bought spare plastics off of ebay

[e]

I saw a whole set. I made an offer and got them for $150 u.s.

I figure I'll drop her at some point. I'll probably paint the originals now that I have a backup set. Which leads to the next topic: stuff to minimize damage if I lay her down.

What things can I bolt on to help if I lay it down on the street (or even more likely, a gravel road)?

Thanks,
e

[Wonky]

A tough set of bar ends for starters! A good tip also is to just pinch up your front brake master cyinder and your clutch lever mount so that it doesn't twist when you pull the lever but if you give them a yank they will spin round your bars. The reason why levers snap when the bike is dropped is because the mounts are tightened right up. If you drop the bike and you've not tightened the mounts right up then the lever unit will spin and not snap, hopefuly. Be aware that on singles vibration is an issue and it is paramount that you check your levers before every ride if you choose to do this. If you are majorly concerned then to protect engine cases you can fit engine bars such as found on the MZ Mastiff. Using longer engine bolts and fitting small skate-board wheels is another option, obviously ensure that the wheels stick out far enough to protect in case of a drop. Other than that be grateful you don't ride a fully faired bike and suffer the potential damage should such a situation arise.

[phlat65]

3-4 wraps of teflon tape on the bar under the lever pinch will let you tighten them, and they will still rotate when you crash.

[DAVID THOMPSON]

last time i fell off was in 1966 and i have made it a point not to do it since ....
it hurts to much both the body and the pocket book suffer

and it make the bike look like crap....

[Drew]

Wonky's idea of bar-ends are a good one. An even better idea are handguards. Get the ones that bolt into the handlebar ends (not the cheesy open ones like BMW and Buell puts on their Supermoto-styled tourers!). A neat trick is to grind the "balls" off the ends of your levers when you fit the handguards, as this will open up more clearance between the handguards and levers. Moose make some good handguards, as do Acerbis. You'll have to identify which ones will fit your bike- most will, but some may have clearance or mounting issues.

Another concept are axle-sliders. Mostly there to protect the track, but they also prevent awkward grinding of your axle nuts. Much like Wonky's idea with the skateboard wheels. If you're in Northern California you can get them from Supermoto Engineering (SME).

[e]

Thanks guys.

I hope not to put her over, but I'm going to do some adventure riding, probaby big bend in the near future. I noticed these guys dropped it quite a few times. Which means I will too.

http://f650.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=201597

e

[Fil]

A neat trick is to grind the "balls" off the ends of your levers when you fit the handguards

I'm pretty sure if you did this in the UK, your bike will fail the annual MOT vehicle test - the balls are supposed to help prevent the ends of the levers penetrating your (or someone elses) body in a crash.
I know if you have decent handguards, they will probably do a far better job of stopping you being squewerd by your levers, but the MOT test doesn't take these things into account sadly

If anyone knows different, please correct me

[Wonky]

I'm pretty sure if you did this in the UK, your bike will fail the annual MOT vehicle test - the balls are supposed to help prevent the ends of the levers penetrating your (or someone elses) body in a crash.
I know if you have decent handguards, they will probably do a far better job of stopping you being squewerd by your levers, but the MOT test doesn't take these things into account sadly

If anyone knows different, please correct me

Yep the balls are also to stop your fingers from sliding off the lever, although there are some dodgy aftermarket levers that don't have balls on the end of the levers. Shady area but if you were to cut the ends down i think you might find some test centres would fail your bike.