ZETA-Racing Rubber Killer Bar Clamp Bushings

UPDATE TO JULY 2017 POST:

March 2022:  In July 2017, I posted about a handlebar alignment problem on my 2016 model year DR650 that ultimately turned out to be a bent steering head bolt. While the bolt replacement was inexpensive and a very simple task, it was elusive (I thought the bar was bent) and I complained about a steering head design that used "rubber" bushings to hold the clamp form spinning and tilting. 

I now ride a 2012 Suzuki DR650 and have identified a modification that should reduce the likelihood of bending the steering clamp bolt as discussed in the original thread.

The product is ZETA-Racing Rubber-Killer Steering Head Bushings (<$20). The ZETA bushings are aluminum replacements to the stock rubber bushings and should hold the steering head together better than the rubber bits. More vibration? I have experienced none. Hard to install? Nope, it's one bolt per clamp, pop out the rubber bushings, install the ZETA bushings and replace the bolt ... although carefully have a look at the bolt to see if it is bent and replace if necessary.

The ZETA part is ZE37-0331, which is specifically shown as fitting the DRZ-400. However, they fit the DR650 as is my experience and a number of others that reported same on the DR650 Facebook Owner's Page. 

ZETA appears to be a Quality Powersport Manufacturer; check out their Website. I got my ZETA kit on Amazon for $17.95 during February 2022. Of course, prices change over time. 

ORIGNIAL POST:

July 2017

My 2016 DR650 is, first and foremost, a rally bike and it's been down a few times. It's not uncommon for rally falls to cause the front forks and bar to go out of alignment. It's a fairly easy process to straighten everything out, but I haven't been able to get the alignment exact for some time. It hasn't been significantly off, but just enough to make it slightly annoying.

In short, after studying the design of the DR650 steering head I isolated the problem to the bolts that hold the bar cradles in place. The bolt extends through the cradle as shown in the diagram and then through upper and lower dampeners. 

Sure enough, when I got it broken down, the left bolt was bent.

I probably could have gotten some replacements from my local hardware store, but decided on OEM bolts since I was buying some other stuff from RockyMountainATV. The newly purchased bolts are a better grade and fit in the cradle much better. Apparently, this isn't a new issue.

Now that I know what the problemo is, I'll have a spare set of these bolts for my travels.

One last comment...

As mentioned, the bar cradles and upper tree are supported by upper and lower rubber dampeners. The rubber cone things in the photo and parts 12 and 13 in the exploded diagram. I am really kind of unimpressed with this design. The normal design is the bar clamp built into the top tree. This design is a double weak spot. First, the bolt as we've seen here and, second, that rubber cone is a problem waiting to happen....and $50 per clamp to replace.