What do motorcycle risers do

Do you have other questions? Give us a call at or shoot us an email. Thanks for reading. Posted on 3 Aug Handlebar risers can help you achieve the perfect fusion of comfort and control for your bike.

They attach at the base of your handlebars and make it possible to adjust the tilt and height for the most comfortable arm position possible. Risers can also help relieve back, shoulder and neck pain while on the bike. They can be made from a variety of materials, including stainless steel and billet aluminum.

Overall, it is a handy tool that can make a big difference at the time of need. Handlebars are engineered to keep the overall geometry of the motorcycle in place while riding.

Thus, bar riser does affect handling because its relation directly affects the mass distribution with the motorcycle but you may not be able to notice it. The bar risers affect the center of gravity which mostly affects the off-roading riders who ride dirtbikes , enduro , or scramblers.

Apart from this for normal daily commuter on-road motorcycle bar riser makes the ride comfortable. So, Why are handlebar risers used?

Bar or handlebar risers are used to modify the handles of the motorcycle to make it more comfortable for riders. So, basically, we are modifying the handlebar with a bar riser. You can purchase bar risers from amazon and put them back which is a fairly easy process to do. Most people use bar risers to make the seating position natural and comfortable for the ride.

Bar risers usually come in rises between 10 — 40 mm. If you go out and look at the heights of persons then you will not find any similarities in it. Apart from this, some riders are looking for comfort and a natural upright riding position to be maintained while riding. Thus, they use bar risers to modify and make it to suit their requirement of upright riding position.

Reference: Image from cycle-ergo showing a handlebar that is too high to ride sitting down on a dual-sport or adventure bike. Handlebars that are too low will tend to put too much strain on your lower back, and as your body will naturally want to rest on the handlebar, you will tend to put too much pressure over the front wheel, especially when standing up.

Reference: Image from cycle-ergo showing handlebars too low to ride sitting down on a dual-sport or adventure bike. This means it's again time to compromise, do you want to spend more time standing, or sitting down? We all know that standing on an adventure bike is sexy, as it makes every picture and video a delight; however, that doesn't mean you should or need to stand all the time, but that is a topic for another article Regardless, when risers are concerned, that choice needs to happen, as a perfect sitting and standing position is a rarety.

You can, however, achieve a kind of compromise, which is what I have on one of my bikes. A setup where nothing is perfect, but where it all performs well enough in both situations. On my other bike, the offset is on standing, forcing the sitting down position to lack some of the comforts found in similar models with a different setup.

But that is on my bikes, on yours, you are the one in the driver's seat, so from all the compromises you have to make when setting up your bike, allowing someone else to make that choice for you, shouldn't be one of them.

You should also keep in mind that once you find a position you are happy with, that doesn't mean its perfect forever. An injury, learning new techniques, changes in riding styles, or just starting to ride more often in different kinds of terrains, can push you to make changes. Accept that you change as time passes, and so do your necessities, and that reflects itself in your bike's setup.

When we decide to offset our handlebar to the standing up position, we need to go back to ergonomics, as it is natural and common to find sub-par setups. A proper technique will dictate how we maneuver our bike when standing up. However, a lousy handlebar setup can derail even the most technically savvy rider. If the handlebar is too low, there is a chance you will be forcing your lower back too much and end up putting too much pressure on the handlebar, making you tired faster, prone to a wrist injury, and with handling that may not be as sharp as desired.

Let's try a simple exercise. Stand up, let your arms drop down, and try to precisely and efficiently move something at the width of your handlebar while keeping your arms straight as an arrow. Reference: Image from cycle-ergo with bars too low to stand. You will immediately feel tension building on your shoulders, your arms pressing against your chest, and not a lot of control, as your body will try to push the object closer to you and force your elbows to bend.

On the same token, trying the same exercise with your hands at pecs height and arms bent in a tight V shape will produce a similarly uncomfortable and unnatural position, just with different tension points and natural body adjustments.

Reference: Image from cycle-ergo with bars too high to stand.