Posted by Steve on October 04, 2001 at 02:37:18:
Finally finished my changeover to drag bars. Managed to get all original parts. The hardware went on as planned. The only incompatibility with the retrofit was the throttle cable. The cable for the flat bar didn't fit the 98 switchhousing so I just kept the original. In hindsight, I don't think the cables/hose (clutch, brake, throttle) are worth worrying about. If I had to do over I wouldn't bother.
One surprise was that the factory dragbar did not come pre-drilled for the switchhousings (they have a little protrusion that fits in a hole to prevent turning under pressure).
So far, have only ridden it about an hour with the new bars but I think it's going to help the back and sore rear problem. Normally after about 30 minutes I would start feeling discomfort. The forward riding position of the flat bars really takes the pressure off the back and rear - no discomfort yet. At this point it's just a mental thing getting use to the new bars as I have never had a bike with drag bars before.
Another unexpected benefit - more speed. The drag bars reduce rider profile due to being lower and narrower; hence a lot less drag than the pullbacks that have you sitting straight up and spread out like a kite.
It wasn't exactly cheap ($225+ discounted heavily at cycle-parts.com). I'm sure it would run $300 - $350 if you ordered the parts from a dealer. The work wasn't hard but you have to be precise in the drilling of the handlebar as you have little room for error on the righthand side if you hope to squeeze the brake reservoir, mirror, switchhousing and throttlegrip in that little bit of space.