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Custom Bars Atlanta area

9K views 23 replies 10 participants last post by  SharkBite 
#1 ·
Picked up a new 2013 Roadglide around a week ago. I previously had a 2010 RGC. On that bike I had tried the factory bars, khromewerks (I think it was) +2 bars and most recently, heritage bars. Although the heritage bars were the best of the three, I was never completely comfortable. I felt like the bars were a hair low and a bit more of a reach than I wanted. In addition, my right wrist would get numb. It wasn't severe enough that it limited my riding, I rode cross country several times, but a bit annoying nonetheless.

Several of the dealers in the Atlanta area now have display racks from a company called 'KST Kustoms'. I was speaking with a parts guy at HD Atlanta and he told me this company not only makes similar styles of bars currently on the market for much less (Yaffe comes to mind) but that they will also custom make bars to the customers specifications.

I looked them up online and found their website. It didn't specify custom bars so I shot them off an email last night. I received a response, they told me where the office was in Bremen, Ga (20 miles from my house) and told me to pay them a visit.

I went in this afternoon and met with Brett Kent. The website specified that they are 'by appointment only' and being that it was in an industrial park and obviously a manufacturing facility and not a storefront, I wondered how 'welcome' I would be. I was more than pleasantly surprised to find Brett very welcoming and extremely helpful. They have a small mock-up bike that you can sit on and try different bars. We also took some of their bars out to my bike to get a rough idea on the positioning. Brett did tell me that they absolutely will custom make bars to customers specs.

Although I like the look of Yaffe-type bars, and they do have these, we both agreed that based on my feedback of different bars i've tried, the apes probably would not give me the pullback i'm looking for. Being that the heritage bars were the most comfortable that I've tried, we came up with custom measurements where I will have a bit more rise and pullback and also the bars will be angled a little more at the ends. The bars are also 1 1/4 inch rather than the standard 1 inch and I went with satin black. It's hard to describe and I can't give measurements, 'cos I don't remember exactly what we came up with. I paid in full for the bars and this also surprised me. In spite of being custom made, the cost was $171.20. In addition, Brett said that they are big on customer satisfaction and said if I end up not being happy with them they will work with me to get a set that are exactly what I need. He also said that HD Atlanta will get paid a 30% commission for bringing them the business. I thought this was great as there would be no way HD Atlanta would even have known that I went there and ordered the bars.

For anybody in the market for new bars these guys might be worth some consideration, particularly if you're in the Atlanta area. I was blown away by how well they worked with me and look forward to getting the bars and giving them a try. Brett said to expect about 3 weeks for the bars to be ready. They don't do the installations so I'll take 'em to a local place where I've had the others installed unless I just decide to suck it up and try it myself.

Their website is kstkustoms.com. For the record I have no affiliation with the company or any employees there. I'll update with information on when I receive the bars and how they work out for me.
 
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#4 ·
True....I guess I should have said polished....I meant chrome look
 
#5 · (Edited)
Well, the jury is in..........

I had the bars installed that were custom made to my specs. The quality was great. Unfortunately I realized that I wasn't as up on handlebar lingo as I thought I was :D

When I had them made I had asked for more 'pullback', thinking this essentially referred to the distance that they come back towards you. That's not the case as most of you probably know. Anyhow, the replacement bars were FAR BETTER than the factory bars but unfortunately they were a bit wide for my liking.

I contacted Brett again and told him I wanted to give it another shot. I went in with the intention of changing the measurements and hopefully getting it right this time, however I again was drawn to the mayhem apes as were mentioned in this post by another member. I decided to go with the standard mayhem 16 inch bar in the polished finish. Brett had told me that if I wasn't happy with those I could simply return them so I figured it was worth a try.

I had them installed yesterday at a local shop. Brett worked with me on the price because of the previous purchase and the shop, who had installed about 6 sets of bars on my 2 road glides (they love seeing me coming lol) worked with me on that price also so it didn't sting as bad.

Wiring the bars was smooth as butter on the left bar where there are less wires. The right side was tough for the installer. He attempted to pull the wires through about 8 times without success and was convinced that the joint at the bottom may have had some material that was obstructing that 'curve'. What he estimated to be a 2 hour job at most ended up taking him over 8 hours. Fortunately, his shop is normally closed on Mondays but because I'm a regular and he had nothing going on that day he came in just to get the bars done. His patience was amazing but ultimately he ended up having to cut the wires at each end and thread them through and then meticulously solder everything back together. The curve at the bottom of the bar isn't particularly noticeable on the road glide so his recommendation would be to have them made without that curve.

After having them put on I took it for a quick ride (weather was rainy and crappy so I pretty much just rode it home). I've been through many bars as I mentioned. My initial feeling on these bars is that I may have finally hit a home run. They felt comfortable and I love the looks as I always have. I only put about 20 miles on them as I was meeting a friend. As soon as I get a chance later this week I'll take them for a longer ride.

The 16 inch measurement is actually from 'point to point'. Although 16 inch apes sound pretty high, I don't think these look or feel high at all. I would kinda consider them more like 12-14 inch if that makes sense.

Again, very pleased with Brett and the team at KST Kustoms. Without a doubt they do care about customer service and satisfaction. I told the shop where I had them installed (Slammerz Cycle Haven) that if they get anybody else that are considering these bars I can bring my glide up there for them to take a look at them. They have a small display rack now in their shop showing these bars.

 
#6 ·
Great write up...thanks.
I just had a set of 1 1/2" made up. It took fabricator nearly 10hrs to design, weld, smooth the welds....I hope they are comfortable because they seem a bit wide when I mocked them up. Should have installed next week.
If I don't like, I'm going with the Sinister Road Glide Drag Bars(back to basics)
 
#7 ·
Tey probably are 10" as when I measure point to point on my Yaffes' they measure 13 1/2 but are actually 10" when measured center to center the correct way, They look great regardless, enjoy!!!
 
#8 ·
Thanks guys....the UPS guy just delivered some toys a day earlier than it showed online they would get here. I guess this afternoon I'll be installing the comfort crash bars and the air wing tourpak rack :D
 
#11 ·
If you get over to this side of the state you're welcome to take a look at mine. I live about maybe 20 miles from their factory
 
#15 ·
I'm going to have to agree with Sharkbite, KST makes a quality bar, polished stainless and attention to detail is top notch. They were at BBBQ and had a set (one off) of the style of bars I had been looking for. Unfortunately these were a custom order that they brought to the show and not for sale but they were happy to come out to my RGC to let me see what I thought of the rise. Perfect. I ordered the bars a while back and plan the install this weekend. Great guys to work with and great customer service. I'll take pics of the install and post when finished.
 
#16 · (Edited)
Took a few pictures of the bars today and did some measuring. Just using a hand measuring tape it appears that the bar drops about one inch on each end because of the bends. Measuring from the grip to the bottom, above the bottom bend, the bars appear to be about 12 inches when you take out those curves, even though they are referred to as 16 inch. I'm pleased about this as many that seem to have the 'other' manufacturers bars get the 10 inch and then say they wish they had gone with 12's. Being short at 5'7 and having my seat lowered about an inch I think these will (hopefully) be perfect for me. For others that are taller I THINK they offer a 16 inch that would probably work well also.

Spent this morning cleaning the bike up 'cos the weather is still crappy here and snapped a few more pictures that maybe show the height a little better. I have them leaned back to where they are not even with the forks, just slightly back from that.



 
#19 ·
I didn't get one from the side but I'll try and remember to take one and post it later
 
#24 ·
Hey guys, I had to do some editing to my post so I apologize for any confusion. I went to see Brett today to pay my bill. He informed me that the bars we went with were actually their 16 inch bars, not 14's like I thought they were. Sure enough he measured them to be sure and came up with the 16 inch measurement from tip to tip. My ex-wife always said I had trouble with my measurements :eek: I went back in the previous posts and edited 'cos I don't want somebody to not read the entire thread and order something different based on what I had stated.

Today was the first day I got to ride with the bars in decent weather. I am extremely pleased with them. The wrist angles feel good, I have much better control over the bike with these bars in tight turns etc (did some circles just to try them out) and most of all they just look great.

Snapped a few more pictures of them down by the lake where I live. On a side note you'll notice the tracks in the grass just from the front tire.....yea, when i went to take off I realized I probably shouldn't have rode in the grass after 3 days of solid rain!! When I went to take off the back tire went completely sideways. I almost went down but managed not to. Then it felt like the clutch was burned out 'cos the back tire was just spinning in the mud and I was almost sitting still. I left a mess so the homeowners association will probably be trying to hunt me down :D I had to come home and put it on the jack and wash the caked out mud and goose crap from under the fender....lesson learned





 
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