Ducati Monster Forum

Anyone have anything to say about these?
http://www.monsterparts.com/pc/APEX1/Bars-Mirrors/APEX1.html (http://www.monsterparts.com/pc/APEX1/Bars-Mirrors/APEX1.html)

Love 'em!!  [thumbsup]

I just installed a pair (ordered from Monsterparts) last week and can't say enough good things about them. The quality you get for $100 is superb (Apex is actually an aerospace company), and the adjustability is excellent. They took me all of an hour to install start to finish. I had to play with the down angle a bit until I found the perfect position for me, and now they are WAY more comfortable/better looking than stock!! I picked up a pair of CRG Hindsight mirrors too, which look killer. A few other people here run them as well + like them a lot.

Plus, they completely transform the handling of the bike. You can really "point and shoot" where you want to go as far as cornering is concerned. My back + elbow pain that used to come after a few hours in the saddle has magically disappeared.  [clap]

-I'll post pics ASAP, my digital camera is currently toast..  :-\

^

I forgot to mention the fact that my S4 has a small tab on the throttle assembly which fits into a hole in the stock bar, keeping it in place. Depending on which model you have (don;t know if thay all have this), you'll have to either drill a hole in the clip-on or shave the tab off. I did the latter and it fits fine, but the throttle will not close on its own properly if you forget to do this (ask me how I know  ;) ).

Great...thanks for the input...did you install  them above or below the triple?

Well, the S4 is unique in that below the triple is waaay too low (for me anyway) and there's no place to mount them above the triple, so I had to buy a set of CycleCat clip-on adapters. They're basically like false fork extensions that bolt on tio the triple where the stock bar risers used to bolt, and the clip-ons clamp right to those... Looks pretty sweet actually, now only if I could get my stupid camera to work!!  [bang]

Can you adjust the drop angle of the bars w/o having to drill new holes for things like the throttle?

I know cycle-cat cips allowed for adjustments w/o the need to Fiddle with all your hand controls.  Did apex pull off a similar feat?

When i helped chachader isntall his apex clip ons, the controls had to be all repositioned, including hte clutch lines. all sucked pretty hardcore.

I heard APEX is comming out a set of clip ons that have some rise to them.

FWIW, I ground off the little nubs on the controls with a dremel so I could mount them any way I wanted. This allowed me to tweak them until I found the sweet spot. To answer the original question; the clip ons are great and the price is right!

Yeah I do love the clipons but they were a beyayatch to install in my case.  With coffin reserviors there is really no room for the controls, lines had to be rerouted, etc...  Now that they're on they're not going anywhere!

Only one small aesthetic complaint about the black anodized ones is that the coloring seems to fade a bit purple.  Not that big a deal, but I think I may actually pick up a set of standard color bars in the near future.  Oh and replacement bars are friggin cheap too!  As I found out when my bike was knocked over.  $9.95 each plus ship.

Great customer service too!

Exactly what I did. Once you get everything snugged down you find out that it stays where it needs to (at least I did), and the little nub wasn't really doing that much anyway..

My only gripe (and it's very minor) is that the black scaped off a bit as I was fiddling w/the controls positioning, but it's really not that noticable..

Black sharpie works wonders.

And if I ever do this, I might apply a little tape to protect stuff.

I've got the old style Rizoma clip-ons on my 900 currently.   They are fine, but I wouldn't mind a little more down angle.  Also the old style rizomas offer no adjustments to the sweep of the bar - it's angle X or nothing. 

I snagged one of the blemished Cycle-Cat triples, and these look like they would be a nice compliment to that peice... That and I can't use the Rizoma ones with the cycle cat...

Cool, I remember that.


That's what I love about the Apex's, the down angle super-adjustable. All you do is loosen the main clamp bolt and rotate the bar. A little rod fits into 14 (I think) different holes that holds the bar in place. At first I had mine set for super-aggressive, but I brought them back up towards "straight across" a few notches and they're perfect now.

They really add to the "street-fighter" look of the front end a lot, which is cool as well...

Has anyone here replaced the top triple with this kit?  I'm thinking it would fit on the 696, how hard is this conversion?
http://www.monsterparts.com/pc/PA202/Bars-Mirrors/PA202.html (http://www.monsterparts.com/pc/PA202/Bars-Mirrors/PA202.html)

A number of folks have used that kit - but I'd have a hard look at a pre 696 monster including getting some measurements before buying that kit.  Since your bike has a different frame, there might well be some differences in the configuration of the triples. 

I got the Apex Clip-ons mounted under the triple on mine.  Bought it like that so I cant advice on the install.  But I can tell you it looks kick @ss and is a blast diving into turns.  You should have a healthy back/neck for the position they put you in tho and the longest I have gone without taking a real break is about 80 miles because of this.

geez these apex sound like a bargain.
so let me get this straight: i've an 00 M750, and these would fit in that small gap above the triple clamp? i would've thought it would've been a lot harder! i'm stoked cos i'm 6' 3" and i wouldn't have any problems leaning in.
also i've seen 7, 8, and 9 degree down angles. would the angle for this model be the best? and, what're the 8 radial adjustements they talk about?
anyone got a pic with these installed?
thaaaanks

you know guys, i hate to say it but....

this thread is kinda useless without pics.

pleeease post pics....pretty please?  [popcorn]

johnster, i have an S4 as well and would really love to see a pic of yours.

Here you go [thumbsup]

(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3149/2486910945_dd42a8ba79.jpg?v=0)

(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3104/2516627483_12b8c209cd.jpg?v=0)

awesome MuscovyDuc, thanks!
can these adjust so the bars are straight (parallel to the ground)?
can we confirm some terms here?
radial adjustment- is this front to rear adjustment?
degrees- up and down?

here's what it says on monsterparts.com:
"Apex 50mm Adjustable Clip-ons 
Apex 50mm clip-ons for all Monsters
9 degree down-angle with 8 radial adjustments for a custom fit to the rider
Unique two-piece clamp allows installation without removing the upper triple clamp  "

Is there anything special to look out for when mounting below the top triple, as far as sliding goes.  Just tighten the hell out of them?

I haven't tried any other postions do to the degree of difficulty with installing these. With the amount of adjustability I believe you could. I believe that ICON had his set very straight. Although I love the position that mine are in, very hard on the back if you don't have a good one. Also if the bike ever gets tipped no tank dents [thumbsup]


If you have coffin reseviors it sucks big time to get them on. You just have to play around with them until you get them right. And they come with tourque values to tighten them to, but I choose to just to tighten the crap out of them. I found that taken my top triple off helped alot because I had to reroute alot of cables. I modified a top triple so I had to take it off anyway.

All things considered I would probably do it again, I much prefer the riding position and taking corners is awesome. Add a 14t sprocket and they become a completely different beast. [evil]

How big a deal is taking the top triple off?  Without stands?

I remember someone saying you had to lower the head light and gauges to get them to fit right with the coffins? Anyway these with the lowered clocks and light would look badass...just sayin...

Maybe some rizmoa resevoirs too...

Add some powder coating to choice pieces in the area and taadaa. I'll get around to it eventually, maybe after indy when I'm not going to be riding it for a while on the highway.

Well, I received my Apex clipons and am intending to install under the triple.  After reading this, I'm wondering if I should just take it to the Duc stealership in the area and have them do it.  I've got an 02 620 with the coffin style reses.  I'd consider myself a novice at modifications.  Anyone agree with me or should I try to tackle this myself?

It's not all that hard to do, just takes some planning and time, and a good amount of patience.  There's no need to take off the top triple, and no need to lower the headlight and gauges (though I just did that mod and love it...nothing to do with the clip-ons though).  The fitment will be tight with the coffins, but it does work.  You just have to fiddle around with all of it.  Do it yourself.  There's nothing on your controls that you can really do any damage to as long as you are careful, and it is a good learning experience of doing a mild dismantle of your ride.

Look at my flickr page if you want pics. I have Speedymoto clipons now. Good luck.

Thanks for the encouragement.  Tackling this project Saturday morning.  I can't wait to get frustrated as all hell, super jacked about it!

Take lots of pics and let us know how it goes!   [beer]

how do you prevent the "control boxes" from slamming into the tank?  with the normal bars, they get really close on both sides but i would imagine with the control boxes lower down + the tank gets fatter a little lower, they would hit the tank.   ???

That all depends on how deep the bars are swept in.  Mine have a pretty agressive sweep that brings the controls pretty close to the tank, but they don't hit the tank.  The collars allow you to decide how far in you want the bars to come.

cool!

thanks for the info.

Hey Johnster,

have you got pictures of the APEX clip-ons on your S4 ? You say you have to buy Cycle cat adapters, that seems to cost about 395 dollars !!! ????

Or is it something else ?

Can you help me please ... I want to put clip-ons on my french S4, and i'm very interested in these ...

Thanks guys !  [thumbsup]

I just installed a set of these on my S4RS last night.  Took about 4 hours.  The hardest part really is rerouting cables, clutch and brake lines and wiring for the controls. 

Stock, the all the cabling goes over the U bracket that attaches the headlight, but I had to route all the cabling underneath the headlight.

The clip-ons adjust 8 ways, and I've got them at their most aggressive slant (downwards).  It's pretty much dead even with my Triumph Daytona 675.  Completely transforms the bike (it's super-nimble!)

I'll try to take some pics after work, if I get back before nightfall. 

Great !

Thx a lot...

I'm waiting for that ...  [coffee]

Here's a view from the top:
(http://lh3.ggpht.com/_srMoA2Hyf4k/SrxBejIIQqI/AAAAAAAAAgg/0tG2lUgWnFA/s800/clipons.jpg)

I still have full steering lock on both sides with no interference with the tank.  The clip-ons are pretty swept back and low though, since I plan to track it at Barber.  I wanted it aggressive.  The clip-on is almost even with the top bar on the trellis frame underneath the tank, when it's at full steering lock.   
(http://lh3.ggpht.com/_srMoA2Hyf4k/SrxBezS3JaI/AAAAAAAAAgk/1f4tRMgYlSU/s800/bar.jpg)

I think my next mod is going to be a TAftonomos U-bracket to lower the headlights and gauges.  The gauges stick out like a sore thumb.  Also, I think if I had stock turn signals they would have interfered.  I have the DP l.e.d. turnsignals which are pretty low profile.  I also had to rotate the brake reservoir so it'd clear the top of the triple clamp.
(http://lh4.ggpht.com/_srMoA2Hyf4k/SrxBe1WwP4I/AAAAAAAAAgo/Cxp9apew1k0/s800/side.jpg)

Well, thank you for your reply and pictures, it's a great help for me...

Another one question : what is "taftonomos u-bracket" ?
It should interest me also ...

You,ve got a pretty Nice bike ! Hope i could afford one like this one day...

Thanks wallaceaka.

The bracket I referred to is here:

http://ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=5549.0 (http://ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=5549.0)

PM TAftonomos for more details.  If you have no fabrication skills whatsoever like me and need the new bracket, I'd buy it from him.

Thanks inchull for these precisions ...

Just ordered the Apex clip-ons this afternoon ...

Hope it will not take too long to be delivered here in France ....  [coffee]

I'll let you know how I manage fitting these clip-ons on my S4 (which is not as common Monster on the upper clamp ...)  :P

so thumbs up then by the response.