Stand alone Top Blocks or Top Blocks+MCE pannier protection?

[jackcarls0n]

Been researching about frame sliders and not sure if Top Blocks frame slider is enough to protect the entire bike or you do need pannier protection+fork protectors (on front wheel)+swing arm protector.

Any suggestions..

[Jorge]

My bike's previous owner installed the whole Top Block set-up, including the front axle sliders, and the read suspension sliders. If you're talking about these sliders, I'd say yes, they are needed.
He did tell me (he's a really good guy) that he dropped it one time on pavement. There was no damage whatsoever to any body panel nor to the bags.  He did replace the Top Block plastic cover on the side he dropped it because it was scratched, not sure how much it cost, but not a scratch on the bike itself.
From his experience, I'd say with the axle and rear suspension sliders, you won't need anything else.

[jackcarls0n]

From his experience, I'd say with the axle and rear suspension sliders, you won't need anything else.

I am guessing you have three top blocks parts! Front axle slider, rear swing arm slider (left side) and the frame slider. What about the right rear swing arm side? No protection there. Care to post some pictures? That would help a lot.

Thanks

[gilbysan]

I have the Top Blocks installed, just the frame parts not the fork or other sliders.  I very much like the Top Blocks because to me they are better looking than the cages and other protections you can buy.  I would consider them "Tip Over" protection vs. crash protection however.  Fred Harmon does a good job of showing the install where he leans his over on his driveway and the bags and mirrors to not connect with the pavement.  That is for a very low speed or standing still type of tip over. 

Anything more serious than that and I think all bets are off.  It is so easy to damage the plastic on bikes anytime you lay it down while moving is going to cost mucho $$$.
Check out the pics of my TB install.  I actually figured out how to mount some highway pegs to them without making it either uncomfortable too butt ugly, might even give a bit more protection...
Safe Riding
Gilbysan

[jackcarls0n]

I have the Top Blocks installed, just the frame parts not the fork or other sliders.  I very much like the Top Blocks because to me they are better looking than the cages and other protections you can buy.  I would consider them "Tip Over" protection vs. crash protection however.  Fred Harmon does a good job of showing the install where he leans his over on his driveway and the bags and mirrors to not connect with the pavement.  That is for a very low speed or standing still type of tip over. 

Anything more serious than that and I think all bets are off.  It is so easy to damage the plastic on bikes anytime you lay it down while moving is going to cost mucho $$$.
Check out the pics of my TB install.  I actually figured out how to mount some highway pegs to them without making it either uncomfortable too butt ugly, might even give a bit more protection...
Safe Riding
Gilbysan

Thanks for sharing. Your concours look awesome, very clean and the top blocks protector looks great. Could you share how did you installed the highway pegs on them. I might do that. I don’t like canyon cages as much and with fromt and rear cages the cost is similar to top blocks. I did see Fred’s post and saw on another post (http://www.zggtr.org/index.php?topic=8315.0) the swing arm protector assisting as well. But I would not need that, don’t have exhaust modfied. But I would be really keen to get info about highway pegs on Top Blocks. Do you have it installed on both sides?

[ron203]

Beautiful bike Gilbysan.

[gilbysan]

JK,  Yes they are on both sides.  Pretty simple really; the black plastic on the TBRs are Delrin which is a joy to machine on either a table saw or router table.  I just figured out about where I wanted to mount the HWY Pegs.  The pegs are cheap'ies since it was really going to be a test of the concept. Got them on Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00W67TI9Y/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1, $22.

In fact they worked out pretty good.  See the photos.  It was a bit of a toss up with regard to how far forward I could mount the pegs and still reach them comfortably.  This position worked best for me, 5'-9", 33" inseam.  Essentially, I "dado'd" out a channel on the bottom of the Delrin block to clear the peg mounting assembly.  Not my best work, but it fits. If you do this, take less material off to make it so the peg can fold up when not in use. 

Bought longer through bolts to mate the pegs to the square mounting bar strap that wraps the TBR bar; enough to make sure that the square peg mounting had a good bite on the U strap and washers so the assembly would not rotate on the TBR round bar. M10 X 1.25MM X 70MM Grade 8, if memory serves, to reach the peg shaft after I put spacers in line like thick washers to make the gripping cones of the peg actually do their job.
I ended up drilling and tapping some set screws I had lying around on each peg to angle it up at the pivot point, two in each peg.  This is because the angle that the pegs end up at when mounted on the TBRs cants them forward such that your feet want to slip off.  The set screws allow me to control the angle for each peg to fit the desired resting angle of my foot.  Put on some CF stuff I had to replaced the plastic inserts that pass as peg pads. 

I was going to take them off unless taking a longer ride, but they don't bother me and I forget they are there. To me it is the sign of a good accessory.
Let me know if you need any other info, be glad to help you figure it out if/when you get the TBRs!

Cheers!
Gilbysan


 

[gilbysan]

Thanks Ron!
I have been very happy with my Connie.  The guy who painted it was really good at his art.
Cheers!
Gilbysan

[jackcarls0n]

JK,  Yes they are on both sides.  Pretty simple really; the black plastic on the TBRs are Delrin which is a joy to machine on either a table saw or router table.  I just figured out about where I wanted to mount the HWY Pegs.  The pegs are cheap'ies since it was really going to be a test of the concept. Got them on Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00W67TI9Y/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1, $22.

In fact they worked out pretty good.  See the photos.  It was a bit of a toss up with regard to how far forward I could mount the pegs and still reach them comfortably.  This position worked best for me, 5'-9", 33" inseam.  Essentially, I "dado'd" out a channel on the bottom of the Delrin block to clear the peg mounting assembly.  Not my best work, but it fits. If you do this, take less material off to make it so the peg can fold up when not in use. 

Bought longer through bolts to mate the pegs to the square mounting bar strap that wraps the TBR bar; enough to make sure that the square peg mounting had a good bite on the U strap and washers so the assembly would not rotate on the TBR round bar. M10 X 1.25MM X 70MM Grade 8, if memory serves, to reach the peg shaft after I put spacers in line like thick washers to make the gripping cones of the peg actually do their job.
I ended up drilling and tapping some set screws I had lying around on each peg to angle it up at the pivot point, two in each peg.  This is because the angle that the pegs end up at when mounted on the TBRs cants them forward such that your feet want to slip off.  The set screws allow me to control the angle for each peg to fit the desired resting angle of my foot.  Put on some CF stuff I had to replaced the plastic inserts that pass as peg pads. 

I was going to take them off unless taking a longer ride, but they don't bother me and I forget they are there. To me it is the sign of a good accessory.
Let me know if you need any other info, be glad to help you figure it out if/when you get the TBRs!

Cheers!
Gilbysan

This is simply awesome. I hope you don't mind me borrowing your idea and design?

Thanks for sharing the pictures and the detailed process. This helps a lot. I wasn't too inclined on the cages. They run about $440 for both and the TBRs are $575. Not a huge difference. Plus with TBR I believe servicing the bike is still easy because the fairings are accessible. Unless you need to do a valve check, where everything comes off.

So basically made a cutout for the pegs on Delrin for the peg's attachment and bit of shaving the material. That is great to know. Didn't know that was a possibility.

I love the color on the bike. I haven't seen that color. Very clean, you take good care  of her. Is that a Shad topcase on your bike? Or a Givi?

[Jorge]

I will admit that I don't know how much additional protection the ale ans suspension sliders provide. I know that all together they do the job, so I don;t want to mess with it.
I also took advantage of the plastic pieces (I wondered if they were Delrin - thanks Gilbysan for clearing this up).
I drilled and tapped holes on them and mounted LED lights for improved conspicuity. They are 10W each, and significantly improve how visible I am from the front. I also installed the same type lights on my wife's Vulcan-S. A great safety advantage!
Anyway, attached are some photos showing them.

[jackcarls0n]

I will admit that I don't know how much additional protection the ale ans suspension sliders provide. I know that all together they do the job, so I don;t want to mess with it.
I also took advantage of the plastic pieces (I wondered if they were Delrin - thanks Gilbysan for clearing this up).
I drilled and tapped holes on them and mounted LED lights for improved conspicuity. They are 10W each, and significantly improve how visible I am from the front. I also installed the same type lights on my wife's Vulcan-S. A great safety advantage!
Anyway, attached are some photos showing them.

Thanks for sharing. That is the neat idea. I might look into it. How easy is it to get the wiring setup, I mean do you route the wiring to the back of the bike or connect it to the front where the headlights are?

[Steve in Sunny Fla]

 Just some info on the top blocks. I have them on my c-14. What most folks don't know is that they are the Kawasaki brand tipover / slider protection offered from the Kawasaki catalog outside the US. that kind of says something.

  I have worked on bikes with the various drop guards and the top blocks. the major difference is that the "others" put alot of stress on the top motor mount, which is a thin cast part. The top block, in a drop, places all the stress on the main frame bulkhead.  The Top Block won't collapse against the bodywork on a slide. I'm not saying it's perfect, but IMO it will offer more protection to the rider than some of the others will. Steve

[Jorge]

Hi Steve, good to know about the good mounting used by TB. Never could figure out why Kawasaki doesn't offer them here. They look like they belong!

When I hooked the additional fuse panel I didn't have a wiring diagram yet, so I'm going from memory

The accessory outlets (one set on top of the tank, the other set near the ECM) are switched by the ignition, I used this to trigger a relay. I tapped into the battery, then took 12V through the relay, and into a 4-fuse fuse block I purchased at an auto parts store.
One of the fuses supplies the two lights. Current then goes through a push on/push off switch that allows me to turn them off at night, especially when I'm in dark roads as it gives a lot of glare to oncoming drivers (I've had police cars flash their high-beams, thankfully never stopped).
I used bullet connectors for bothy 12V and ground going to the lights. The connectors allow me to disconnect the lights when I need to remove the fairing panels. Using bullet connectors allowed the holes in the fairing to be fairly small.

I drew up a schematic that might help.

[ron203]

That would be a good addition to the Library, Jorge.

[gilbysan]

Jackcarlson,
Sorry, I missed the last part of your note.  The Bike was painted in Burien, WA at Vision Collision, Justin Knowles did a great job of it.  The Blue used is the same as the Subaru WRX with a bunch of Glass and Pearl to make it pop in the sun. The top case came with my old '13 Connie and I moved it across to the new one which was then painted.  It is a Factory case as far as I know, I believe they are made by Givi for Kawasaki, although I am not certain.
Safe Riding!
Gilbysan

[4Bikes]

I have the Gen 2 Top Blocks. I was at a complete stop and lady hit me on the left saddle bag and drove the bike 90 degrees sideways. She kept pushing me sideways until I had to let it drop on the right side.  The only damage from the drop was a small scuff on right saddle bag lower, the plastic cover scuff on the right swing arm, and a scuff on the peg feeler (Kawi calls  it a bank sensor). I picked up the bike and rode it home. Insurance paid for everything scuffed and obviously the left saddle bag she hit. Murph fixed me up with a replacement Top Block skate, but honestly a file could have made the scuff go away.  Pinning the bags likely kept it in tact and allowed her to push me. Honestly, her car was way more messed up more than my bike. The Top Blocks worked in my book. Not a classic drop, but a rear end collision. After the scare, and PIA insurance, my bike was better after that with the new easy to replace saddle bag outters. I was in another state when it happened, so without the Top Blocks, I more than likely would not have ridden home.