Review: Suburban Machinery M1 Handlebars & Gilles Rearsets

[suspiciouspackage]

No pictures on the bike as of now (I really should take some. Been such a drastic change) but it shouldn't stop me from posting a review. So lets get onto it.
 
Starting with the handlebars!
 
Customer Service: Not really much to say in this department other than they were quick. Submitted the order on an early Monday morning and they sent it out Tuesday. Bars came on a Saturday but would've gotten here Friday if it wasn't for FedEx and issues with logistics. Not SM's fault so I'm not blaming them.
 
Packaging: Came in a plastic bag inside a plain 31x6x2 cardboard box. Wasn't expecting anything like a Yoshimura exhaust with ridiculous foam but I can't say that no bubble wrap bothered me. It's metal, not glass. Box was a bit beat up but I have friends that worked for FedEx. I know how they treat packages. Nothing on the inside was damaged so I can't complain.
 
Quality: Pretty damn good if you ask me. Not an expert on welds or anything but they looked nice and clean to me. Bar just felt solid when I held it, no other way to put it.
 
Install: On a regular day, it would've taken me probably 2 or 3 hours considering there's drilling and because I'm a perfectionist, everything has to be straight or at least to the point where I just love how it feels. But I had a problem with the RhinoMoto barends I ordered (internal expansion joint thing was too small so I had to hold off). Everything was pretty easy. Just a matter of taking off the stock bars and putting the new ones on and adjusting to my preference. Even though they were properly marked left and right I put them on upside down. It didn't make a difference though. If anything it put the hole pgeldz was talking about to the underside so I can't see it anymore.
[span]    [/span]I did the clutch side first. Put the lever assembly on but didn't tighten, installed the grip and bar end and left it all at that. Saved the drilling for last so I moved onto the throttle side. Put the master cylinder/lever assembly on and didn't tighten. Put the R6 throttle tube on and grip followed by bar end. Almost had clearance issues with the grip but I shoved it far back enough to not interfere with the bar end. Kinda scared that the bar end is permanently on there though because I thought I cleaned up all the grip glue but it might have stuck to the internal adapter so we'll see what happens the next time I change the grips. At that point I did the drilling for the control pods and cleaned everything up. The part that required a good amount of attention was adjusting the slack in the throttle and clutch cables. Not hard at all but since it was my first time doing this stuff, it took longer than it needed to.
[span]    With someone who knows their way around bikes and drilling, I'd say this could be knocked out in 90 minutes or even an hour if you wanna go for speed.
 
[/span]Ride Test: I've been riding it for two weeks already. The first day back on it, I went to work and it felt amazing (with the rearsets of course). I didn't feel like I was sitting up in a chair. It felt like I was on an actual sport bike. Everything felt more natural, in my opinion. It's a lot easier to tuck and if anything I feel like even in a natural, non-tucked position, there's a lot less wind slamming into my chest. This is my first bike but I knew when I got on it that I wanted a more aggressive position without 2 extra cylinders and an almost useless powerband for a bike that'll probably never see a track.
[span]    [/span]I've been tracking gas mileage too and on my last fillup I got 61mpg with the one before being I think 59. (I fill to the brim with this too) The 61 definitely surprised me because I've been late to work twice and I've had to go 80+ for more than 10 minutes. Even times where I'm going 100 just because of the flow of traffic. Coming back I'd be restricted to <40mph for maybe 30-40% of the trip because of traffic and to see 61mpg surprised me. I personally feel it's because of the bars and that they allow me to tuck more easily. If anything, when I'm on the highway going full speed I'm almost always in a tuck because it's actually comfortable for me and the wind going over my helmet isn't bothersome. If you told me to do the same thing with the stock bars, I probably couldn't without wanting to rip my arms off. I have long arms and since the stock bars are so high, tucking doesn't feel normal at all and I feel like the steering suffers.
[span]    If there's any questions about comfort on commutes, I ride 60 miles to work roundtrip. My butt gets uncomfortable before my arms ever do. I don't regret changing the bars one bit. If anything I wish these came standard.[/span]
 
Overall, I love the bars. It makes that much of a difference and the bike is a lot more fun because of it. Is it worth the ~$200? To me, if you don't care for an upright seating position and want a more aggressive feel, yes it's more than worth it.
 
 
Rearsets review
 
Customer service: Can't speak much in this department because there wasn't anyone I spoke to but they came in roughly 2 weeks from the UK to California. Not bad.
 
Packaging: Plain brown box that had boxes inside a box. The box that held the boxes for the rearsets was beautiful. Made you know you were getting quality the second you saw it.
 
Quality: In one word, stellar. They're just beautiful. Parts came in a separate bag inside the box and everything was covered so no part would scratch the other. The only thing I can really say I didn't like was the fact that the heel guard wasn't black like everything else.
 
Install: Pretty easy but I was rushing to finish with this too. Did the majority of work in an hour, left for an appointment, came back and spent 30 minutes adjusting and trying to break loose the footpegs without stripping the screw. Comes with an instruction manual that helped a lot. Everything was pretty straightforward. Only complaint was with the footpegs needing so much force to break them loose especially since there wasn't any Loctite on the threads either.
 
Ride Test: It took me a couple rides to figure out how I wanted the gear shift lever. But it was easy and all that you need is a T30 Torx head. By itself, it's a pretty good ride but I think you need new bars to fully appreciate the difference they make. This combined with the bars make for a hell of a ride and makes me never want to drive a car again.
 
Do I think it's worth it? If you have money to throw down, then yeah by all means, go for it. A lot cheaper than the Lightech stuff but more expensive than the Driven rearsets. Personally, the latter doesn't hold a candle to these and I can honestly say I'd rather spend $100 more and wait 2 weeks for these rather than settle for the Driven rearsets. I love the adjustability of it and if anything, it just makes the bike look a lot more seamless. The black really complements the white tank and everything else about the bike. It performs the way it should and it's just overall excellent. I absolutely love my bike now and wouldn't even think about trading it.
 
 
I'll post pictures when I have the chance to take them and edit the post but for now, enjoy the words! If there are questions I'd be more than happy to answer.

[pgeldz]

Awesome write up! Glad you like them!!!
 

 
- Paulie

[aeisan]

Agreed! Great write up! Nailed about 98% of my thoughts on the set exactly! It truly does transform the bike in a very good way.

[dizzid1320]

Do I think it's worth it? If you have money to throw down, then yeah by all means, go for it. A lot cheaper than the Lightech stuff but more expensive than the Driven rearsets. Personally, the latter doesn't hold a candle to these and I can honestly say I'd rather spend $100 more and wait 2 weeks for these rather than settle for the Driven rearsets. I love the adjustability of it and if anything, it just makes the bike look a lot more seamless. The black really complements the white tank and everything else about the bike. It performs the way it should and it's just overall excellent. I absolutely love my bike now and wouldn't even think about trading it.
 

I've been looking at both the Gilles and Driven rearsets since they seem similar in the basic design of mounting the pegs - very adjustable.  Specifically what makes you say the Driven sets are inferior?  I like the fact that the Driven set comes with folding toe pegs.  Has anyone tried both Driven and Gilles rearsets to validate that one is significantly better than the other? 

[suspiciouspackage]

Do I think it's worth it? If you have money to throw down, then yeah by all means, go for it. A lot cheaper than the Lightech stuff but more expensive than the Driven rearsets. Personally, the latter doesn't hold a candle to these and I can honestly say I'd rather spend $100 more and wait 2 weeks for these rather than settle for the Driven rearsets. I love the adjustability of it and if anything, it just makes the bike look a lot more seamless. The black really complements the white tank and everything else about the bike. It performs the way it should and it's just overall excellent. I absolutely love my bike now and wouldn't even think about trading it. 

I've been looking at both the Gilles and Driven rearsets since they seem similar in the basic design of mounting the pegs - very adjustable.  Specifically what makes you say the Driven sets are inferior?  I like the fact that the Driven set comes with folding toe pegs.  Has anyone tried both Driven and Gilles rearsets to validate that one is significantly better than the other?

From what I see, it's not engineered for the rear brake to activate the light, which is a selling point for me. There's a lot of times where I'm just on my rear brake and not the front so that added visibility is important. The toe pegs may be adjustable in 3 positions on the Driven rearsets compared to the 2 on the Gilles but when you look at it closer, the Gilles allow you more positions because they can be rotated within those two holes. Plus the Gilles is an official accessory to the bike so they went the extra mile to make sure everything is within OEM spec, hence, the brake light function. Depending on the exchange rate, you'll probably spend around $50 more than the Driven rearsets but it's really up to you if it's worth the cost.

[dizzid1320]

I've been looking at both the Gilles and Driven rearsets since they seem similar in the basic design of mounting the pegs - very adjustable.  Specifically what makes you say the Driven sets are inferior?  I like the fact that the Driven set comes with folding toe pegs.  Has anyone tried both Driven and Gilles rearsets to validate that one is significantly better than the other?

From what I see, it's not engineered for the rear brake to activate the light, which is a selling point for me. There's a lot of times where I'm just on my rear brake and not the front so that added visibility is important. The toe pegs may be adjustable in 3 positions on the Driven rearsets compared to the 2 on the Gilles but when you look at it closer, the Gilles allow you more positions because they can be rotated within those two holes. Plus the Gilles is an official accessory to the bike so they went the extra mile to make sure everything is within OEM spec, hence, the brake light function. Depending on the exchange rate, you'll probably spend around $50 more than the Driven rearsets but it's really up to you if it's worth the cost.

Thanks for clarifying. I didn't realize the Gilles pegs were offset and could be rotated. I actually just ordered the Driven sets on Sat, mainly because I like folding toe pegs and that doesn't seem like an available option on the Gilles.

[suspiciouspackage]

From what I see, it's not engineered for the rear brake to activate the light, which is a selling point for me. There's a lot of times where I'm just on my rear brake and not the front so that added visibility is important. The toe pegs may be adjustable in 3 positions on the Driven rearsets compared to the 2 on the Gilles but when you look at it closer, the Gilles allow you more positions because they can be rotated within those two holes. Plus the Gilles is an official accessory to the bike so they went the extra mile to make sure everything is within OEM spec, hence, the brake light function. Depending on the exchange rate, you'll probably spend around $50 more than the Driven rearsets but it's really up to you if it's worth the cost.

Thanks for clarifying. I didn't realize the Gilles pegs were offset and could be rotated. I actually just ordered the Driven sets on Sat, mainly because I like folding toe pegs and that doesn't seem like an available option on the Gilles.

They don't fold but the way they're positioned for me (up and to the rear) I never really had an issue with my legs hitting the pegs. I thought I would miss folding pegs but it didn't end up being a factor at the end of the day.

[jeffkisthename]

So how about those photos? :0)

[ratlab]

drivens are just fine and you can get a universal pressure switch to activate the tailight-gilles are very,very good-i have used gilles,sato,vortex and woodcraft's on bikes and frankly have not noticed a difference in shifting,just maybe in looks and quality of machining,heelplates,footpegs.drivens are the same,they do the job they are supposed to do.

[Mr.Puss]

Having a tough time finding info about compatible barends. Would someone please let me know how to select the proper bar ends for aftermarket handlebars? I keep reading "are not yamaha threaded".
I was also considering barend mirrors ( http://www.motostarz.ca/accessories-7/mirrors-mirror-mounts/rizoma-reverse-retro-mirror-1-mirror.html ); will I need a recessed/slotted barened for something like this or do they just clamp on tight to (for example) our OEM barends ??
 
Muchly appreciated.

[suspiciouspackage]

Having a tough time finding info about compatible barends. Would someone please let me know how to select the proper bar ends for aftermarket handlebars? I keep reading "are not yamaha threaded". I was also considering barend mirrors ( http://www.motostarz.ca/accessories-7/mirrors-mirror-mounts/rizoma-reverse-retro-mirror-1-mirror.html ); will I need a recessed/slotted barened for something like this or do they just clamp on tight to (for example) our OEM barends ??
 
Muchly appreciated.

Most likely, aftermarket bars are not threaded so they're just smooth. With RhinoMoto they use this plastic piece that expands by metal as you screw a bolt in (if that makes sense). Just make sure you get one for the proper inner diameter. RhinoMoto makes bar ends that have a cutout for CRG mirrors. For other brand mirrors, you might just be clamping it straight onto the bar end.