Sometimes when you're going out for a ride, it's you plus one. For those trips, it's worth installing a set of pegs and a seat-hell, even a sissy bar to keep her on the bike as you cruise the highways. We know everybody has good cause to double up at least every now and then, which is why we decided to make our long-term test bike, the American IronHorse Legend, comfortable for a passenger. We headed over to Lifestyle Cycles, located in Anaheim, CA, to add a second set of footpegs, a pillion seat, and a tall sissy bar to our Legend. When ordering parts for your bike, take into consideration tire size, desired sissy-bar height, and the style of pegs you'd like.
Service tech Anthony Walton started with the sissy bar. We are using the Tall "A" package, which comes with the bar, two fender mounts, the bolts, and a set of templates. Make sure you use the right template for the model of motorcycle you have. Some packages come with two sets that will work on a different bike, such as the Tejas, Slammer, or Outlaw.
This is the Tall "A" sissy...
This is the Tall "A" sissy bar (part No. 31-000806; MSRP: $159), as well as the back pad (part No. 12005805; MSRP: $149), the footpegs (part No. 11002405; MSRP: $119), and a pillion pad (part No. 12001003; MSRP: $129).
Anthony started by covering...
Anthony started by covering the swingarm with masking tape to protect the paint. He removed the caliper, the axle covers, and the axle. Next, he removed the wheel from the swingarm.
After the rear wheel was pulled...
After the rear wheel was pulled from the frame, Anthony covered the entire rear fender with masking tape to protect the paint in case anything fell on it while he was installing the bar.
Again, the sissy-bar kit comes...
Again, the sissy-bar kit comes with a few different sets of templates. Each sheet has a template on both sides to help with all the different models of motorcycle, so check both sides.
All the templates use the...
All the templates use the rear taillights as the point of reference. We placed the template on the taillight and lined it up with the bottom of the fender.
Anthony started with a center...
Anthony started with a center punch to mark the center for drilling. He then used a 1/8-inch drill bit to drill a pilot hole and stepped the hole until he reached 1/4 inch.
The 5/16-inch fasteners were...
The 5/16-inch fasteners were placed through the newly drilled hole. Anthony attached the left sissy-bar mount loosely.
Next, Anthony installed the...
Next, Anthony installed the sissy bar to the mounts. After making sure that the bar was straight and even, both sides were tightened to 20 lb-ft.
The bar-mount hardware was...
The bar-mount hardware was tightened to 40 lb-ft.