Tenere Tragics

MAIL CALL: TRAGIC DARRYL WANTS TO SET-UP HIS 1200'S FLIGHT DECK

Hi there Clubby: Thanks for the information pack and rego pack for next year’s Tenere Tragics ride, I can't wait. What I'm after is some information regarding your new 1200. In particular the new handlebars and the Barkbusters. I ride trials, Renthal fat bars and find the standard bars on the Tenere just too wide and just feel strange. I spoke to Waspworks and they mentioned bars and risers, then saw the white ride you have, with the gold bars and new Barkbusters. Can you please help me: the Tenere is an awesome bike, just needs some better feeling bars for me. Any info would be fantastic
-- Darryl Boorer, Tenere Tragic

Thanks for signing up to be part of the Tenere Tragics 2012 ride, Darryl - will be good! Re your questions about the flight deck on my XT1200Z Super Tenere, detailed below is what I did in notes I sent to the crew at Barkbusters HQ in Wollongong, as they have been getting requests from other 1200 riders after reading about my bike. Was not a straight bolt-on operation and some grinding/tweaking involved, but I am more than happy with the result.
Pre-amble: the stock XT1200Z bars were too road-oriented for my liking, too wide and too swept back. After fitting Barkbusters VSBars and risers to our XT660Z Tenere Project Bike last year, I was keen to replicate this flight deck on the 1200. I like to stand up a lot on dirt, and like to get weight forward over the front end of the bike to help steering on the dirt, plus I wanted the 1200's ergos to feel more 'dirt bike' than the stock set-up offered. I was confident the Barkbusters flight deck would achieve the goals I was after.
Bar risers were required to raise the VSBars due to their much lower rise than the stock bars. I was hoping to get a set of those wicked mega-adjustable Rox risers, but they never arrived in time for the 2011 Tenere Tragics ride. Had to make do with a cheap and cheery riser kit from the local bike shop: ended up with full lift via all spacers provided: 35mm lift in all. Note: no issues with cable lengths at all.
On the throttle side of the bars, the stock throttle tube is mega-long, like, road-bike long! So we cut the throttle tube down by 20mm to match the length of the off-road TAG grips I like to run, and with that done and Barkbusters bar end weight used, all controls fitted sweetly and easily on the throttle side of the VSBars. Front brake lever also fitted easily inside the VPS Barbuster alloy bar. Too easy this side!
Little more work required on the clutch side to get all controls to fit: 1). Dr Phil took the grinder to the clutch lever master cylinder and ground off the edge where it buts against the mirror perch mount. Doing this picked up a few millimetres. 2). Dr Phil also took the grinder to the ball on the end of the stock clutch lever and ground away most of the ball end, so as to give us clearance inside the VPS Barkbusters alloy bar. With these mods done, all controls on the clutch side fitted, plus, importantly, we had 5mm clearance of the front brake hose from the inside of the Barkbusters inner mount clamp.
As stated, no issues with cable lengths, and there is also a mountain of clearance beneath the bars from the tank on full lock, and heaps of clearance of the screen at the other end -- note I run the Waspworks/MotorradWorks screen adjuster set-up.
Mission accomplished!
Let us know how you go with getting your 1200's flight deck set-up.
-- Clubby, Tenere Tragic #1