Bullet Proof Designs

[modette]

Their Website:
www.bulletproofdesigns.com

I call up Bullet Proof Today to see what the damage will be for one radiator guard assuming I can even get one side. Very friendly place, said mail it in its warranty and you get a new side mailed out. WOW I was not expecting that at all. I'll be buying parts from them now for all my motorcycles in the future.








Back story:
So I got back from Montrose, CO (Peach Valley OHV area). Some really tough single track out there. I got there Thursday, rode by myself 30 miles before
night fall. A few other riders came in. Int he morning we hit the trails did another 25 miles and back to camp to see if anyone else was in. There was, so we headed back out again and did another 30 miles. Back to camp again to check and we picked up another rider. Did another 30 miles till I looped the bike and cracked open the clutch cover on the top, used some Quick Steel and a rider went to find the easiest way out. Went back to camp.

Someone had a bright idea "lets go for a night time ride". So we did on single track. Well it seems int he dark I hit a boulder sticking out of the canyon wall. The odd part is I remember hitting it but was going so slow I was like "glad I was not going fast" and I continued on up Eagle Valley Trail, then out to Elephant Ditch. Rode Elephant ditch to the end and back and we went back to camp. Maybe that was another 15 miles of riding.

Next morning I wake up, Quick Steel seems to be holding good on the plastic but wait the radiator looks odd. I get up close and man I tweaked it. Oh wait its more then a tweak, it was bent backwards and wrapped around the starter...LOL I did not notice the leaking at that point. I was sore, and tired and bowed out of the ride and decided to head home early to get points with the wife As I loaded then I noticed man its leaking and good thing I did not suit up and say "Lets ride".

[GMP]

You unfortunately demonstrated why I always passed on those. For the eye popping price they are basically a big thick grill that provids some lateral support in the very front. No side protection, rear protection, or triangulation. Now granted its likely that you would have tweaked any guard doing what you did, but with more support perhaps not to the point of a trashed radiator. Those GG rads are very soft and need all the help they can get. JMO, but I think the Scorpion style brace system with added grill is the best way, unless you brew your own.

[modette]

Originally Posted by GMP

You unfortunately demonstrated why I always passed on those. For the eye popping price they are basically a big thick grill that provids some lateral support in the very front. No side protection, rear protection, or triangulation. Now granted its likely that you would have tweaked any guard doing what you did, but with more support perhaps not to the point of a trashed radiator. Those GG rads are very soft and need all the help they can get. JMO, but I think the Scorpion style brace system with added grill is the best way, unless you brew your own.

I would say side protection is excellent. No side drops have done anything. sides are not bent in, this was a head on hit. I don't think any guard head on with a boulder (I have to assume it was dark) would stop what I did. I'll take some pictures of the guard now off the bike. If there was no guard the whole radiator would of been ripped off. I can not speak of Scorpion as I have no clue. This could of been a fluke too just the right type of hit.

Still nice they are Warranting the guard...I was not expecting that.

Edited to say: I see the picture makes it look like it mushroomed in from the side (it did not). I just took a video and its uploading to Youtube, I'll post a link soon.

[GMP]

No argument there, service is good. And yes, any guard would take a beating. My point was, with the full enclosure type rad "frames", with rear support posts, the whole thing would move as a unit, as yours did. The difference is where your rad is damaged in the rear there are additional supports across the sides, with a lot of clearance to the rear of the rad.

Also, the entire side of the rad is clear, unprotected. The plastic shroud is soft. If you fall on an uneven rock, with a high spot that lines up with the rad not the guard, that guard will do nothing. Think about that, like falling on your side and taking a hit in the ribs where your CP doesn't cover. Hey, its a beautiful piece of billet machine work, but to me has concept flaws I eventually will exploit. I live and ride in a nasty rock infested mess, and have crashed bikes in rocks for years, so I know what works. You can mod them with additional supports and side plates to be really Bulletproof.

[modette]

Here is my video:
http://youtu.be/Plh_0nN3KoA

GMP I guess I get what your saying, at the end of the day nothing is fail proof either. It's one reason why I like the 6.5 Gallon tank on the XR650R it does a great job in protecting the sides.

[Fred1956]

Originally Posted by modette

Their Website:
www.bulletproofdesigns.com

I call up Bullet Proof Today to see what the damage will be for one radiator guard assuming I can even get one side. Very friendly place, said mail it in its warranty and you get a new side mailed out. WOW I was not expecting that at all. I'll be buying parts from them now for all my motorcycles in the future.

Nate & Bud are good people and they ride also. I would expect nothing less from them

[GMP]

I suspect that our IT group has started blocking Youtube, so I'll have to watch it later.

No nothing is completely foolproof. But, sometimes the holes in the armor are more obvious than others. If you make up some plates and get some standoffs to form a full side protection setup, you will be close. No doubt what is there is very strong. Hey, just be glad it was the rad and not your left knee that got rearanged.

[modette]

Originally Posted by GMP

I suspect that our IT group has started blocking Youtube, so I'll have to watch it later.

No nothing is completely foolproof. But, sometimes the holes in the armor are more obvious than others. If you make up some plates and get some standoffs to form a full side protection setup, you will be close. No doubt what is there is very strong. Hey, just be glad it was the rad and not your left knee that got rearanged.

I'm wondering if you can combine the Scorpion with the Bullet Proof, then great head on protection with the wrap around protection.

Updated video, BPD Rad 2013 changes
http://youtu.be/WrjAbqwfu28

[GMP]

That thing is like a big expensive grill. If you use the GP style post braces I came up with years ago, with an extended side plate, and mount your shrouds with bolts to the posts and not the rads, you will have a good setup for very little additional $$. I have some pics I pulled from my old Android phone I'll have to dig up.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

[mcnut]

http://www.unabiker.com/