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Helibars - very first impressions

3K views 20 replies 13 participants last post by  MisterK 
#1 ·
Searching for something completely different on Revzilla, I came across a sale on Helibars for the Goldwing. I was thinking about getting them but not in that near future, mostly due to the price. However, I couldn't pass them up at $660.
As soon as they showed up at the door, I took them to my local bike shop to get them installed.
After the installation I rode the bike off their parking lot to the first stop light, merely a 100 yards away. Waited for the green light... When it opened, I turned left to the main road and immediately scraped my left peg!... The bike cut that 90 degrees turn like a knife! Took me totally by surprise. Did not expected that at all.
In about quarter of a mile I was yielding on a highway. The ramp was almost a full circle, right turn. I've approached it cautiously at first but the more I was in the curve the more cocky I was getting. The bike was glued to the road, "railing" through the curve effortlessly. I had the biggest grin on my face, I'm sure...
On my way home (40-ish miles) I've had a few more curves and I've truly enjoyed them. Though cautiously, knowing that disrespecting the bike can soon punish you. I was still "reading" the new setup.

Got home and started playing with the adjustment. Initially, I wanted to pull the bars all the way back and low, to make them as comfy as possible. However, when I do that they start to hit my knees. They are incredibly adjustable but I'm quite positive I won't be able to pull them that much back (essentially leaning all the way back on the backrest with elbows bent and relaxed).
HOWEVER...experiencing the spirited ride and handling on the way home, I'm not sure I want the "lazy" position any more. That cornering was too much fun. So I might take the bars back up & forward, like the mechanic at the shop installed. That position woke up the inner-sport bike in the Goldwing and I want it. Very similar experience (radically improved handling) I had when I've installed a fork brace on my Vstrom.

Granted, it's way too early for more serious review, I would need at least several hundred miles (or rather a couple thousand) to get the full picture. But the first impression was WOW!

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#2 · (Edited)
I agree with your initial impression. I love my bars and have them adjusted high and a little forward too. No more grips in my side feeling when I do parking lot practice and the twisty roads don't seem so twisty any more. I also installed some of my favorite sport bike grips to go along with the new sporty feel of the wing.
I paid more for my bars but I still think that they are one of the best mods that I have done to my bike.
 

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#3 ·
Installed the Mega Monty first then the Helibars. The bars made a huge difference and I agree totally with this assessment. Together it is the Ultra Monty!! I bet the bars alone without any other upgrades would make a huge difference. Well worth the $$$ especially at this current price.
 
#4 ·
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It is an awesome thing. Just wait until your first big trip with them now installed. Mine (silver in the pic') is also full Traxxion (Monty) equipped. It became an entirely different ride from last years stock configuration. Just knowing that you can adjust 'as needed' when needed, is a beautiful thing. Didn't adjust anything in 3300 miles though.
 
#5 ·
One of my favorite add on items , had them for 2 years. Now an equally liked add on is my newly installed Racetech front end & rebuilt rear shock . All together easily the best investment I've made in my Wing


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#8 ·
You guys are killing me. I've been thinking about getting some but every time I look at the price I think my MBL risers are just fine. But now???? You guys are gonna cost me money.:mad:
 
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#11 ·
Not at all a perception thing. The middle bar on the Heli's seem to make the front end so tight that as the original post stated, you push on the bars and the bike is immediately responsive. Not a bit of flex. I guess you have to ride a bike with them to really see the difference. I too played with the bars the first day and got them where I liked them and have never adjusted them again. Plus they look great in my opinion. An extremely solid and well made addition.
 
#13 ·
Yea, the middle bar does the trick. The OEM handlebars were fine to me, just wanted them further back. But now, after experiencing this handling difference, I don't want them in the "lazy" position, I want to attack some VA-WV curves ?

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#17 ·
I'm sure they'll have a bike or two over there with the Helibars installed that'll let you try. Also, I believe they have some special-price on-the-spot installation...? I think I saw somewhere...$100 for the installation...? Not sure though, but worth asking...

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#16 ·
When I bought them, the guy from Revzilla told me they have 3 more sets left. Don't know was that true or just a sales gimmick but that's what I've been told. I did post the sale price here almost immediately. I guess they might be out of stock...? I would call them and ask.....

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#19 ·
The last week of May I rode down to Traxxion in Woodstock GA and had them install the Mega-Monty. Huge difference in the handling and smoothness, especially the rear shock. Around the 2nd week of June I rode up to New Hampshire and the Laconia rally, and then rode over to Cornish, Maine (about 55 miles east) where the Helibars factory is located, and had them installed. The adjustability of these bars is significant. You should notice an immediate improvement in low speed maneuvering and in the twisties. And as for long distance riding, if you can't find a setting that's comfortable, your issue is not with the bars.
 
#21 ·
I had the traxxion triple tree installed by Fred H. Along with the progressive tubes. Fred said I would notice a big difference with the triple tree. He was correct.

Keith E, installed my heli bars, riding home it was night and day difference between the oem and the heli bars. I have mine up and forward, ind of like a dirt bike. I will never have a wing with out them.


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