Harmonic Dampers

[dbeardslee]

Betsy has developed the annoying habit of eliminating my manual dexterity after a long ride. I've seen the threads on ways to dampen vibration in the handlebars, but I just saw these, and wondered if anyone else had tried them. They're made for bicycles, but for $10 I thought they might be worth a try.

[The Lorax]

Hey Doug, I read somewhere (might have been a tech tip) about putting a bunch of bbs in the ends of the bars (put a wad if silicone way in there, add bbs, more silicone, let dry....something like that) anyway, I figure with you livin out there in the sticks, you'd have a good supply of bbs, might save you a couple bucks it's worth a try, eh? have a nice day and ride safe

[randy]

Oh, no, not another handlebar vibration thread! Can we talk about oil instead?

[b.walker5]

Just read the tech tip thread on this Thats a lot of reading and a lot of science but, without wanting to open up another can of worms on the subject, it seems to me that loading your bars with lead and such would likely do some interesting things to the already high centre of gravity on these bikes, and may not be a good idea. I like the butynol rubber idea better.

[dbeardslee]

Can we talk about oil instead?

Or maybe tires.

I actually bought one of those dampers, and all I can say is don't waste your money. They just aren't heavy enough for a motorcycle. Instead I googled the web and found this tidbit - Internal Vibration Dampners.

Followed the instructions - took ten minutes and it makes a big difference. Just cut a five inch length off a 5/8" steel bar and bevel one end. Cut a six inch length out of a narrow bicycle inner tube, squirt WD40 on the inside of the tube leaving the outside dry, and feed it into the handlebar leaving about 3/4" exposed. Put the beveled end of the bar on the inside of the inner tube and drive it home with a hammer. Put your grips back on and go riding.

Sorry Randy

[cowboybob998]

Put springs on the end of the hadel bars ??

[79XS11F]

Oh, no, not another handlebar vibration thread! Can we talk about oil instead?

LOL LOL
Rob

[Pat Kelly]

Oh, no, not another handlebar vibration thread! Can we talk about oil instead?

Fill your handlebar with oil (dino or synth?). Plug both ends with tire rubber (what brand? Can you mix brands?)

[Ivan]

The old first gen Ventures (and I suspect the XJs) have lead bars in the ends of the handle bars that are supported by o-rings. If you have enough length in the ends of your bars, pick some of them up on eBay, they go cheap.

like this.

[dbeardslee]

Ivan - I already used a 5/8" steel bar and an old bicycle inner tube to solve the problem, and I'm happy to report it seems to be doing the trick. The bar was about three feet long cost $13, and the inner tube was free. There's enough material there to do the handlebars on three bikes. $4.34 per set seems reasonable, and I can get it at ACE Hardware and Motorcycle Parts.