My first winter is fast approaching, and my hands are Sooo cold. So, I'm looking into the heated grip/glove ideas, and I'd like to gain from your experiences.
Heated Grips -- Your Approach
- Thread starter mikebaileyvienna
- Start date
I was thinking about brush guards, but I think im going to try a set of bar mitts to help trap the heat on low setting.I can keep them in my tank bag with a pair of gloves inside during spring/fall.
Moose Racing Paws Gauntlets - ATV - Motorcycle Superstore
I have the Symtec under grip heaters. They work pretty well and get toasty warm. The tops of my hands do get cold still though when it is below 42* with decent winter/rain gloves. I am thinking I might try buying brush guards to block the wind for early spring. Then if not good enough I might step up to heated gloves for when it is sub mid 40s.
Grip heaters are about $25-$50 pending brand and reputation. I would go Symtec or DualStar. Just remove the end weights, stick a tube for WD40 and a small flat head screw driver under the grip and squirt. The grip will come off unbelievably easily. Clean with Alchohal, thoughtfully route the wires and you are good to go after sticking them to the bar and putting grips back on.
I think that grip heaters/heated grips are good for mid 40's-50's or 60s. But below mid 40s, you will want brush guards or heated gloves. Heated gloves I think you are typically looking at 150-200 plus the controller. Heated liner maybe about $100 + the controller.. I would go in steps, start cheaper first and see how that works, if not then step up to the next level of gear. Most people who do the grips really like them.... Plus, if you get rid of the bike, that might be a little bit of a bonus in the prospective buyers mind.
Grip heaters are about $25-$50 pending brand and reputation. I would go Symtec or DualStar. Just remove the end weights, stick a tube for WD40 and a small flat head screw driver under the grip and squirt. The grip will come off unbelievably easily. Clean with Alchohal, thoughtfully route the wires and you are good to go after sticking them to the bar and putting grips back on.
I think that grip heaters/heated grips are good for mid 40's-50's or 60s. But below mid 40s, you will want brush guards or heated gloves. Heated gloves I think you are typically looking at 150-200 plus the controller. Heated liner maybe about $100 + the controller.. I would go in steps, start cheaper first and see how that works, if not then step up to the next level of gear. Most people who do the grips really like them.... Plus, if you get rid of the bike, that might be a little bit of a bonus in the prospective buyers mind.
This is the kit I'm using:
Tusk Grip Heater Kit | ATV | Rocky Mountain ATV/MC
Tusk Grip Heater Kit | ATV | Rocky Mountain ATV/MC
I use the DuelStar under grip heaters and love them. I usually don't even use the "high" setting as the low keeps my hands toasty warm at any temp I've ridden so far. They use a 3M heating element.
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wiring question
http://voices.yahoo.com/how-install-heated-grip-warmers-motorcycle-4249431.html
This link is to a yahoo how-to written by our own Jason Spansel (JSP on this forum). It is the best, clearest, description I have seen.
http://voices.yahoo.com/how-install-heated-grip-warmers-motorcycle-4249431.html
This link is to a yahoo how-to written by our own Jason Spansel (JSP on this forum). It is the best, clearest, description I have seen.
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I ran mine w/ a distribution panel and relay off of the tail light. I have heard of people having problems if tie in off of headlight (weaker beam). No matter how you wire it, just make sure that you do a relay! Dont want someone flipping the switch on you while at work/school whatever, then you need to call for a ride due to a dead battery.. Cause of course we would never forget to turn the switch off on our bikes! LOL
I wanted to tie in on the lisc. plate light but couldnt find the wire for that under the seat since I still have the fender on. Since if lisc. plate light goes out it isn't much of a safety issue. Tail light goes out, I wouldnt want to be riding... But I figure the no cut/sodder press in splicer shouldnt cause any problems for me, even got the wx proof ones to be extra safe.
You read the article on CanyonChasers yet?
I wanted to tie in on the lisc. plate light but couldnt find the wire for that under the seat since I still have the fender on. Since if lisc. plate light goes out it isn't much of a safety issue. Tail light goes out, I wouldnt want to be riding... But I figure the no cut/sodder press in splicer shouldnt cause any problems for me, even got the wx proof ones to be extra safe.
You read the article on CanyonChasers yet?
complete
Finished the under-the-grip heater install. Was quite a learning experience. Details in my blog...http://www.600cc.org/forum/blogs/mikebaileyvienna/
Finished the under-the-grip heater install. Was quite a learning experience. Details in my blog...http://www.600cc.org/forum/blogs/mikebaileyvienna/
Very cool. How do they work?
Also, the best thing for the hands in the winter is covers. Either the neat looking plastic guards or something goofy looking but functional like
New Motorcycle Snowmobile Handlebar Muffs Black Hand Covers | eBay
If you take the wind off your hands all you need are some insulating gloves.
Covers + the heat grips you installed may not require gloves at all
All I know is if it's cold enough that my heated grips and A* WR-3 gloves aren't able to keep my hands warm, it's too cold to be riding.
I have under the grip heaters. Work very nicely, but finger tips still get cold as zero celsius approaches, even with "insulated" motorcycle gloves (Dainese, d-dry). Snowmobile gloves help, but a little clunky on the clutch. I know a very experienced rider who claims that if you have a heated vest, everything else stays warm.
Bloke
New Member
That's true but wind chill gets to your hands all the same. I have a set of oxford "bone dry" bar muffs.
They don't require me to change to clunky winter gloves and are cozy warm to use in temps that have me brushing ice off of my seat in the morning at speeds that would get me banned from riding on the motorway.
This is one mod that I want to do for next winter down here in florida. While i don't really need them I would like to have a little extra comfort just for the hell of it while I'm riding during the colder months down here.
engineered2win
New Member
I tried the Oxford Sport grips and didn't like the texture or the wires that all pointed in the wrong directions and looked like a thoughtless accessory. I decided to reuse the Oxford PWM controller, as it has sufficient adjustability and was already in the inventory. I built a bar mount for the controller (oh why doesn't Oxford make one instead of that cheezy hunk of scrap metal). The grip heaters are Polly heaters, which are basically ceramic resistors in a brass shell for vibration durability. They go inside the bar, so a full stealth installation would be undetectable. Unfortunately they don't fit inside our handlebars because the threaded bushings for the bar ends are welded to the bar. I first had to remove the bushings and drilled a hole near the bar mounts. If you wanted to be extra OCD, you could drill out the bar mount and upper triple tree clamp and run the wires through the bar, inside the bar mount, and out the bottom of the triple tree for a stealth install. With that out of the way, the only question was bar ends. I found some on ebay that fit a 14mm ID bars and use a rubber bushing that expands went you tighten the bolt. I just need to paint them black instead of the goofy fake carbon, and clean up some of the wire sheathing. They obviously take slightly longer to feel heat than heated grips, but I can run whatever grips I want and the install is very clean.
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