Bash guard for a Stance-E

peterk

Member
Jan 11, 2020
76
27
Canada
New to the Forum. Just bought my first EMTB, a 2020 Stance-E. I looked at the Trance but it semed to be more bike than I needed for the XC trails I do. However in my first 2 km of trail with the Stance, going over a log, I managed to crack the plastic guard that is under the motor. I have JB Weld'ed it back together and reinforced it with a strip of ABS plastic. But I really would like to have something more impact resistant. I contacted Rockguardz who don't have anything for the Stance but think their guard for the Trance would fit. Any other remedies? The Yamaha motor does really stick out both in front and below the chainring and will likely take many more hits in the future. Thanks.
 

peterk

Member
Jan 11, 2020
76
27
Canada
New to the Forum. Just bought my first EMTB, a 2020 Stance-E. I looked at the Trance but it semed to be more bike than I needed for the XC trails I do. However in my first 2 km of trail with the Stance, going over a log, I managed to crack the plastic guard that is under the motor. I have JB Weld'ed it back together and reinforced it with a strip of ABS plastic. But I really would like to have something more impact resistant. I contacted Rockguardz who don't have anything for the Stance but think their guard for the Trance would fit. Any other remedies? The Yamaha motor does really stick out both in front and below the chainring and will likely take many more hits in the future. Thanks.
Anything new on this front? My reinforced motor guard took another couple of hits yesterday, leaving it cracked worse than the first time. This time I have patched it together with JB Weld epoxy putty. Surely I am not the only one hitting rocks and fallen logs.
 

Pdoz

E*POWAH Elite World Champion
Feb 16, 2019
1,112
1,204
Maffra Victoria Australia
Get a quote on a new one before looking after market. The bash guard on my full e pro was $12 ( oz ! ) - I'd wasted hours building a fibreglass bash guard yo gain a few extra mm of clearance....once the lbs fave me a price I felt pretty stupid.

ie the glue you've used us more expensive than a replacement guard
 

peterk

Member
Jan 11, 2020
76
27
Canada
Get a quote on a new one before looking after market. The bash guard on my full e pro was $12 ( oz ! ) - I'd wasted hours building a fibreglass bash guard yo gain a few extra mm of clearance....once the lbs fave me a price I felt pretty stupid.

ie the glue you've used us more expensive than a replacement guard
My thinking is that the OEM guard is just not strong enough. In my original posting I mentioned that it cracked in the first 2 km of trail. I need something stronger or tougher.
 

Pdoz

E*POWAH Elite World Champion
Feb 16, 2019
1,112
1,204
Maffra Victoria Australia
My thinking is that the OEM guard is just not strong enough. In my original posting I mentioned that it cracked in the first 2 km of trail. I need something stronger or tougher.

Ok, the long version of what I should have posted.

I cracked the one on my full e in the first week , did multiple variations on the glue / weld / repair thing and then my kid shattered what was left .

I then built 3 different versions in fibreglass casting material and eventually achieved what seemed stronger / better than stock. Sprogette shattered that.

Next plan was to build something out of plastic chopping board, but I temporarily fitted the $12 new one about 12 months ago - it's unscathed.

My theory is we have a learning curve where we adapt to the yamaha motor / bike. Plastic is pretty, er, plastic. It's more plastic than carbon fibre. You can buy 10 plastic original guards for the cost of an unobtainium aftermarket one.
 

Wootism

Member
Jun 1, 2020
27
20
Trails
Anything new on this front? My reinforced motor guard took another couple of hits yesterday, leaving it cracked worse than the first time. This time I have patched it together with JB Weld epoxy putty. Surely I am not the only one hitting rocks and fallen logs.
I’m looking for a similar solution.
Just saw a post from @Ripping g showing a strong looking guard.

2BB271A6-6E2F-4079-8045-A7523EB6CE2B.jpeg
 

Dgedge

Member
May 20, 2020
94
50
France
You can look here for a motor/frame guard : Amygos Ok, it is not cheap but it is very strong.
I already installed one on my previous bikes and after you can hit rocks without any issues. Last sunday I hit made a scratch on my motor with a rock and then ordered a new one for my Trance E.
I think it is the same part for both Trance E+ and Stance E+.
 

peterk

Member
Jan 11, 2020
76
27
Canada
You can look here for a motor/frame guard : Amygos Ok, it is not cheap but it is very strong.
I already installed one on my previous bikes and after you can hit rocks without any issues. Last sunday I hit made a scratch on my motor with a rock and then ordered a new one for my Trance E.
I think it is the same part for both Trance E+ and Stance E+.
How does it attach?
 

Dgedge

Member
May 20, 2020
94
50
France
On the Full-E it was with bolts and here on the Trance-E I think (because I don't have it yet) it is mounted tight over the original guard and secured with a strap over the frame) so easy to install and remove.
 

Pdoz

E*POWAH Elite World Champion
Feb 16, 2019
1,112
1,204
Maffra Victoria Australia
On the Full-E it was with bolts and here on the Trance-E I think (because I don't have it yet) it is mounted tight over the original guard and secured with a strap over the frame) so easy to install and remove.

Do you have any old pics from the full e? Most importantly, did it get you more clearance?
 

Dgedge

Member
May 20, 2020
94
50
France
I should have some pictures of the bike but I just found this one while cleaning the bike before to sell it. You can see that it covers the motor and the frame.
I didn't get more clearance compared to the original part but I felt much more comfortable when riding rocky areas (I installed it before a ride session in the Alps mountains and never removed it after).

amygos.jpg
 

Wootism

Member
Jun 1, 2020
27
20
Trails
I couldn’t find a descent bash guard for my Trance E+ so I made it myself from a small piece of aluminum.
Just drilled 4 extra holes in the original guard and connected it with some bolts. Very easy to do!

4E61EFE9-5F64-4391-99AA-C4EB961B59F4.jpeg 1D1D779B-037A-4E6A-880A-4A22CD5F82FD.jpeg
 

peterk

Member
Jan 11, 2020
76
27
Canada
I couldn’t find a descent bash guard for my Trance E+ so I made it myself from a small piece of aluminum.
Just drilled 4 extra holes in the original guard and connected it with some bolts. Very easy to do!

View attachment 33401 View attachment 33400
That's what I had in mind. How thick is your aluminum? It looks very thin. I tried using 1/8" ABS plastic JB Welded to the original guard but it shattered. I think you'll need some sort of filler between the aluminum and the original guard so any hit is spread out over a large area of the guard. But maybe that is overkill. Make sure you leave the drain holes open.
 

Wootism

Member
Jun 1, 2020
27
20
Trails
That's what I had in mind. How thick is your aluminum? It looks very thin. I tried using 1/8" ABS plastic JB Welded to the original guard but it shattered. I think you'll need some sort of filler between the aluminum and the original guard so any hit is spread out over a large area of the guard. But maybe that is overkill. Make sure you leave the drain holes open.
It’s 0.5mm (0.020inch?) So it's pretty thin. But thick enough to spread the impact of point load over a larger area. It sits directly against the plastic guard.
The holes ensure that the water can easily drain away.
 

GrandPaBrogan

⚡ eGeezer ⚡
Oct 5, 2019
1,329
2,068
New Zealand
I haven’t looked real close at the Stance bash guard so I don’t know how and where or if it is attached to the Yamaha motor or the frame.

Just something to consider and to bear in mind when strengthening or reinforcing specific areas in structural designs... when certain areas engineered to break don’t break, the impact loads will be transferred to the next adjacent weak point. In other words the plastic bash guards may have been deliberately designed as inexpensive sacrificial offerings in order to save more expensive critical components... to spare them from stresses they’re not meant to handle.

If the bash guard doesn’t break and in so doing doesn’t absorb the impact, that force will therefore be transmitted to the motor. If the motor can handle it, the crank bearings holding up the riders weight is next in line... if that can handle it, then the crank axle itself could get bent torsionally... and so on and so on. Kinda like the replaceable derailleur hangar which is designed to bend or break in order to spare the bike frame itself from serious damage.

From an engineering standpoint, replacing a $12 dollar bash guard could be the best option. That and perhaps learning some new avoidance skills and riding technique adaptations.

The dirt motorcycle bash guards we have come to know from the past are rugged thick metal plates bolted onto steel frames, and the riders weight is supported by replaceable steel foot pegs connected to the same heavy-duty steel frame. No moving parts there and certainly nothing that can’t be hammered or welded back into place if need be.
Our EEBs on the other hand have thin-walled aluminium or carbon frames, and our weight is supported directly by the motor casing itself via pedal cranks. Different structural configurations altogether...
.
 
Last edited:

peterk

Member
Jan 11, 2020
76
27
Canada
I haven’t looked real close at the Stance bash guard so I don’t know how and where or if it is attached to the Yamaha motor or the frame.

Just something to consider and to bear in mind when strengthening or reinforcing specific areas in structural designs... when certain areas engineered to break don’t break, the impact loads will be transferred to the next adjacent weak point. In other words the plastic bash guards may have been deliberately designed as inexpensive sacrificial offerings in order to save more expensive critical components... to spare them from stresses they’re not meant to handle.

If the bash guard doesn’t break and in so doing doesn’t absorb the impact, that force will therefore be transmitted to the motor. If the motor can handle it, the crank bearings holding up the riders weight is next in line... if that can handle it, then the crank axle itself could get bent torsionally... and so on and so on. Kinda like the replaceable derailleur hangar which is designed to bend or break in order to spare the bike frame itself from serious damage.

From an engineering standpoint, replacing a $12 dollar bash guard could be the best option. That and perhaps learning some new avoidance skills and riding technique adaptations.

The dirt motorcycle bash guards we have come to know from the past are rugged thick metal plates bolted onto steel frames, and the riders weight is supported by replaceable steel foot pegs connected to the same heavy-duty steel frame. No moving parts there and certainly nothing that can’t be hammered or welded back into place if need be.
Our EEBs on the other hand have thin-walled aluminium or carbon frames, and our weight is supported directly by the motor casing itself via pedal cranks. Different structural configurations altogether...
.
Certainly good points that you have raised. I know my last time out on the trails I was trying to go around rocks that unfortunately are right on the normal line of riding and the ones that are "unavoidable" I tried hit as gently as possible. But that leading corner of the protruding motor is just hanging out in front and below the bottom bracket area. Where I am hitting is a very small area of the guard so even though the forces are not huge (200 + pounds of me and the bike and I am probably going less than 10 km/h when I hit), the impact area is very concentrated .

I doubt if the OEM guard was engineered to be sacricficial. IMHO it is simply under-engineered for the local trails. We have very rocky trails here. The teeth on the large chain ring on my Stumpjumper have all been worn down by rock hits.

Next time I have the guard off I'll check out the it's contact points with the motor and frame.
 

Pdoz

E*POWAH Elite World Champion
Feb 16, 2019
1,112
1,204
Maffra Victoria Australia
You can see the tabs that attach to the motor in Woitusm' pic above.

I know from experience that light impacts Crack the base of the guard, but big hits shear those tabs. It's a pretty good design imho and much smarter than destroying a motor.

Having said that, I think i cracked mine again today with that familiar noise as it hits a rock..oh well, another $12

PS , I remember an over engineered motorbike bash plate tearing lugs off my frame 20 years ago. I also remember ripping the sump out of another motorbike. These $12 disposable guards are a bargain.
 

Dgedge

Member
May 20, 2020
94
50
France
Recently the motor touched a rock. This part is not protected by the original guard. So I ordered (and received) the guard from Amygos. Here are some picts. As you can see, it offers a very good protection against rocks and protect the side of the motor and the chain ring too.
amygos-before.jpg amygos-front.jpg amygos-left.jpg amygos-right.jpg
 

peterk

Member
Jan 11, 2020
76
27
Canada

peterk

Member
Jan 11, 2020
76
27
Canada
It goes over the original bashguard. You have to remove it before to install or remove the battery from the frame but it takes just 2 seconds to do.
I totally smashed mine a couple of days ago and this was while trying to avoid the worst rocks. But there is always one or two that are right on the riding line. I've got to do something. Either a tougher guard or a different bike with more clearance.
 

peterk

Member
Jan 11, 2020
76
27
Canada
Recently the motor touched a rock. This part is not protected by the original guard. So I ordered (and received) the guard from Amygos. Here are some picts. As you can see, it offers a very good protection against rocks and protect the side of the motor and the chain ring too.
View attachment 33969 View attachment 33970 View attachment 33971 View attachment 33972
Thanks for the pictures. I've contacted Antoine at Amygos he sent me pictures and confirmed that the Stance-e and the Trance-e take the same guard.

Can anyone using the Amygos guard report how it holds up to hitting rocks, etc? My local trails include many rocks that are difficult to avoid and are sufficiently high that they make direct contact with and destroy t
20200630_071548.jpg
20200630_071513.jpg
he OEM guard.
 

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