All the people reading this must be some sort of bikers in their lives. Some maybe regular commuters, or others; workers by the weekdays and bikers by the weekends like the most of us. But among it all, how many of you actually pay attention to the bars attached on both sides of the bike just before the engine? India is a funny country, and don’t mind my sarcasm but I have actually seen people carry their children in front of them perched above the tank. And those two bars located on either ends are used as foot support for those. Now this is something that can only happen in India. But the main motto behind bringing this topic to light is to inform people that those bars provided are not to be used as foot rest for your kiddos and neither are they just dead weight; there is a big reason behind providing it on the bike.
To actually explain the importance to you, let me share a small incident with you. I own a Pulsar 200NS; yes it is a fast bike. Once I was strutting around town on it and happened to lose control on a small downhill bend in the city. The reason being, the car right in front of me braked suddenly and I pulled my front disc in a panic reflex. Sadly without an ABS safety net, my front skid and I tumbled down on the side. Luckily I was doing less than 20 kmph, but the impact of 140+ kgs of the bike hitting the ground was quite a big one. I escaped unhurt but my bike was merely saved by the crash protector which not only kept my leg safe, but also made sure the engine and the rest of the bike was absolutely untouched, and by untouched I mean literally not a single scratch.So when you get your entire bike checked out, just make sure your crash protectors are well and in order. If they are say hanging loose or have literally any amount of play on them, just get the screws tightened and you will be all set. It is actually important to keep your crash protectors and sliders on the bike. Do not ever try to remove those from your bikes saying that it is just dead weight and hamper the bike’s performance.
Difference between Sliders and Crash protectors:
If you read the topic, this is one question that might be lingering in your mind as to what are sliders and how are they different and yet same as crash protectors that they are covered under the same topic? Let me put it this way, the role of sliders and crash protectors are literally the same, to protect the lower body of the rider and the engine of the bike from any harm in case of a crash. So what is the difference?
The difference between the two is the construction design, the materials used and the methodology of protection. If you observe a little you will notice that all the naked bikes are provided with crash protectors like you see on everyday bikes. But if you see the faired bikes, you can observe 2-3 bars of hard metal fit perpendicular to the bike. The length of the bars varies according to the bike’s width and other factor. The reason behind this is because when the bike tips over, the crash bars bend inwards. This is very much risky in case of faired bikes because that will damage the fairings of the bikes, and they surely don’t come cheap. Hence the sliders since they simply let the bike slide on and do not bend; hence no damage done to the fairing. This is the main difference and reason behind using the two in varied circumstances.
Sliders which are fitted to the frame of the motorbike are known as Frame Sliders. There are generally many aftermarket sliders available, which are to be fitted on other than frame of the bike, those are also sliders but can't be called as "Frame Sliders".
So make sure not to ever disregard the protectors and in case of a fall and damage done to the protectors, get them replaced. They come really cheap and yet save more than just lives. A true salute to the unsung heroes protecting our rides.The difference between the two is the construction design, the materials used and the methodology of protection. If you observe a little you will notice that all the naked bikes are provided with crash protectors like you see on everyday bikes. But if you see the faired bikes, you can observe 2-3 bars of hard metal fit perpendicular to the bike. The length of the bars varies according to the bike’s width and other factor. The reason behind this is because when the bike tips over, the crash bars bend inwards. This is very much risky in case of faired bikes because that will damage the fairings of the bikes, and they surely don’t come cheap. Hence the sliders since they simply let the bike slide on and do not bend; hence no damage done to the fairing. This is the main difference and reason behind using the two in varied circumstances.
Sliders which are fitted to the frame of the motorbike are known as Frame Sliders. There are generally many aftermarket sliders available, which are to be fitted on other than frame of the bike, those are also sliders but can't be called as "Frame Sliders".
By: Pratik Patole
