I'm sitting here nursing a sore finger with a tall glass of iced whiskey wondering why I just did what I did.

Rememebr a few weeks back when I asked about forward controls vs. highway pegs?  Well, the $600.00 price tag on the controls led me to cheap out.

I got the suzuki accesories engine guard and a set of 2" off-set highway pegs.

I should have known from the start I was in for a long night.

First off, the U clamps that suzuki provided for the engine guard are approximately 1/4" too wide to fit the holes on the engine guard.  Couple that with the fact that they're sticking out at a slight angle and you are beginning to understand why my finger hurts.  One should NOT need a hammer to get a U bolt to fit through a drilled plate.

Once the engine guard was in place, I mounted the 'Universal' highway pegs.  

years ago, I came to the conclusion that the term 'Universal' reall means 'Doesn't fit anything very well.'  Well, these pegs lived up to their expectations.

No matter how tight i crank on the bolts, I can't get them to stay put.  Worse yet, I can't get them symmetrical.  One is too high the other is too far out etc.  

I dorked around with them for a good 3 hours.  I'm tired, soaked with sweat and my fingers hurt.

Thank GOD for Jim Beam.....

Maybe i'll try again in the morning.

in my line of work i have problems often with top mount battery terminals not grabbing the post even when the terminal is tightened to the max i can still twirl it with my finger and pull it off..

what i have done, granted this is a battery terminal and not a foot rest that will ever have any real force placed upon it, is to squish the terminals into a little more of an oval shaped. not very noticable to the eye but my channel locks and a good squeeze usually get the terminals to grab better on the battery post as i tighten them back down..

if the pegs dont fit and they have a similar clamping attatchment that is too loose.. i would reccomend this approach... however, be careful not to damage them and keep in mind over time they will probably loosen up especially if you are putting pressure on then (like resting your feet on them)..

just thought id offer this suggestion.

grab the beam b4 the wrench   8)

well, I got it on, finally.....

I centered my bike on the lift and got it to sit plumb.

I used a 40" level across the mounting pegs and made sure they were level to one another, then torqured the bejeezus out of the bolts.  It still bloody slipped.

What i finally did was rough up the surface of the crash guard with my dremmel and the inside of the clamp.  Mounted them back on, torques the bolts and VIOLA!  No more slipping!

The pegs themselves went on very easy and have been a GOD SEND!

I rode 361 miles today to visit two customer sites. The bars and clamps allowed me to change positions frequently.  Other than a raging case of monkey-butt, it was a really pleasant ride.

toddlamp8 wrote on 12/31/69 at 16:00:09:


That's a great idea! Seems like it would also prevent scratching the paint on some things.