HB: Handlebars Touring bars?

Gary Gittleson

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VOC Member
I'm toying with the idea of mounting touring bars on my D Rap. I'm trying to go a little easier on my aging, arthritic body and would appreciate comments from those who have used them. One of my particular problems is arthritic shoulders. Another is a lack of stature, exacerbated by age.

Besides the benefit of not having to lean over so far, it might help with maneuvering the bike in the garage. Not sure about this.
 

craig

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VOC Member
TouringBars1.jpg
 

Bill Thomas

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VOC Member
Found out the other day, the VOC Spares does longer cables, For touring bars, Standard cables bit short.
I have your trouble and used Norton Commando bars.
 

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vibrac

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I had a lot of discomfort around the shoulder area and then it went came back again and then I saw the corelation not the bike not the riding position it was the time of year the spring when I go back into riding after the winter now I just grit my teeth and after a week or so its gone I guess its there to keep the auctions running (must sell I am too old etc )
 

Chris Launders

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VOC Member
I'm 24" across the shoulders and found standard bars far too narrow, so I fitted sidecar bars, then started having trouble with my wrists as they rotated inwards when squeezing the clutch or brake levers to align with the grips. To find the cure I sat on a stool with a pile of old bars and tried every set until I found some where no matter how hard I gripped my hands stayed at the same angle, then bent the ends of the sidecar bars back to match, turned out they needed to be 10 degrees further back. Everybody who's tried them says they are so much more comfortable than the standard ones.
 

timetraveller

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VOC Member
Gary, are you sure it is arthritis? In your shoulder there is a thing called a 'rotator cuff' which is where the ball and socket which allows the arm to rotate is attached to the tendons from about four large shoulder muscles. My pain started in my right shoulder, the one I injured in a crash at Cadwell Park 50+ years ago, on the first of August last year after I had just driven down to the S.E. of Spain, having slept two nights in my car. It got progressively worse for three months after which I sought help from my local doctor. Hence the diagnosis of 'rotator cuff'. I have now been freezing the shoulder and doing exercises for three month with only a slight improvement. Reading up about it on the web gives several options for treatment. Not so with arthritis! So it is worth while finding out exactly what the problem is and if it is the rotator cuff there might be a small operation which will cure it. Good luck with it.
 

Gary Gittleson

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VOC Member
Gary, are you sure it is arthritis?
Yep. It's arthritis. It started in the left shoulder, several years ago. Now it's in the right as well. I've had x-rays, MRI's etc. and it's confirmed. Some 15 years ago, I had arthroscopic surgery on the left shoulder to "clean up" the cartilage. The doctor said at the time that my rotator cuff was very strong, so not the problem then.

I haven't decided what to do yet. Still pondering.
 
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