Drew Terry
Junior Member
I've had my 2006 FZ6 for a year now, purchased with 9,119 miles now 13,522. I've had issues with handlebar vibrations putting my throttle hand to sleep. I bought the bike primarily to commute 10 miles to work for which the buzziness has not been an issue, however, it has kept me from enjoying the occasional weekend ride for anything longer than 30 to 45 minutes - a real bummer for a bike I otherwise enjoy very much.
Thanks to the forum members on various threads here, I tried filling the bars with lead shot, ProGrips gel grips, grip puppies, and FZ1 bars (a definite improvement, but did nothing for the vibration). I considered buying a different bike for this year, but reconsidered after finding out about the Vibranator Bar Ends. With a 30 day money back guarantee, the risk was $17 shipping (each way). I dumped the lead out and Wow! What a difference. Definite improvement.
Still not quite satisfied, I decided to change the front sprocket to 17T and of course, this is what I should have done FIRST. Sooooo much better, I can't believe it. It feels like much less vibration not just in the bars but in the entire bike - seat, pegs, tank. I don't notice any real difference with acceleration, of course I'm not racing away from every stop. Definitely less frequent shifting, more room between gears, top gear is 72 mph at 6000 rpm and call me crazy but it feels less buzzy than it did before at 6000 rpm. I don't know why.
The first ride out to test I passed a sheriff clocking traffic, pulled in and told him I needed to verify my speedo, asked him if I could make a pass. He was happy to help, and the bike speedo was dead on at 50 mph, which is nice.
I'm now going to go back to the stock bar ends to see the difference, but I'll probably end up keeping the Vibranator ends. Every little bit helps.
17T front sprocket is what I should have done first.
Thanks again to everyone on this forum. I've learned more here than anywhere else.
Thanks to the forum members on various threads here, I tried filling the bars with lead shot, ProGrips gel grips, grip puppies, and FZ1 bars (a definite improvement, but did nothing for the vibration). I considered buying a different bike for this year, but reconsidered after finding out about the Vibranator Bar Ends. With a 30 day money back guarantee, the risk was $17 shipping (each way). I dumped the lead out and Wow! What a difference. Definite improvement.
Still not quite satisfied, I decided to change the front sprocket to 17T and of course, this is what I should have done FIRST. Sooooo much better, I can't believe it. It feels like much less vibration not just in the bars but in the entire bike - seat, pegs, tank. I don't notice any real difference with acceleration, of course I'm not racing away from every stop. Definitely less frequent shifting, more room between gears, top gear is 72 mph at 6000 rpm and call me crazy but it feels less buzzy than it did before at 6000 rpm. I don't know why.
The first ride out to test I passed a sheriff clocking traffic, pulled in and told him I needed to verify my speedo, asked him if I could make a pass. He was happy to help, and the bike speedo was dead on at 50 mph, which is nice.
I'm now going to go back to the stock bar ends to see the difference, but I'll probably end up keeping the Vibranator ends. Every little bit helps.
17T front sprocket is what I should have done first.
Thanks again to everyone on this forum. I've learned more here than anywhere else.