Oh, Like You Never Fall!

Spend another $126 to $160?? For what? Hey, calm down. You may not need hand guards. They're really only necessary for riders who actually ride off-road, dodging trees and boulders, and for people who actually race one another. After all, the only thing they're good for is to protect your hands, fingers, and control levers from being smashed or broken by trees, rocks, other riders, and the inevitable contact with mother earth (Oh like you never fall!). Practically all off-road riders use them, as do many motocross riders, and wisely so. Hand guards for woods riders are such an obvious necessity it doesn't even require discussion. Hand guards for motocross bikes help protect the riders hands and levers during impacts with other bikes and those never ending instances when the bars meet the ground. Too many riders have learned how difficult it is to remain competitive with an injured hand or broken control lever, not to mention explaining to one's boss on Monday why you won't be able to use that hand for a few weeks. It's sad how much good riding time is missed by riders who didn't install hand guards until after they were needed. Let's not go into painful detail here, but trust me... I know! (Ouch!)

Nearly all hand guard systems today use an aluminum bar that curves from the end of the handlebars to a mount of some kind closer to the center of the handlebar. Most mount to a stand- off that fastens somewhere in between the two bends on each side of the handlebar. Some fasten to a bracket on the top triple clamp. Others, like the Fastway, bolt to modified or replacement handlebar clamps. The former are lighter, less expensive, and sometimes easier to install, but the latter is stronger and offers more protection.

Fastway's Hand Guard System fastens to the end of the handlebars much like any other hand guard system. A two-piece cinch-nut slides into the end of the handlebar, and when the bolt is tightened in the cinch-nut, it spreads, locking itself to the handlebar's inner wall. To install any such hand guard system, it is necessary to cut away the ends of the hand grips, and the closed end of the throttle sleeve. Take extra care when cutting the throttle side. Since the throttle grip turns back and forth as the throttle is opened and closed, the cuts need to be smooth and straight so they don't rub against the hand guard and interfere with the throttle action.

Fastway offers three hand guard systems that differ in the way they faster to the upper handlebar clamp(s). The first, their "Integrated System" ($159.99) includes a new and very robust handlebar clamp that replaces the stock upper clamps. The single clamp serves not only as the handlebar clamp and inner mounting points for the two hard guard bars, but offers a great mount for the more popular steering dampers. The Fastway mount is compatible with Scott, Ohlins, and GPR dampers. I recommend this system for those who use a steering damper.

Fastway's second system, the basic "Handguard System" ($125.99) also includes a new and robust single clamp that replaces the two upper clamps on the handlebar. This massive clamp is strong and attractive, but needlessly heavy. It's also tricky to tighten properly, since it is not designed with Iso mounts (off-set heights where one side is firmly tightened before the other side). Improper tightening of a lesser clamp might risk cracking or breaking the clamp, but the Fastway clamp appears strong enough to eliminate this worry. Still, the single clamp is heavy and it complicates the hand guard installation. Since the single clamp becomes immovable once in place to secure the handlebar, the hand guard bars have to be muscled into position before the slotted ends will reach and fit over the mounting bolts. Based on my experience with the basic Handguard System, I liked it considerably less than the following third system.

Fastway's third system, the "Universal Fit Handguard System" ($125.99) is the lightest and easiest to install, since it uses two separate handlebar clamps to replace the stock clamps. The two separate clamps weigh 6.2 oz. less than the single clamp in the basic "Handguard System", and they are easier to install because one clamp can be snugged enough to hold the handlebars in place, while the other clamp is being fitted to the hand guard strap before being tightened. It also makes it easier to modify the hand guards for narrowed handlebars, since a simple new bolt hole will do, instead of cutting a new 1" long slot. Since I don't use a steering damper, this is the system I liked best, since it's lighter and easier to install than a single-clamp system.

All of the Fastway Handguard systems are slightly heavier than the shorter systems because the hand guards straps are longer. But it's this type of system that actually strengthens the handlebar and reduces breakage. The shorter hand guards systems don't reach from the end of the bars to the handlebar clamps, so they add strength only to the outer ends where is isn't even needed. The long Fastway type hand guards add strength to the handlebars from the outer tips all the way to the clamps near the handlebar's center.

Wait... if the hand guard bars run from the tips of the handlebar to the clamps, won't this reduce flexing and make the handlebar stiffer and more tiring to the rider's hands and arms? Fear not, gorilla breath! Fastway already thought of that and prevented it. Slick nylon washers are used at the inner mounts to allow the hand guard bars to swivel up and down enough to still allow the handlebars to flex.

Another nice feature with the Fastway hand guards is that they curve downward and somewhat out of the way at the end of the handlebar, to make it easier to move one's hands to and from the hand grips. Also, the edge of the bar nearest the hand is nicely rounded to eliminate the somewhat sharper edges found elsewhere, that might that prove uncomfortable to the hand. A minor drawback, however, is that the actual guard straps don't immediately bend forward at the handlebar tips to a line parallel with travel. They spread outward a little, making the widest point of the guard bars (several inches ahead of the hand grips) about 1.5" wider than the handlebars themselves. The hand guards on my other bikes are only 1/2" wider than the handlebars, which is simply the added thickness of the guard straps at each end of the handlebar.

Modifying most hand guard systems to fit narrowed handlebars is no big deal. You simply move the inner mounts further along the handlebars, or you shorten the hand guard straps and drill new holes for the bolts. Either way, the mounts can be loosened to slide a little on the handlebars to align with the holes in the straps. I've done it both ways for my 28" handlebars. It's a bit more complicated, however, with either of the single-clamp Fastway handguard systems. The mounting hole at the inner end of the hand guard strap is actually a 1" slot instead of a simple round hole. The slot hole is necessary for two reasons. First, since the inner end of the hand guard strap has to slide onto the fastening bolt in an arc, the bolt first passes through the outer end of the slot. But when the strap bottoms out against the clamp, the bolt comes to rest near the inner end of the slot. Since the single central clamp with its captured bolts cannot be slid along the handlebar to match a simple hole in the strap, the elongated slots are necessary. And since the single clamp cannot be moved to make up for the shortened handlebar, the hand guard straps themselves have to be shortened. Secondly, the slot allows the hand guard bars to move back and forth a bit to allow handlebar flex. Shortening the handlebars requires the user to make the existing slot longer, or cut new slots, something that can be done with a hand drill and drill bit, but sloppily at best. A drill press makes the job easier and safer, especially with a side-cutting bit of the correct size (Yeah, like everyone has one of those!). So, for this reason too, I recommend the Universal Fit Handguard System for riders who don't use a steering damper. Using separate clamps allows using simple round holes in the shortened hand guard straps. The holes need to be a bit oversize or slightly elongated, however, to allow normal handlebar flex.

As for the Fastway Hand Shields, I see nothing that makes them better or worse than other good hand shields on the market (although not all are good). I will say, however, that I've never seen better hand shields than Fastway's, to include some that cost twice as much. So at just $14.99 a pair, the Fastway hand shields are a bargain! They're large enough to block some of the icy air on winter rides, and water spray from following close behind other bikes at water crossings. They're also sturdy enough to keep brush and small tree limbs from bruising our favorite fingers and knuckles. Most woods riders with hand guards should add hand shields. The exception would be those who anticipate frequent riding at 120 mph or more. Then the added drag might slow you down 0.001 mph. Me... I hardly even notice it!

Riders using a steering damper may need a single handlebar clamp on which to install the damper. For them I highly recommend the Fastway "Integrated System". The single handlebar clamp is strong, attractive, and readily accepts the more popular steering dampers. Riders who don't use a steering damper will prefer the features of the "Universal Fit Handguard System". It's two handle clamps make the system lighter, easier to install, and easier to modify for shortened handlebars. It is also easier to move from one bike to another. This is the Fastway handguard system I liked best.

I see no reason, however, to recommend Fastway's (basic) "Handguard System". The large single clamp is needlessly heavy, it complicates the basic installation, and creates new problems when modifying the hand guard bars for shortened handlebars.

CRF's Only Review By: Gordon L. Banks, November 2004
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