2007 Kawasaki ZZR600 / 2000 ZX6R / ZX6J Helibar Install


On a United States 2007 ZZR600, the handlebars give me a little pain/numbness after about 3 hours.

It's no wonder since the USA 2007 ZZR600 is actually a ZX6R from a generation ago. In name only is the "ZZR600" a "ZZR".

I also have a 2005 ZZR1200, and I have Genmar risers on it.
The Genmars are amazing in terms of a little goes a long way. The Genmars are only about an inch in rise, and for about $100 (more or less) they really make a difference.
I wanted to do the same for the little ZZR.
Ideally I wanted to spend about as much.

The only place I could find any kind of riser for the little ZZR/ZX6R was at Convertibars and HeliBars - Heli Modified.

The Convertibars don't keep the stock look of the Little ZZR and require way too much work.

For me, the HeliBars were the way to go.

Searching through the Helibar online catalog, I couldn't find any reference to a 2007 ZZR600.
I did find a reference for a 2000 - 2002 ZX6R. Product ID HB4009b at $199. As of 4/21/2011, Helibars now has a reference to the "ZZR", but it's the same part number. They also dropped the "b" at the end of the part number and as of 4/21/2011 the price is now $209.

$209 amounts to about $105 a handlebar! I thought there was no way something could be worth around $105 a handlebar. The picture on their web site wasn't very descriptive anyway - and still isn't. When I bought my Helibars, I wanted some kind of detailed drawing or something telling me exactly about these bars. Sure, they say they are 1.5" Taller, .5" Rearward and .5" Wider overall and they retain the stock cable and hydraulic lines, but that's it!

Here are the best pictures they had on the web site back in 2007. The pictures in 2011 haven't changed much, and they now have a few pictures of ZZRs - which is the same bike.

Bar Image 1
Bar Image 2

To me, those images looked very similar to the stock handle bars. I saw a slight difference, but for $209?
Was it *really* worth it?

I read the comments on the HeliBar web site. Everyone raved about the bars.
I surfed the web for another week or so trying to find an alternative to $209 bars with no success.

Realizing that my choices were nil, I called the folks at Helibars and BEGGED for some kind of discount.
Luckily the folks at Helibars were very nice and gave me free shipping from Maine.

I wanted to ask for a Lobster, but nah, I was happy that I got shipping free!!)

I ordered the bars.


The Bars Arrived

The bars came in about week. They were packed very nicely and were bubble wrapped.
The bars had a little sticker that said "Made in Maine" - America's Best.

Maine Made Logo

Hmm ... "America's Best?".

Looking over the bars, as I held them in my hands, I said "Wow..these *are* nice!"

Left and Right were taped on the bars. The tape was on the *outside* so as to not stick to the bars themselves.







Included in the literature that came with the bars, was a page dedicated to explaining the Powder Coating (they were powder coated by the Morton Powder Coating Company) and why they did not use Epoxy.
I tried to check out the web URL that was included for the Morton Powder Company but their web site seems to be down and as of 4/21/2011 it still is.

Included in the literature was more general and install information and a warranty card.

As I looked the bars over, I confessed. They were very high quality components.
The welds looked great.
The bars looked better than OEM.
The bars have heft to them.
There are little details in the bars, as if someone *really* took the time and took Kawasaki parts, and engineered something perfect.
The details made themselves known when I installed the bars.


The Install

The tools for the work ahead;

I started the install with the left side. The left side was easier as all there was on the left side, is a grip and a clutch lever.

The literature from the Helibar folks say "Caution: The 10mm cap head screws that hold the stock bars into the top triple clamp have an 8mm head with very little depth, and are very easily stripped. Use a short 8mm hex drive with a very sharp face. If you use a hex drive with any radius or chamfer it will strip the head out."

I used a brand new hex wrench to get the 10mm cap screws out.

Here is the Kawasaki procedure.

The folks at Kawasaki went a little overboard on taking off the "Wind Sealed"...they meant "Wind Shield". I didn't take off the "Wind Shield"; there was no need to.




The Result

I took the bike outside after I did the left side so I could see what the Helibar web site could not; How different is it really?
As you can see, I am pretty much perfectly centered on the bike.
The handlebars are NOT turned.
The bike is on a rear stand.
You can make out my reflection in the direct center of the nose, between the headlights.
There is a noticeable difference in height!


My Conclusion