johnl59 Posted January 17, 2006 Share Posted January 17, 2006 I am considering adding either crash bars or valve cover protectors after a recent mishap that resulted in damage to the magnesium alloy valve cover. Any suggestions from people who have dropped bikes and "tested" the various products? Also any suggestions on repairing the scratches or do I have to replace the cover? John Link to comment
bimmers Posted January 17, 2006 Share Posted January 17, 2006 I had crashbars on my 1150R and will add those to my 12RT the small protectors I think are more cosmetic.MHO Link to comment
Jeff98362 Posted January 18, 2006 Share Posted January 18, 2006 I have THOROUGHLY tested the BMW metal cylinder head guards and BMW crash bars on many types of non-pavement surfaces. One of these "tests" was a right-side rolling crash from an incline, that resulted in the bike tipping about 120 degrees. The right cylinder head/guards/bars was the fulcrum, and the sound was a combination of sickening and expensive (yes, others were watching....of course ). I was plesantly surprised to find only a tiny plastic piece broken on the right hand guard. I am very pleased with their performance and would buy again. Good Luck Link to comment
Ken H. Posted January 18, 2006 Share Posted January 18, 2006 If you are talking about a small street type tip over, the cylinder guards work. The plastic version is rather sacrificial, but they're cheap enough (for a BMW part anyway!). If you are talking about heavy duty off road dumps and what have you, or major street incidents, the crash bars are of course the way to go. IMHO of course! Link to comment
RokRide Posted January 18, 2006 Share Posted January 18, 2006 If you are talking about heavy duty off road dumps and what have you, or major street incidents, the crash bars are of course the way to go. IMHO of course! agreed... while the cylinder protectors are nice, when they hit they may keep the head from getting scuffed but the cylinder is still taking the brunt of the hit... The crash bars at least prevent the cylinder from taking the full force of the crash.. obviuosly depending on how you crash neither may help.... Link to comment
wasselr Posted January 18, 2006 Share Posted January 18, 2006 In 97 I had the unfortunate chance of coming onto a piece of hwy that had oil dropped on it...at about 45mi/hr...on my r11rt. I skidded for some distance....lowside. The mirror, saddlebag protector, saddlebag lid, and valve cover protector were trashed. Along with a helmet!! Checked the bike out and ran the bike another 1000mi. home over 2 days. No leaks or damage to the valve cover. They worked for me in this situation. Link to comment
SQD8R Posted January 18, 2006 Share Posted January 18, 2006 I've got the factory crash bars and aluminum engine guards. Try ebay, they seem to come up there often and you end up paying less for both there than you would for either @ the shop. I did. Link to comment
dyvking Posted January 19, 2006 Share Posted January 19, 2006 I am considering adding either crash bars or valve cover protectors after a recent mishap that resulted in damage to the magnesium alloy valve cover. Any suggestions from people who have dropped bikes and "tested" the various products? Also any suggestions on repairing the scratches or do I have to replace the cover? John Do both. The valve cover protectors will protect against digging into sand, gravel that would not be helped by engine bars. The bars, in turn, will protect other parts of the bike in a tip-over. The Touratech combination would, IMHO, be preferable to the BMW solutions, for fit and protection. Link to comment
johnl59 Posted January 19, 2006 Author Share Posted January 19, 2006 Thanks All, John Link to comment
Miriam Posted January 19, 2006 Share Posted January 19, 2006 Do both. The valve cover protectors will protect against digging into sand, gravel that would not be helped by engine bars. The bars, in turn, will protect other parts of the bike in a tip-over. I couldn't agree more! I have the engine bars from Touratech and the cylinder covers from MTec for those very reasons. Link to comment
sjn7708 Posted January 19, 2006 Share Posted January 19, 2006 i have crash bars from wunderlich on both my rt and gs, and had a slow speed tip over with the rt-no damage at all to the cylinder heads. they look and work great on either bike Link to comment
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