Removing Handlebar Ends

So years after I obtained my VFR and dumped it the first spring after owning it, I finally decided I would replace the bar ends with some aftermarket ones.

The FSM doesn't say much about it: something about dis-engaging the locking tabs, then just twist it out.

Yeah, right!

This 10 minute job took me over 2 hours.

Why?

Well the clips for starters are a crappy design for starters. You can squeeze the ends of them, but the ends that engage the inside of the bar are just about 1/4" inside the bore and would not move with the outside part which flexed a lot. Eventually a small bladed screwdriver and Mr Hammer took care of it and I busted the clips out. I'm not sure why these even exist, because the rest of the bar has zero chance of coming out without a dedicated fight.

On the throttle side, it wasn't quite so bad. It was a huge fight and I twisted and twisted until my hands cramped up. this took a half hour. Eventually the rubber popped out of the tube and I was able to pull the rest of the end weight out.

On the clutch side, it was a nightmare, the like I have not seen before. I twisted and twisted, but nothing budged. Brought out a slide hammer and threaded the screw into the bar weight. I thought for sure this would work. Nope. Bent the screw and nearly tipped the bike off its center stand. Now I was ready to start throwing things, so I did what my neighbor does: called help.

My neighbor popped over (he's a mechanic) and we messed around trying the same things, but with more muscle. No luck. Then he had a brilliant idea. "Let's drill the rubber holding us up with a small drill bit." Bingo! Bar end slid right out!

So I thought I would share my experience for someone else to learn from and to see if there was a much simpler way, or if this is simply one of those jobs to be dreaded.

Thoughts? Comments?

If you were just replacing the bar ends, why would you have to screw with the internals in the first place?
When I installed my Helibars, the guts came out of my stockers real easy.
Did you take the grips off? I seem to remember a tab hole that you pushed the tab in to release it...........
With limited skills, I'm sure I would've fooked it up somehow otherwise.
Greg :fing02:

Same experience I had with my '99 a few months ago! Crazy how tough that was!

Remove old bar end, roll back grip(remove throttle tube on throttle side). Squirt a shot of WD-40 into the handlebar. While that soaks in/around, pry the tabs out of the holes in the bars. Pry clips from end of bar, but not all the way out. Reinsert bar end & screw a few turns, then yank the weights out. Use more WD as needed.

Clean excess WD from inside bar w/ paper towel, install new bar ends.

Hope that helps for next time. :biggrin:

My husband pulled my heated grip completely off my bike a few weeks ago - thus disconnecting the wiring... :angry:

Spin the collar with the tabs 90 degrees, thus taking them out of the holes they are catching on. Screw the barend back on lightly, apply compressed air (rubber tipped air gun) into the hole used to locate the switch assemblies while holding/gently pulling the re-attached barend, it comes right out. Took an hour of goofing around to figure out the first one, about 30 seconds for the other side.

Throw the bar ends into the nearest trash can. The VFR is smooth enough that you don't need them.

or, you can do what I did:

Got some 7/8" O.D. brass rod, cut off a couple of sections about 6" long, and turned then down on a lathe so they are just a snug fit into the handlebars. Not so snug they have to be hammered in, but slide in with a little force. Leave about the last 8 mm of the brass piece at the full 7/8" diameter. These work fine as bar weights, allow you to install longer grips, allow you to install grips that have closed ends, and get rid of those ugly bar end weights.

I took my clip-ons, with the impossible-to-remove bar-ends, to the local Honda shop, and asked them how in the world I was supposed to get them out. They took them in the back and came out a few minutes later with the parts seperated. No charge. Thanks DFW Honda! :biggrin:

When I installed the new Helibars, getting the old grips and bar ends off was the easiest part of the job. Took all of 5 minutes, maybe less. Small screw driver to lift up the grip, squirt of WD40, twist, and off. No muss, no fuss. Left the bar end weights on to pull the insides out, push down on the pins with a small screwdriver, twist and pull. Easy peasy.

I don't ever remember having any trouble with the Honda internal bar weights on Hondas i had. I have a feeling that some of these might have gotten stuck because some grip glue got into them. Otherwise, it's always been a matter of pushing in the pins and turning the assembly to disengage them from the bars.
I also question why you even had to remove/mess around with the internal weights when all you had to replace was the bruised bar end.

BTW, VFRs (at least my 4th gen did) do need weights on their bar ends to quell vibration. The hand numbing vibration from my bike almost totally dissapeared when I switched over to VTR1000 bars with heavier weights. No more numb fingers after a long ride!

Beck
95 VFR

[image: View Post]coderighter, on Aug 3 2009, 09:35 PM, said:

Spin the collar with the tabs 90 degrees, thus taking them out of the holes they are catching on. Screw the barend back on lightly, apply compressed air (rubber tipped air gun) into the hole used to locate the switch assemblies while holding/gently pulling the re-attached barend, it comes right out. Took an hour of goofing around to figure out the first one, about 30 seconds for the other side.

I can just see myself getting accidentally in the line of fire and receiving a Darwin Award or eating soup for the rest of my life!

[image: View Post]Beck, on Aug 4 2009, 12:06 AM, said:

I don't ever remember having any trouble with the Honda internal bar weights on Hondas i had. I have a feeling that some of these might have gotten stuck because some grip glue got into them. Otherwise, it's always been a matter of pushing in the pins and turning the assembly to disengage them from the bars.
I also question why you even had to remove/mess around with the internal weights when all you had to replace was the bruised bar end.

BTW, VFRs (at least my 4th gen did) do need weights on their bar ends to quell vibration. The hand numbing vibration from my bike almost totally dissapeared when I switched over to VTR1000 bars with heavier weights. No more numb fingers after a long ride!

Beck
95 VFR

Had to remove the weights to install AFTERMARKET polished bar ends which had a different (and simpler) means of engagement. If I was putting on new stockers, it would have been much easier.