klr protection

**Woodman** · 15th October 2008, 20:55

anyone got their klrs kitted out with rad gaurds etc, or are they a waste of time.

**marks** · 15th October 2008, 21:13

Originally Posted by Woodman

anyone got their klrs kitted out with rad gaurds etc, or are they a waste of time.

The radiator on my 08 is so pathetically exposed I wouldn't want to ride it off road without the very solid sw motech engine bars I put on a couple of weeks ago.

**RedKLR650** · 15th October 2008, 23:14

Originally Posted by Woodman

anyone got their klrs kitted out with rad gaurds etc, or are they a waste of time.

I'm about to kit mine out after the wee off 2 weeks ago

If you go down on the left side, the radiator gets pushed sideways and compressed a bit ( experience has taught me this :-)

Cheers, Stu

**Padmei** · 16th October 2008, 06:46

they pay for themselves every time I go out

I got mine from Motorrad garage Aussie for about $450 landed. Anyone get a better deal from anywhere else?

**Crisis management** · 16th October 2008, 07:47

Originally Posted by Woodman

or are they a waste of time.

Not a KLR owner, (yes, there are people that don't own one of these mechanical delights) but any bike with stuff that can be damaged needs protection, spend the money now and then the scuffs look like honourable scars rather than disabling breakages.

**pete376403** · 16th October 2008, 19:12

I haven't got bars on mine and the (minor) off I had on the left side did no damage apart from a few scratches. The rad is not rigidly mounted so there's a bit of latitude.
(I know god will now strike me down and absolutley FLATTEN the rad into a small ally cube next time I'm out)

(my opinion follows - it's worth as much as you paid for it) The side protection bars I've seen on KLRs tend to be quite long and their mounting points are so far away from the rad that they would bend, pretty much negating the purpose.

When 200kgs of rampaging KLR decides to go down there's not much that is going to save it.

**NordieBoy** · 16th October 2008, 20:27

Originally Posted by pete376403

When 200kgs of rampaging KLR decides to go down there's not much that is going to save it.

That's what God gave you legs for.

But wear knee-braces before trying this.

**pete376403** · 16th October 2008, 20:47

Sorry, have already got buggered knee (RHS) bends almost as far sideways as backwards.
When that bike goes over I don't try to save it, just concentrate on not getting stuck underneath

**Howie** · 16th October 2008, 20:52

I haven't got any on mine, although it would be nice to have something for Radiator protection, but most of the ones I have seen pictures of don't look very strong from engineering point of view.

**NordieBoy** · 16th October 2008, 21:00

Originally Posted by pete376403

Sorry, have already got buggered knee (RHS) bends almost as far sideways as backwards.
When that bike goes over I don't try to save it, just concentrate on not getting stuck underneath

Don't try and save it.
Just leave the leg underneath as a crash-pad.

**Padmei** · 17th October 2008, 06:46

I can testify that the bars are very strong & with the many drops so far the only damage is a few scratches. I have been in positions where I have had to drag the bike sideways over rocky ground to get it up or slide across big tree trunks & you won't be able to tell. The bar ends also do a great job however the indicators are in a very vulnerable position

I would like to see anyone try to stop a KLR with a full tank from going over. It is over in a flash & not much use rooting your body trying to stop it.

**marks** · 17th October 2008, 07:06

Originally Posted by Padmei

I would like to see anyone try to stop a KLR with a full tank from going over. It is over in a flash & not much use rooting your body trying to stop it.

when one of these whales starts to tip anyone with any sense abandons ship

**Woodman** · 26th October 2008, 22:28

Originally Posted by marks

when one of these whales starts to tip anyone with any sense abandons ship

All good advice, can I get them locally eg Nz or do I have to go online. Bloody gorse has started ripping the decals off the radiator gaurds today and the sub frame bolts came loose. Got in a sticky situation up a mountain bike track near Ben nevis, all good fun.

**RedKLR650** · 27th October 2008, 07:48

Originally Posted by Woodman

All good advice, can I get them locally eg Nz or do I have to go online. Bloody gorse has started ripping the decals off the radiator gaurds today and the sub frame bolts came loose. Got in a sticky situation up a mountain bike track near Ben nevis, all good fun.

I'm in the process of looking at different options from bringing in the proper ones from the states at the moment

( don't think I could make them as neat for the cost they are selling for ) , so if anyone else with a pre 2007 KLR is interested let me know and when I find the best deal, we'll see if we can negotiate a bit on freight for a bulk deal.

I have a few KLR aftermarket places I deal with a bit so should be easy enough

Cheers, Stu

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