R1200GS Which crash bars

I am finding several options and of course quite a few opinions, so I thought I would post the question for additional information.

Brands I know of:

BMW
Touratech
SW Moto
Hepco & Becker
Wunderlich

Things I have heard/know.

BMW may interfere with a head protector if you install one.
Touratech may need to be removed for valve adjustment (10 extra minutes)

Questions I have:

Which are the best and why? i.e. material, protection, cost,..etc

Do I really need head protectors if I install SW, HB, or Touratech? Side and top along with a bike roll over seems to protect the entire head till handle bars hit.

Will the bar if it bends a little drive the head protector into the head defeating the purpose?

I love Touratech because they over engineer everything but the cost of the SW and HB seem to quite a bit cheaper is there a good enough reason to pony up for one of my favorite companies (I dig the GPS mount from them that I have)

Thanks
Brody

R1200 GS Bars

I bought the Hepco & Becker bars from the dealer for $250-300, I don't recall the exact amount. They went on very easily after I bought a good set of Snap On Metric hex sockets to use when you remove the BMW torx head bolts. They look great, interfere with nothing and provide me with a little peace of mind in the event something bad happens. The bars sold by Wunderlich are about the same price $250 but I did'nt think they looked as good.

I put the Touratech bars on my 07 GS. Installation was very easy, fit and finish are top notch. I chose not to put on the head cover gaurds, seems redundant to me. Thankfully I have not tested the crash ability of the bars. Yet.

On ADVRider, the H&B bars (same as Wonderlich) are the number one favorite.

I have them and personally know dozens who also have them. I know three who have crashed on them with no head damage, and saw only one who crashed and had head damage. He was doing 50mph as his bike slid into a curb after a highside. Nothing would have saved it.


Mine are 2 years, and 42K miles old, and still look good!

+ no need to remove them for service!

Jim