VTwin Handlebars

Post Reply
tattoomark
Member
Posts: 67
Joined: Sun Sep 14, 2008 3:30 pm
Bikes: 1955 pan,79 shovel,93 flhtp
Been thanked: 1 time

VTwin Handlebars

#1

Post by tattoomark »

I have just bought Vtwin Handle bars and as always for me theres a problem, I hope someone can maybe tell me whats going on with the throttle it has a lot of drag but its really bad when connected to the carb,there is no hard bend or kinks that I can tell,when hooked to the carb half way open is hard to twist when you close half way gets stuck you can twist it bad to me its way to hard and from the half way point to close theres no in between, I have had a set of Flanders with the push pull before never had this problem before!
1950Panhead
Senior Member
Posts: 2404
Joined: Wed Jul 07, 2010 4:28 am
Bikes: 1950Panhead
Location: USA
Has thanked: 1 time
Been thanked: 366 times

Re: VTwin Handlebars

#2

Post by 1950Panhead »

Ok, I would disconnect the carb.
Does the cable open and close smoothly while disconnected?
If not smooth find out why and fix it.
Does the carb and open and close smoothly?
If not smooth find out why and fix it.
I have seen where the swivel on the carb lever sticks, check that too.
Bigincher
Former member
Senior Member
Posts: 2784
Joined: Tue Dec 18, 2007 2:10 pm
Bikes: 1941/59 EL
1952 FL
1977 FLH
1994 Fatboy
Has thanked: 22 times
Been thanked: 110 times

Re: VTwin Handlebars

#3

Post by Bigincher »

The biggest complaint I have heard about the VT bars is that the spirals need massaging to work smoothly. Disconnect the control cables and ensure that the spirals function smoothly. There's really no other reason for them to work as hard as you describe.
6hds
Member
Posts: 178
Joined: Thu Jun 05, 2014 1:09 pm
Bikes: 2012flhtc,1979fxef,1977flh,1960flh,1971Hodaka100B+,1972 HD SS350 Sprint 67 T120R, 67 A65L
Location: NWPA
Has thanked: 117 times
Been thanked: 14 times

Re: VTwin Handlebars

#4

Post by 6hds »

The V-twin speedster bars I bought a couple years ago required at least couple hours of fit and finishing to get the internals to work the way they should. Its a given and expected that most of the stuff you buy from them needs finishing work. In many cases, there the only source too. What can you expect when Ted always chooses the the low bidder in Taiwan?
Bigincher
Former member
Senior Member
Posts: 2784
Joined: Tue Dec 18, 2007 2:10 pm
Bikes: 1941/59 EL
1952 FL
1977 FLH
1994 Fatboy
Has thanked: 22 times
Been thanked: 110 times

Re: VTwin Handlebars

#5

Post by Bigincher »

There is another source for handlebars, Tom Faber at FaberCycle makes excellent replica bars. But they ain't cheap.
tattoomark
Member
Posts: 67
Joined: Sun Sep 14, 2008 3:30 pm
Bikes: 1955 pan,79 shovel,93 flhtp
Been thanked: 1 time

Re: VTwin Handlebars

#6

Post by tattoomark »

Thank you for all the replies. As carb goes it works fine also what I forgot to mention is when you roll the throttle in the grip is pushing away from the handlebars an out a 1/8" it wasn't really smooth but nothing like it is when hooked up. I could kick myself for not nuying from Fabor thats where my Flanders came from.
cdndewey
Member
Posts: 399
Joined: Thu Feb 21, 2008 9:07 am
Bikes: 42 WLC, 47 EL, 53 FLE, 62 FL, 78 FLH
Location: British Columbia
Has thanked: 1 time
Been thanked: 20 times

Re: VTwin Handlebars

#7

Post by cdndewey »

Bigincher wrote:There is another source for handlebars, Tom Faber at FaberCycle makes excellent replica bars. But they ain't cheap.
No they're not cheap...but they are the best. I've bought two pair from him...and boy are they nice.
old.wrench
Senior Member
Posts: 516
Joined: Sun Apr 24, 2011 4:29 pm
Bikes: '54 FL and a mini-bike
Location: in the garage
Has thanked: 4 times
Been thanked: 84 times

Re: VTwin Handlebars

#8

Post by old.wrench »

mark,
I've set up a couple of the imported aftermarket springer handlebars and they all needed a fair amount of work to operate properly, even the ones that come "assembled". There doesn't seem to be very much quality control or real checking of the finished product. In fact, I believe that some suppliers clearly state that "some" final hand fitting will be necessary :) .

A couple of easy things to check:

Make sure that the endplay of the spiral is O.K. when you tighten up the large retainer screw at the bar end.
Check the fit of the roller so it doesn't hang up in either the slot in the bars or the track in the spiral.
If that stuff checks out O.K., you need to check the bar end to spiral concentric fit.

You can apply either machinists bluing or magic marker to the handle bar ends (completely cover the entire surface where the spiral slips on) and then slide the spiral on and give it a couple of turns, then remove the spiral and you can see the hi-lighted areas where you need to take a file to the high spots on the bars.
You could use a half-round file or hone out the bore of the spiral itself to gain a little clearance, but I've found that what seems to work best is to knock the high spots off the bars to get things working smoothly. I like to use a file instead of a grinder because I have a lot better control. If the bars are chrome plated, a new sharp file will bite through the chrome far easier than an old worn out file.

You might have to repeat the marking and filing procedure a few times followed up with a sandpaper polishing to get a nice fit and smooth action. I also lubricate all the parts and surfaces before final assembly. When you are done the spiral should turn smooth and easy, and the control wire should operate smooth with no slop and respond to your wrist-twist with out any dead spots.

Geo.
tattoomark
Member
Posts: 67
Joined: Sun Sep 14, 2008 3:30 pm
Bikes: 1955 pan,79 shovel,93 flhtp
Been thanked: 1 time

Re: VTwin Handlebars

#9

Post by tattoomark »

Thanks I pulled wire and cable the wire to me had smooth bends there were a few light bends the outer cover was hard kept catching the edge of the wire/cable slot on bottom of handlebar what I am seeing the spool thats on it is small aluminium with no threads the shop who sold me the barss sent a new cable but the spool is larger and threaded hole but it wont ever fit in the hole? The spiral workss fine with no cable on it there are no drastic bends in the outer cable any ideas now?
Post Reply

Return to “Handlebars, Cables & Switches”