, VERY CAREFULLY, from the bottom upward at full right steering lock, while the line is still attached. I don't know how I failed to mention such a key factor in my previous posts on this topic written months after the actual installation years ago - - - but I did. The lug is there as an assembly line aid for hose fitting installation and nothing more. There are aftermarket master cylinders out there without stop lugs cast into their master cylinder housings.

With the lug carefully sawed off and out of the way, you can rotate the clutch hydraulic line downward and the left handguard fits perfectly!! Every line/wire/cable/hose fits inside the plastic yoke's throat on both handguards for a factory like installation. The bolts in the bar ends need to be TIGHT so the handguards do not rotate upward and touch the clutch/brake levers. Because the handguards are meant for the GS model's handlebar bends, when all the bolts and barclamps are tightened the handguards are distorted into place and they force the handguards to rotate upward. When they do that they contact the clutch/brake levers and eventually prevent them from releasing hydraulic pressure - - - a big problem!

To recap the handguard installation process, start by removing the bar end bolts and barend weights so they don't fall and chip their perfect paintjob. Then saw off just enough of the clutch master cylinder's Aluminum stop lug to get it out of the way of the fitting's being rotated downward (after very slightly loosening the banjobolt). Next, find the handguard's black painted Aluminum bar brackets with the small threaded holes in them. Those are the underside handlebar clamps and that bracket is oriented so the threaded hole is rearward of the handlebar. Take the other UNthreaded clamp half and use the small TORX bolt turned in about 2 turns to hold them together. Find the correct handguard, also identified by the "L" marking and insert ALL the wire/cable/hose parts into the U shaped opening so they will be captivated by the handguard. Take the large flathead bolt and drop it down thru the handguard and both barclamps while struggling to fit in all the wire/cable/hose parts. Be sure the bolt's square headlug fits down into the square hole. Now you need the tubular nut to thread it onto the downward facing bolt upward from underneath. It takes some patient wiggling and maneuvering of all the parts to get the nut started, even if there weren't any mistakes made. IF YOU ALREADY PUT THE BAREND BOLT IN, IT WILL BE IMPOSSIBLE TO START THIS NUT. Don't worry about the barend bolt yet, let the handguard hang loose in the general location UNTIL both clamp bolts are started several turns, but before their tightness prevents the handlebar clamps from moving around or sliding left/right on the handlebar w/o scratching the paint.

Now you can install the barend bolt, adding the ThrottleMeister handguard spacer if you have them. It's a good idea to use Blue Locktite (or your S.O.'s nail polish if your budget is tight and she's OK with sharing) on the bolt's threads. After the barend bolt relocates the handguard to it's proper place you can tighten the clamp's bolt & nut. Position the handguard so there is a finger's clearance between it and the lever on each one's bottom surfaces, then the barend bolt can be tightened. Recheck or do the final tightening of the bar clamp bolt & nut with your TORX bits.
O.K. You're done with the hardest one. The brake side is easier -and- you will NOT have to cut off the lug to (barely loosen &) rotate the line downward so it'll pass thru the handguard's U-throat opening.

Wow. "That was easy"

[fallingpines]

Whew, that sounds easy enough. Not sure I want to hack off a hunk of lever perch, but I'll look closely and see if it would be a visible wound or not. I was wondering if anyone used a thin gasket between the bar and the bracket. I don't want to scratch my bars and have to look at that if and when I take the guards off.

[fallingpines]

Hand guards on, and wasn't as easy as I hoped. Aside from not having the right spacer to allow the Throttlemeister, the right side went on fine. The clutch line however could not be rotated out of the way even after I dremelled the stop on the perch down. Seems the bend of the collett is not the same angle as the brake side, and shy of buying a new line or bending the old one (deemed a potential disaster by others on the board) the line gets in the way. The only solution was to grind out a angled groove in the upper guard bracket to fit the hose, and I still had to notch the plastic a little bit to clear the flexible line.

All said and done, the ball of the levers just barely miss the inner surface of the guards with the lever's on the shortest reach adjustment. Ran out of room to rotate the guard bracket on the L.

Perhaps my bike's factory braided lines are different than pre 04's rubber hoses. Anyway, on and ready for warmer hands on cold rides.

[cc]

The clutch line however could not be rotated out of the way even after I dremelled the stop on the perch down.
Perhaps my bike's factory braided lines are different than pre 04's rubber hoses. Anyway, on and ready for warmer hands on cold rides.

I didn't like the factory mounts so made my own. The cables all cleared nicely. IIRC I rotated the brake line slightly away from it's stop.

Some photos at

http://tinyurl.com/y5krnk
http://tinyurl.com/t45py
http://tinyurl.com/sao4u

I wish someone had cleaned the bike before I took them.

[Panzerleder]

Guys, it really isn't that complicated ... and you don't need to cut or file anything. It took me some fiddling, but eventually, everything just fell into place. Start by cutting the wire ties along the handlebar. This gives you some freedom to maneuver the cables; you can retie them later.

Loosely attach the inboard mounting point first. This contradicts the instinct to attach the outboard mounting point first. The inboard mounting point on the left should capture the clutch line and may or may not capture the wiring. Either capture it gently with the inboard mounting point, or make certain that the inboard attachment point clears the wiring.

Once the inboard attachment point is loosely bolted on, you can easily rotate the handguard as necessary to start the machine screw that goes through the outboard attachment point to the handlebar weight.

Do one side, then the other. Rotate the handguards as necessary to assure control lever clearance. You may need to slightly "tweak" the guard, which is OK. It will be easy because you have both ends of the guard free to move within an acceptable range of adjustment.

Tighten the outboard mounting points first, then the inboard. Make sure that no fluid lines or control cables are constricted by the inboard attachment point and make sure the brake and cluth levers can operate in their full range.

I don't remember having any particular issues with the Throttlemeister on mine.

That's it! Easy, no?

[darcym]

I too had some problems with mine on the left (clutch) side. I've got it on now without any modifications, but I haven't very much clearance (almost none) between the end of the clutch lever and the inside of the left side guard. I tried and tried and torqued the guard piece as much as I dared before tightening it all down. Still not convinced,

I'll take it for a ride tomorrow, but I may end up taking it off and dremelling out some more clearance. I took it all apart once and found that it was difficult getting the screws started a second time. Sure wish I haven't stripped it. I may have to resort to finding something like cc's custom bar mount.

[joejeweler]

What did you make your mounts from,.......somthing obtainable by the rest of us or hand fabricated?

If hand fabricated,......sounds like a nice part time job with some interest here for sure.

The clutch line however could not be rotated out of the way even after I dremelled the stop on the perch down.
Perhaps my bike's factory braided lines are different than pre 04's rubber hoses. Anyway, on and ready for warmer hands on cold rides.

I didn't like the factory mounts so made my own. {/B]The cables all cleared nicely. IIRC I rotated the brake line slightly away from it's stop.

Some photos at

http://tinyurl.com/y5krnk
http://tinyurl.com/t45py
http://tinyurl.com/sao4u

I wish someone had cleaned the bike before I took them.

[cc]

What did you make your mounts from,.......somthing obtainable by the rest of us or hand fabricated?

If hand fabricated,......sounds like a nice part time job with some interest here for sure.

They are carved from a block of black plastic. IIRC it was ABS, but lots of other plastics would work as well.

I'm a retired person and as a result I'm waaay to busy to go into production on them. I do have drawings of them if you want to make them yourself.

[Rick Lee]

Tighten the outboard mounting points first, then the inboard. Make sure that no fluid lines or control cables are constricted by the inboard attachment point and make sure the brake and cluth levers can operate in their full range.

How does one tighten the outboard points? The holes in my GS guards are far larger than the allen bolt heads in the grip weights. Am I missing some washers or something?

[hirsty]

How does one tighten the outboard points?

Have you got the bar-end weights out first? You take them 'out of the ends of the bars' first, then slip the handguard over it.

I think I had longer bolts supplied with my guards for the refitting - I'll go & have a look in the garage now...

[frevrod]

How does one tighten the outboard points? The holes in my GS guards are far larger than the allen bolt heads in the grip weights. Am I missing some washers or something?

Yes, there are 2 large dished washers which the bolts go through. the dished parts fit in the larger hole on the outside ends of the handguards.

[Rick Lee]

Do the weights fit over the handguard ends or vice versa?

[threebucks1996]

The handguards fit over the end weights.

[rdsmith3]

BMW's instructions on the hand guards specifically say that only the clutch line passes through it on the left side, and only the brake and throttle lines pass through on the right side. Any other wires go around the hand guards.

I infer that most people do not install them that way. I see this, for example (from CycleRob):




What is the reason for doing it this way? What is the advantage of doing this? Are the BMW instructions incorrect?