Top Clamp Mod From Caffe Style

[Sidi950]

Well..I have owned this bike for 4 days now..and I am Into Mods upto my Neck...
1st up, its a Caffe Style Bolt.... this month. Next week, it mighty be a Chopper ?? .. Next month, maybe a Bobber or Sacrmbler-ish kinda. 4 bikes in one.. saves space in the Shed..   
Anyway...Just in Prep for any of those I made substantial Plate to replace the " Tin Foil "  on the Top Clamp.. From here the World is My Oyster.   
I hit the Plate with a Heat Gun and removed the Tin Foil... Used it as a Template and Knitted up a Twin... I'll cover it in a Carbon look Vinyl Wrap later.

[Sidi950]

Original and Twin

[Sidi950]

Difference in Thickness

[Sidi950]

Caliper Measure

[Sidi950]

Installed ready to accept any Bar I want ... The Plate will be Covered in a Carbon Look Vinyl Wrap..

[Sdaniels]

You've got skills!  Very nice.

[srinath]

Installed ready to accept any Bar I want ... The Plate will be Covered in a Carbon Look Vinyl Wrap..

I don't see how this helps to install any other bar. What you needed were bushings made out of Delrin or some such plastic. Buy the risers you want and the bars you want - your ends have to be 7/8th but the center can be 1 1/8th a size for which plenty of good stuff is available and not too much $$$ thanks to all the dirt bike "fat bar" renthal and copies there of. The bushings ID should be made to fit the bolt size on the riser, and If the bushing has a blind stud put in the bottom, I usually would unscrew it and drill it to take an allen head bolt and you can grind a tiny 1/2 cup shape in the top of the bolt and leave it sticking into the bar so the bar will keep the bolt from turning as you tighten the nut on the bottom. Maybe drill it for a cotter pin as well.

You could have cut the top adhesive foil BS with a razor blade.

Cool.
Srinath.

[Sdaniels]

If he bought risers that don't have a post, one's that are threaded to accept a bolt, he can measure for bolt length & use any kind of bar he wants.  Bushings aren't required for it to work.  I've thought about going this route & putting clubmans on instead of the stock clipons.

[srinath]

If he bought risers that don't have a post, one's that are threaded to accept a bolt, he can measure for bolt length & use any kind of bar he wants.  Bushings aren't required for it to work.  I've thought about going this route & putting clubmans on instead of the stock clipons.

There are no threaded - wait what - Its really non existent - Put a link up, I've been making bars and other BS for 20 yrs - I really need to know what other stuff is there.

There have been in all bikes I know of - Just 2 types of risers -
One is where the risers and triple clamp are cast as 1 piece. GS500 as well as honda nighthawk and magna are that way.
Then there is the bushings in the triple clamp kind. The easily removable kind like a Suzuki savage, or the nightmare kind in the bolt.
All of these run the bolt downward and a nut upward, either secured with cotter pins or with a metal lock (like nylock).
Harleys run the bolt upward - against gravity screwing into the base of the riser. And they don't use bushings on most, but there is a few with bushings.

There is no other kind. Bushings are the only option in a bolt, unless someone fabricates a triple clamp with in built risers as part of the casting.

The 4 day ownership time frame tells you all you need to know for the OP. Searching on ebay for just 4 days isn't enough IMHO. BTW the whole deal for the OP isn't a total wash, a better top plate other than the tin foil crap Yamaha gave us is a valid exercise. But really a good solid set of bushings are what is needed. 100 mm spacing between bolt centers is something to keep in mind as OP tries to get risers for the triple, and to remember 7/8th is for switches and grips - center section can be 1 1/8th or any other size as required by the risers.

Cool.
Srinath.

[Sdaniels]

I can find a link to the risers easily enough, but trust me, I've used them on several different bikes.  There are others similar to the threaded ones...an allen head bolt passes through the riser & takes a nut on the underside of the triple clamp. 

[lunkhead]

Aluminum or Delrin cones is way it should be done but not everyone has a lathe. You really only need four thick steel washers that can be slightly crushed down into the holes and tighten the crap outta it. I even thought of filling in the cone holes with JB Weld and redrilling them. Anything will work fine. That is, until you crash them.

[Sdaniels]

here ya go

[lunkhead]

The Vulcan 900 uses a bolt down thru the riser like the first image. Nothing is threaded. Any length or pitch bolt can be used as long as the head fits.

[srinath]

here ya go

Neither of these will work without a bushing.

The top one is the standard Japanese style - millions of those available, they go through bushings and use a nut on the bottom. Maybe that one meant for a Harley is going through a bushingless hole and still uses a nut on the under side.
I have one of those I modded to take the stud at the bottom out, then drill and what not for a allen head bolt and while I was doing that I theorized that if you left the bolt head sticking up high enough in the handlebar hole - you can grind the top of the allen head a little to have it "gripped" by the bar and not turn when you tighten a nut under the triple.

The one on the bottom is the standard HD style where the bolt runs up against gravity and threads into the riser.
Neither of these will work in the bolt's upper triple without a "bushing" made up. Or if you're against the word bushing - it can just pass through the triple somehow.

The only other kind is where the upper triple has the riser block cast into it.

Cool.
Srinath.

[lunkhead]

I agree, this is the wrong way to go if you want to use ANY bars you want. With tall bars, there could be enough leverage from hard braking or wheelies to shift things around or crack the triple clamp. The bottom cone holes aren't as beefy as the top so there's less to work with. Making a whole mess of cones would be a lot easier than making that one steel plate. I'd gladly make them for the right price but it'll cost $40 just to measure to holes. That's what the destroyed aluminum foil cover will cost to replace.