Stucchi Luigi crash bars for Norge

[alanp]

Anybody have a set of these? I've seen them online;

http://www.stucchiluigi.it/eng/articolo.asp?ID=19

Just wondering 1) how much they cost, 2) where/how they connect, and 3) if you can remove the valve covers with them in place. It is hard to tell from the pictures.

 

[radlefty]

Sorry, I don't know how to post a link, but if you enter " Stucchi crash bars" in the search box you will find some information on them.
www.mgcycle has them for 368.60.

 

[draidt]

I have them on my Norge, They look better in person then the pictures show. It's a 3 piece unit the center piece is a bit of a bear to get on as both upper fairing pieces come off to access the engine mounting bolts that it mount to. the 2 side pieces attach to the back 2 valve cover bolts and then to the center piece with a bolt, The 2 side pieces come off easy when it's time to adjust the valves and the center piece does not have to come off. The instructions are pretty good from Stuchhi. The color matches the valve covers and engine. I am in the process of installing running lights utilizing the bars.

 

[alanp]

Thanks. They look good, but I can't tell where they connect at the front? Any chance of a better photo of the front connection? The rear looks quite easy. Seems like a worthwhile item.

 

[zebee]

alanp wrote:

Thanks. They look good, but I can't tell where they connect at the front? Any chance of a better photo of the front connection? The rear looks quite easy. Seems like a worthwhile item.

You have to remove the middle fairing panels to install them, so if he doesn't have pics now, you won't get them

There's an engine mount roughly behind the blinkers. The middle bar bolts to that on each side. So you have to take the two lowers and the bellypan off, then you have to undo some "bloody hell who thought this was a good idea?" allen key bolts, and remove the middle part of the fairing. Then the engine mounts are visible.

Then you remove some fairing brackets that are in the way, replace the nuts that held them on because under them is another set of brackets that need to be tightish or you can't fit the middle bar to the engine mountings, but you swear that Stucchi are a bunch of incompetent sods before this dawns on you.

Then you wriggle the thing in, making uncomplimentary noises about clearances, and wriggle and push and swear the damn things are too narrow so the holes don't line up and thank God you were bright enough to put a jack under the motor before removing any mounting bolts and make judicious use of a hammer shaped thing to persuade bolts to seat and then realise you forgot the loctite and so do it all again and.... Finally you get the middle bar on and go and have a cuppa.

Then you come back and start the famous "assembly is the reverse of disassembly" with the usual "how the hell did that ever fit" problems. So you wriggle and curse and loosen and tighten and get your hands filthy on what looks like a perfectly clean engine, and finally get it all back together, wishing that you had some 1/4" allen sockets because the 3/8" ones are a tight fit in there.

Then you offer up the side bars and find that you have to remove the 2 rocker cover bolts that you just replaced because there's no way the side bars line up in either plane with the middle bar, wriggle and jiggle till you can bolt the side bars to the middle bar, then find you can't because there's paint in the threads, so you run a tap through that, try again, one side works OK, the other's nearly half a hole out on one rocker bolt and no amount of wriggling or twisting or holding your tongue right will change this. So a bit of a go with a drill (because the only round file on the premises is clearly made for 10mm or larger holes and the Dremel's 5 suburbs away in someone else's shed) and you finally get it all bolted up.

There was, of course, a washer left over.


Zebee

 

[bugeater]

I put a set of these crash bars on my 2008 Norge--I noticed the center bar crosses right over the top of the rubber covered inspection hole which could be a problem. after several hundred miles the left allen head screw broke its head off--replaced. several hundred more miles the right allen head broke off--replaced--it happens constantly at around 400 to 500 miles now, so much that I carry a bag of replacements and allen wrench. the left and right come off easy for valve setting--no problem there--unless you need to access that front rubber covered hole to turn the engine over with a wrench ( I just put it in 6th gear and slowly rotate the back tire). factory that makes this Stucchi crash bar has said it will experiment to find a solution, I expect to never hear back from them.

 

[draidt]

I put a set of these crash bars on my 2008 Norge--I noticed the center bar crosses right over the top of the rubber covered inspection hole which could be a problem. after several hundred miles the left allen head screw broke its head off--replaced. several hundred more miles the right allen head broke off--replaced--it happens constantly at around 400 to 500 miles now, so much that I carry a bag of replacements and allen wrench. the left and right come off easy for valve setting--no problem there--unless you need to access that front rubber covered hole to turn the engine over with a wrench ( I just put it in 6th gear and slowly rotate the back tire). factory that makes this Stucchi crash bar has said it will experiment to find a solution, I expect to never hear back from them.

When I installed my bars the hole alignment on the bolts that broke on yours did not line up exactly. I could have forced it and forgot about it, I suspect you might have the same situation ? Rather then do that I elongated the 2 valve cover holes on both sides of the bar. Have not had a problem in 3 years, easy on and off. Yes the best solution to the blocked rubber cover is put it on the center-stand and in 6th Gear and rotate the wheel in the forward direction. Hope this helps.

 

[bugeater]

good info on elongating the valve cover holes on the crash bars to give it some expansion/contraction room.
my crash bars align up perfectly when cold, they slip right into place and no effort is needed to get an alignment out of them. However when the motor gets hot I fear some of the engine/components expand and it puts stress on those two forward hex bolts/screws. I use the very best high grade I can get and to no avail. I will try the valve cover end hole enlarging trick to see if I can give it some expansion room, I would expect i'd have to use a somewhat larger washer to make up for the larger hole.
once I get this problem solved I will email the factory and recommend them to alter the bars sets to accommodate this procedure. I do like the bars, they will prevent some damage in a tip over. the plastic on the sides is vulnerable on a Norge to the smallest impact.

 

[bugeater47]

it has been quite some time but the solution for the breaking hex bolt has been found on my Stucchi crash bars on my 2008 Norge. It used to break either side at around 500 miles always in the same way and place. the Succhi bars are vulnerable to heat expansion in the heads--causing stress and vibration to shear the bars at the single hex bolt. Now I found if I put a little slice of inner tube rubber(thin like a bicycle) in between the joint and using a 1/4 inch longer hex bolt I can snug it up, back it off one turn and anchor it with a nylock nut on top. Tugging on the bars feels solid--with just a hint of movement, not much mind you. a year of service has not broken one bolt. I do not believe the crash bar integrity has been compromised, it should work the same as unaltered. .