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Head protectors vs crash bars - how effective?

nick berg said:
Hello I am new to the forum unfortunately I was doing a u turn in a car park with a slight slope and the combination of slope not enough speed too much lean and steering on near full lock resulted in a fall. I have the pretty cyclinder head protectors and the damage is new rocker cover required also clutch lever, I had the guzzi top box on and it kept the bike off the ground although took scrapes to the body and some marks on the painted lid needing touch up. Obviously the cyclinder guard is marked, I am replacing the rocker cover and brake and clutch lever with aftermarket versions that fold up expensive but not much more than the brembo ones fitted. I cannot believe that I made such a rookie mistake and honestly I am still analysing how the hell I managed it. Only thing I can think of is that I have other bikes with different handling characteristics and my aging brain hadn't adjusted to the changeover in bikes. Anyway, lesson learned, I am short of stature getting older and the V100s is a hefty bit of kit to manage, save to say I am now fitting the engine bars keeping the cyclinder guards and giving myself a good talking to about the dynamics of the v100. I love the performance of the bike and for a few minutes after the drop considered changing it for a V7 but came to my senses and realised that there is simply nothing like it for looks character or all round satisfaction of ride quality, ride safely watch those slow manoeuvres.
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Wellcome nic berg.

A few months ago a lady decided to make a left turn over me. The bike got off the ground and landed on its right (the hit was from the left) on the crash bar and fork/wheel. The cylinder head cover was without a scratch but the right header was cracked almost 360 degrees at the junction with the cyliner, interestingly the pipe's heat shield was intact. I wonder if the way the crash bars mount was the culprit.

I will add the head protectors when I find some in the aftermarket (on principle, I don't want to pay $370 US dollars for two little aluminum bars).

Have a great time with your bike and stay out of town.

PS. I dropped a Multi once in a parking lot and my wife broke her wrist (that drop was really a problem :) )
 
I suppose any damage depends on the mechanism of force as well as contact area which is relative to the energy transfer. Which is a technical way of saying the harder you get hit (or fall) the worse the damage will be. Guzzis at least have the advantage of keeping you from landing on the ground with the bike on top of you because of the cyclinder head design so insurance can pay for major damage and you can ride again (hopefully) .
 
nick berg said:
Hello I am new to the forum unfortunately I was doing a u turn in a car park with a slight slope and the combination of slope not enough speed too much lean and steering on near full lock resulted in a fall. I have the pretty cyclinder head protectors and the damage is new rocker cover required also clutch lever, I had the guzzi top box on and it kept the bike off the ground although took scrapes to the body and some marks on the painted lid needing touch up. Obviously the cyclinder guard is marked, I am replacing the rocker cover and brake and clutch lever with aftermarket versions that fold up expensive but not much more than the brembo ones fitted. I cannot believe that I made such a rookie mistake and honestly I am still analysing how the hell I managed it. Only thing I can think of is that I have other bikes with different handling characteristics and my aging brain hadn't adjusted to the changeover in bikes. Anyway, lesson learned, I am short of stature getting older and the V100s is a hefty bit of kit to manage, save to say I am now fitting the engine bars keeping the cyclinder guards and giving myself a good talking to about the dynamics of the v100. I love the performance of the bike and for a few minutes after the drop considered changing it for a V7 but came to my senses and realised that there is simply nothing like it for looks character or all round satisfaction of ride quality, ride safely watch those slow manoeuvres.
Click to expand...


Glad you're ok(apart from the wounded pride!). There used to be a thread on a UK forum called '10 ways to drop your bike', focussing on the daft things we all do. Last time I looked it had reached well over 400 posts, including two of mine!
 
By the look of the design and angle they seem to hopefully save the garage drop, and the two sections might be able to give a little bit to save the head from impact damage.
But how they will work IRL we don’t know yet.
However I would be surprised if the designers in the factory designed the protectors without given it a great deal of thought and testing.
So I lean towards that the protectors will do their job.
 
I promise you that they are incapable of doing anything other than keeping the head from touching down in a parking lot, if you lose your balance and gently lay it over. Any crash at speed will damage both the guard and the cylinder head.

Engine bars are the only real way.
 
My recent drop when doing a slow speed turn in a car park (too slow, too much weight transfer and a slight slope) resulted in the cyclinder head contacting the ground. The OEM protectors are fine for a level surface but I am going to fit the engine bars can't decide between Guzzi bars and the Hepco and Becker version which look like they would give more protection in a similar situation. Fully accept that at any speed the dynamics will be very different but my main concern is dropping the bike by overballancing which with the weight and my limited stature is a possibility in the real world of everyday biking. Anyone any thoughts?
 
I have no expectations that the aluminum OEM protectors will save more than the drop when parking or when slip with one foot on gravel at stopping.
That’s fine by me, it’s what I want.
I don’t like the looks of the crash bars, it makes the Mandello look like an adventure hybrid, and takes away its genuine and clean design.
The black crash bars are somewhat discrete, yes, but still not enough for my taste for this specific bike.
I have my bike fully insured and will accept a standstill when the bike is at the shop.
In worst case I will use my old Kawasaki until the Mandello is ready.
Besides, in an accident there will likely be other damages that need to go under the insurance.
Side cases, mirrors, rear camshaft assembly, helmet etc.
So I would need to use the insurance anyway.
 
My insurance includes a voluntary access of £500 so no point in claiming below that and the damage I sustained in the drop was to the cyclinder head which is £150 to replace so bars although ugly would at least be paintable in a simple drop that's my theory anyway.
 
I've opted for the aluminum cylinder head protectors, to help keep the aesthetic of the bike. I'm expecting they will be adequate for a drop and will deform as needed so as not to apply to much force to the cylinder itself or some other design element from the Guzzi engineers. A little voice is bugging me about full bars...and I did find some silver colored ones from Hepco & Becker along the way which suits the Verde better IMO. Same ones as @indyrider shows in their post.

On top of that, I'll add Evotech's front & rear bobbins ("protects the rear of the Cardan drive shaft casing, hub and wheel. ") radiator guard and clutch/brake lever protectors.

WML
 
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I wonder if these two machined spaces actually are designed to soften the impact if the bike is dropped?
The material will bend a bit, why else this design?
That’s my hesitation for the Mistral version.
 
Could be for that, yeah.
Or just to reduce unnecessary weight, although it doesn't seem like it would be much of a saving.
I'm assuming they have been designed handle a drop and protect the cylinder. Maybe they deform and you have to get another one. I'd be OK with that.
 
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