TUSK Aluminum handle bars

[MikeB]

I know I will get a bit of flack for this but I have come to love the Tusk T-7 aluminum bars from RockyMountainMC. I have used them for about a year now and I have had no problems except for a really bad crash. The great thing is that you can buy the gray ones from the closeout area for 14.99. at that cost you can have a spare.

Take a look. If you tight on cash they are a great deal!

MikeB

[jeffd]

Hey Mike,
You won't get any flack from my direction. I appreciate you pointing these out. I use pro-tapers myself, but I have a friend (and his 11 year old son) who is just starting riding on a Honda CRF150 and I wanted to get a taller bar on his bike for him (Honda CR-HI). I am trying to get them riding 'standing up' and the stock bar is too low. These will fit the bill perfectly for him.

I was bummed that the closeout bars didn't list a CR-HI bend. But, even at full retail - they are very affordable.

jeff

[MattR]

Thanks Mike for the tip! RockyMountain only says they are T6 aluminum. Well, T6 is the temper classification which is typical for aluminum. I'm curious about the grade of aluminum (such as 6000 or 7000 series) and what wall taper. Make sure you check for cracks regularly around all clamp regions.

I bought other Tusk items (such as tire levers, spark plug holder, kill switch) and all of them have been decent. In fact, the kill switch looked just like my previous KX OEM kill switch (probably same manufacturer just different package).

By the way, I noticed Tusk is selling brake pins that look like the Moose versions with 8mm hex head. I may try these out to test their durability. My Moose pins get wear/divots in them relatively quick... so I'm not too happen with those.

[MikeB]

Thanks for the advice. I noticed they have two different types of Bars. They have the T-10 bars that are the 24.99 and they are T6 aluminum. And they have the closeout bars that are the T-7 bars. I tried to look the T-7 bars up in an old catologue to see what they are made of but with no luck. I think its kind of funny they call it the T-10 when its only made of T6 aluminum. My thinking is that the T-7 bars are weaker, but thats just my logic.

Does anyone have an old catologe when they sold the T-7 bars?

So how strong is T6?

Are you getting what you payfor?

I currently am running the T-10 because they didnt have the height I wanted in the bargin bin.

MikeB

[MattR]

Mike,

Material properties can very significantly depending upon the chosen aluminum alloy and tempering condition.

Here is a good overview on aluminum alloys which describe the different series (such as 1000, 2000, ... up to 7000 series) and the tempering designations (such as T2, T4, T6, etc.):
http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalo...s/aluminfo.php

A good resource I use at work for material properties is here:
http://www.matweb.com/

Typically, you do get what you pay for. Sometimes marketing hype inflates the cost, but some brands are much stronger than others. For example, the Renthal Fat Bar uses 7010 T6 aluminum. This is a very high strength grade of aluminum. It is also shot peened for increased fatigue life.

I don't want to suggest that the Tusk bars are junk, since I don't know the specific aluminum alloy used. Just inspect them at a regular basis in the clamped regions. Aluminum will fatigue and fracture in a different manner than Steel. Aluminum is a more "brittle" material which fracture completely after a given life (sometimes unexpectedly). Whereas, steel is a more "ductile" material which will bend/deform before fracturing (giving you more of a warning).

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A general tip for everyone...
All aluminum handlebars should be changed after a severe crash or have ridden on them for several seasons (regardless of brand). Also, do not "rebend" aluminum bars if they get bent in a crash... it is not worth the risk.