Road King Crash Bars on a Road Star

Written by Tom Bishop

Thursday, 10 June 2004

Reprinted by Permission of RoadStarMagazine.com

After several months of searching for a viable highway/crash bar I was still undecided. The only thing I had seen on a motorcycle that I really liked was the setup on the Road King. I was goofing off on EBay one day and did a search on motorcycle accessories which led me to a set of Y2K Road King bars which I bid on and won for $125. I figured that if I could not make them work I could always resell them on EBay.

Installing the bars

I began the project by setting my Silverado atop the home made motorcycle stand I made with the aid of Tidy's Tips site.
I then fabbed a pair of mounting brackets which attached through the same holes as the floorboard brackets. I left about a inch and a half extra to mount the bar to. The material used was 2" wide stainless bar stock.
I "hung" the bars by drilling a hole through the top bracing above the rectifier and using a stainless attachments. A series of fender washers between the top bar mount and the frame allowed the bar to be rigid, have support and avoid touching the motorcycle frame crossbars.
After hanging the bars, I simply marked and drilled the two mounting holes in the brackets for the bar's lower mounts.

A machine shop cut the arches I drew on the brackets (to better fit the highway bar) with a plasma cutter. Stainless is amazingly hard stuff!

Stainless bolts, washers and nuts were used in all applications.

Comments: The Yamaha Big Bars look good from the pictures I have seen on the forum and I did consider a pair of them. The Cobra bars I looked at were one dimensional and did not have the curve/flair look I wanted, the look the HD Road King has, Cobra's cost more too.

Earlier, I had very good luck scoring a set of HD Heritage softail classic saddlebags off the internet and fabbed my own brackets for them. They turned out so good, that I thought I would do the HD highway bar as well. I am glad I did. I hope that these few pictures aid those who consider this mod. It is worth your time and effort.

Tom Bishop
April 2003

Questions should be asked in our forum (Use discuss link below). The forum is very active and you stand a good chance of getting your questions answered there. If you would like to leave feedback for the author, or have additional information you think will benefit others, please use the comment section at the bottom of this page.

Discuss this article on the forums. (4 posts)

DISCLAIMER: This information and procedure is provided as a courtesy and is for informational purposes only. Neither the publishers nor the authors accept any responsibility for the accuracy, applicability, or suitability of this procedure. You assume all risks associated with the use of this information. NEITHER THE PUBLISHERs NOR THE AUTHORs SHALL IN ANY EVENT BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, PUNITIVE, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, OF ANY NATURE ARISING OUT OF OR IN ANY WAY CONNECTED WITH THE USE OR MISUSE OF THIS INFORMATION OR LACK OF INFORMATION. Any type of modification or service work on your motorcycle should always be performed by a professional mechanic. If performed incorrectly, this procedure may endanger the safety of you and others on your motorcycle and possibly invalidate your manufacturer’s warranty.

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Comments (7)

Highway Bars
Written by Rodster, on 06-21-2012 20:36
I just bought an 06 Road Star Silerado 1700, I am looking for a couple of things if anyone knows anyone or if they have them and would like to sell them !Hwy Bars and the trim that goes around the tail light. Thanks

What exhaust system
Written by scottie409, on 04-23-2012 16:23
In your lower picture of the bars it looks as if you have stainless flexpipe for exhaust. What is it:

Road king roll bars.
Written by tanker011eddie, on 01-10-2012 11:49
Hi Tom ,The little pic of the bars look great.I've put Harley '71 shovel bags on my '03,'75 ultra fairing, I have '85 roadking hardbag guards but haven't figured how to mount them.Any ideas.Im haveing trouble navigateing the site (new to 'puters).Thanks in advance...Ed

Written by scottdiorio, on 02-18-2010 22:45
just wanted to know how long should the metal be for bottom brackets

Will they work?
Written by easyrider003, on 11-14-2009 09:45
I have a set of cobra fatty crash bars on my 05 roadstar. Will a set of 1996-2009 lowers fit this crash bar? If not, Do I have to have the 2000 model crash bar since the are flaired out more at the bottom? Any other info you can give me to make these fairings work would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Michael

Question
Written by ditusa, on 08-03-2007 12:18
I have a question not about the bars. I just purchased a set of Heritage saddle bags that I want to install on my 2004 Roadstar. Would you mind sharing any info you have about the instatllation including photos if you took any.

Ps; I just became a member of this site an hour ago and this is my first correspondence.

Thanks

RoadKing Engine Guards
Written by desertpearl9, on 08-05-2005 05:26
Will they fit with lower windshield deflectors?

DesertPearl9

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