Easton EXP Bars

[flyingfitz]

Saw this deal and couldn't refuse. 

Easton EXP 1 3/8 bars Woods Bend with Mounting Clamps, Hardware and Center Pad for $99 Bucks Shipped!  Also got the mounts for the bark busters.  The bark buster mounts were an additional 38 bucks available only from Easton because of the thicker bar diameter. 

Available from Motocross Giant.  The sales guy took a ton of time verifying parts and hardware.  Hopefully it will all be correct.

Fitz

[royceymon@hotmail.co.uk]

on the bar front ,i wouldnt ever use a single bar again without the crossmember and now only use renthals after a bar snapping after i landed a jump ,right by the clamp throttle side , no sharp edges on the clamps etc etc ...riekon were the make ........

[hughes]

on the bar front ,i wouldnt ever use a single bar again without the crossmember and now only use renthals after a bar snapping after i landed a jump ,right by the clamp throttle side , no sharp edges on the clamps etc etc ...riekon were the make ........

Never heard of 1 1/8 bars breaking, I have been using them for years. I'll never go back to a cross bar type bar. I would love to try those new EXP bars. I guess any bar can break; they fatigue after use and don't last forever.

[greencannon]

yikes!!! bars snapping?? Ive been running renthals for a cuple of seasons with alot of abuse, no probs at all. Ive bent many a bars but never snapped any
 Maybe it had something to do with the brand, cheap ?? never heard of Reikon. ?

[royceymon@hotmail.co.uk]

im sure eastons are fine ,well respected make i had a riekon bar on for two seasons and had a few offs with no bend at all ,after the two seasons and some heavy landings i thought best to change them .
they were the identical bend etc gold in colour was the only difference ,they snapped after six months at my local track luckily i got over the first big tabletop a few bends later another table top then they snapped landing over the ski jump after the table top ....for a few milli seconds i kinda thought wot? then i carried on through the ropes over the berm and then come off!! .very very lucky it wasnt the big table top you hit that one at speed .the importer wasnt remotely interested in changing !! even only at six months with no offs at all , i went back to renthals only bent one set years ago but that was a very heavy off  ..renthals i love em

[flyingfitz]

I can't believe it.  I ordered them yesterday and they arrived today. 

As advertised. Everything from the package to the clamps looks like art.  The bark buster mounts have a urethane ring where they clamp to the bar.  The clamps come with two hex sockets to fasten the hardware.  The torque specs are laser etched into the clamp both inside for the mount to the tree and outside where they clamp the bar!

I hope they work as good as they look.  Will post a couple of pics when I put them on tomorrow. 

Fitz

[flyingfitz]

Before.

[greencannon]

I have no experience with Easton handlebars, but i do know they make quality bats and arrows and have a few of them. I wouldn't hesitate to buy their bars.
  I know u said woods bend but those look like a 4 wheeler handlebar. Were you running that type of bar when racing and they snapped ?? If so that could be your problem.

[flyingfitz]

It was royce that snapped the bar. 

They do have a pretty agressive curve in them. They advertise "more straight section at the end to allow the woods stuff to be bolted on." It also allows room for trimming.  Guide marks are laser etched into the ends of the bars!

I got them mounted last night.  The universal clamps went on and fit very well.  The combination of the adapter clamp and the higher bar height allow me to stand up comfortably on the bike now.  The bars are 30 1/2 from tip to tip.  I am still deciding on whether to trim a little or not.  My rubber mounts for the stock 7/8 clamp base are wore out.  I need to get a washer under the nut or order new ones. 

From what I have read, the bark busters have been the hangup on this setup.  The easton guard mounts sit up against the outside of the clamp and bend 90 degrees.  I have cycra and a moose style straight bend bark busters and neither bolts right up.  I am going to have to make an "adjustment" to whichever guards I decide to use.

The last issue is with the fancy center pad.  This thing is an eccentric work of art and would work awesome if the bark busters were not in the mix.  Significant trimming will be required to make the pad fit with the handguard mounts on.

First Impression:  This looks to be a straightforward, high quality setup at a great price if you dont run bark busters.  A little more creativity is required if you want to keep your fingers safe.

Fitz

[royceymon@hotmail.co.uk]

yep the easton bars look the nuts thats for sure , nothing remotely like the riekons........thankfully