Switching to dragbars. Need shorter cables?

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75Wingman
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Switching to dragbars. Need shorter cables?

#1

Post by 75Wingman »

Appreciate your help on my newbie issue.
Changed bars to drag bike/cafe style. Now my cables are bunched/tight and hard to turn throttle. Not much room on the bar for cylinder/throttle to fit. Recommendations please.
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desertrefugee
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Re: Switching to dragbars. Need shorter cables?

#2

Post by desertrefugee »

You might be able to creatively route the original cables, but it'll be a pain. The factory bars were pretty tall. Shorter cables will make your life a lot easier. I have drag bars on my 78. I used the original bars for a while, but quickly got new cables.

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5speed
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Re: Switching to dragbars. Need shorter cables?

#3

Post by 5speed »

Tyler at Motion Pro will help you.
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75Wingman
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Re: Switching to dragbars. Need shorter cables?

#4

Post by 75Wingman »

Much appreciated! Most likely go with new cables. Also considering a new horizontal brake reservoir and new brake/clutch levers.
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pidjones
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Re: Switching to dragbars. Need shorter cables?

#5

Post by pidjones »

Wider bars give more leverage and leave room for cable routing. Try "Euro" bars. The clutch cable can be routed over the air cleaner to take up some slack.
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Re: Switching to dragbars. Need shorter cables?

#6

Post by gregforesi »

I finally had to give up on the clubman bars and went back to drag bars. The clutch cable I believe is 6" under. I cut a notch in the choke bracket and the cable passes in front of it and goes down under the ignition switch. It works very well.
I had two Motion Pro cables fail. The Barnett cable has been on it for going on 7 years and it's holding up.
If you take a roll of regular 1/8" solder and feed it through the bike you can mock up the cable run and get your "custom length" really close.
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Re: Switching to dragbars. Need shorter cables?

#7

Post by toomanybikes »

I was able to re-use existing throttle cables, clutch cable, and brake line on my GL1100 using creative routing for all three. End results is respectable, but took some trial & error. The bars had a little rise and are wider than normal, which helps.
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Stable as of 26Dec22: '81 GL1100, '10 Bonnie SE, '86 Yamaha Radian, '83 Suzuki GS650L, '14 Moto Guzzi California, '85 Honda V30 Magna
75Wingman
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Re: Switching to dragbars. Need shorter cables?

#8

Post by 75Wingman »

Right on toomanybikes and thanks to all for the input/advice!
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Re: Switching to dragbars. Need shorter cables?

#9

Post by NotSoLilCrippseys »

Nice job routing the throttle cables.

I'll be curious to see if the shelter drops low enough to cover them where they slip under the frame.

Personally, I think the clutch cable over the top of the ignition would bug me every time I put the key in the bike. I played with cable routing and shorter bars on a GL1100 last winter and think I might have tried to snake it under the keyhole and parallel to the hose that delivers air from one shock to the other. I don't recall what came of that effort. In the end, I used bars with a bit more rise than yours, and I mostly managed to locate the clutch cable near the standard routing. Seeing your routing, though, has me thinking again.
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