Looks great Dan.... barkbusters look much nicer than my acerbis, did you paint them to match the bike?

Thanks Geoff, appreciated.
No the Barkbusters are standard colour, really nice guards. After fitting these I bought another set for the white 1VJ, and will probably put a set on the 34L

cadno wrote: Fri May 15, 2020 11:01 am I had to buy a pair of new reproduction side panels from Australia as the single white side panel that came with the bike wasn't very special. Certainly recommend them for a bike that's going to get used.

These are the JRE panels? You seem to imply they're OK but not great?

Scumfrog wrote: Thu Jun 24, 2021 4:25 pmYou seem to imply they're OK but not great?

JRE panels are not the same as OEM panels for the simple reason OEM are injection molded & JRE panels are vacuum molded, but nobody has complained about them for the price you pay fully painted with graphics.

Mezo.

I have them on my XTZ750 and while they're cheap, they are also too weak for the side panels, which you take of regularly. I don't know if I would buy them again, because they stopped responding to my emails as well. If you buy them for the XTZ750, get some OEM sidepanels to go with the rest (which is fine in terms of looks and thickness).

Bowler wrote: Fri Jun 25, 2021 7:20 am I have them on my XTZ750 and while they're cheap, they are also too weak for the side panels, which you take of regularly. I don't know if I would buy them again, because they stopped responding to my emails as well. If you buy them for the XTZ750, get some OEM sidepanels to go with the rest (which is fine in terms of looks and thickness).

You say about thickness, i spoke with John (JRE) a few years ago & he explained why his vacuum panels are thinner than OEM injection ones.

If he was to make them out of thicker plastic with the process of vacuum molding you would lose the detail, meaning the shape you see from the outside would not be as defined or clear (if that makes any sense) so to make them look like the original`s he had to make them out of thinner plastic or else it would have looked like dogshit.

To be honest what John is doing is great for people wanting to tidy up their bikes, if you are a perfectionist & want OEM or nothing that's fine but good luck finding them.

EDIT: I should add to this post,,if any of you guys wants to invest in some injection molds (and we all would be very happy if you did) each mould will set you back roughly 30K, think about that? one side panel mould, how many panels would you need to sell just to recoup the cost of the mould alone, we have members on here (in the industry) who have done the sums & its just not worth the investment.

Mezo.

I'm by no means a perfectionist, and as said most panels are fine, but the side panels are 1 mm (with paint) on the rear side, which is just too thin to be taken off regularly. I have some extra OEM sidepanels to put on to fix this.

You said in advance that they were not OEM, and I did not expect that, but he could reply to my emails and send the replacement side panel (got damaged in transit), instead of not replying anymore to my emails. For the price the panels are fine, but the customer service could be better (perhaps it's better if you call, but with sending pictures etc. I'd rather send an email).

So.... what happened to the original moulds?

I am actually trying to get hold of a pair of JRE side panels for the 1vj.

Also will be looking out for OEM, but due to the rarity and value, wouldn't be cavalier enough to put them on the bike while riding it.

Has anyone considered other alternatives - 3d printing?

Or if I do find a set of originals, could make formers from them and fabricate from aluminium or GRP. Could be made stronger and better than the originals, they never stayed in good condition very long.

Scumfrog wrote: Sat Jun 26, 2021 9:10 amSo.... what happened to the original moulds?

Went to brazil i'm guessing? as the 1VJ side panels were on the Brazilian 3AJ`s, not sure if you knew after Japanese production finished they sold everything to Brazil & they carried on making them.

You could make them out of carbon fibre if you wanted, but by the time you fuck around making the moulds it's just easier to buy a set of JRE ones.

Mezo.

There's nothing wrong with them for the money.
The paint's not perfect as they come from JRE the side panels in photos have been repainted by someone who knows what they're doing.
You have to be very careful when taking them off and on, currently seen as I'm changing stuff around and fettling they're not on the bike.
Would I buy them again, yes no doubt.