Heated Grips

[Metalstorm]

First, the people who locktite the barend weights are evil sadistic basterds
I literally broke the tip of the screwdriver trying to unfasten these things. I had to resort to the impact driver.

Second, the throttle tube has a flange on both ends. I had to file them down so the new grip could slide on.

Finally, my bike now has heated grips for winter. These are from Oxford and have a cool control module that attaches to the clutch perch rather than a traditional off/low/high switch. The little control box has on/off and + & - for four temp settings. 30%, 40%, 75% and 100% power.





On Edit: Yes the control module clears the fairing

[DoubleRGirl]

those look good, oxford makes some good ish

[Metalstorm]

I forgot one other mod I did to make these work.
The kit comes ready to connect directly to the battery. Their manual says the grips will turn themselves off if they sense battery voltage drop below 11.something.

This is nice but I thought I could do better so I cut the ring terminals (and inline fuse holder) off the ends of the wires and crimped on some spade connectors and hooked the grips up via a fuse box/relay combo so when the bike is off, the grips are off.

The relay is connected to a 3 lead fuse box, one lead non switched (for my SAE pigtail) and two switched leads (one for grips, one for future possibilities) which is why I removed the inline fuse holder from the grips.
If I had just a relay, I would have kept the fuse holder but it's taken care of by the fuse box

[Ibex250R]

How much do these cost? they look great.

[sendler]

Nice job on the relay set up. Who sells the grips?

[r100]

Can anyone tell me if the fairing diverts the wind past your hands?
Would hand guards be a useful addition along with heated grips?
(I have both on my BMW.)

[Metalstorm]

Grips were $80.00 not including shipping.

I don't think I can post a link to the place I bought them from since they're not sponsors of this site.

I'll just say "google Twisted Throttle"

The fairing in my opinion doesn't divert a whole lot of air from the hands. It's too narrow. The only bike I know of that does that is the deceased Buell 1125R with the wide fairing.
The Honda does direct the air around the hands wayyy better than a naked bike though Plus when you consider how much wind is kept off your torso, that helps keep the hands warmer just by having your core warmer.
I don't think hand guards would clear the fairing/shield but I could be wrong. At the very least I imagine hand guards could be trimmed to clear it. I've seen a few folks do something like that on their BMW F800STs.

[billyedtimmy]

Yep, it's twisted throttle (I put these exact grips on my wife's 250R a couple of weeks ago):

TwistedThrottle.com : Oxford Heaterz Heated Motorcycle Handlebar Grips for 7/8-inch Diameter Handlebars (Sports Style) - OXF.26.0696

A few tips on install:
(1) You don't have to wrestle with the bar-ends. If you just loosen the screws a few turns, that *should* release the internal part holding it in such that you can pull the whole thing out pretty easily (and the reverse is true as well - 'tightening' the screw expands the piece inside so that it holds/stays in once you've got your new grips on).
(2) You may have to cut away the little plastic piece on the end of the throttle to get the right grip on. It doesn't hurt anything to do so, and makes life a little easier.
(3) No need to use glue or lubricant. Use a spray of rubbing alcohol, and the grips slip right on. Once the alcohol dries, they're locked in good.

Total time takes about 30 minutes (assuming connecting straight to the battery... tossing in a relay will be a little longer, but is certainly commendable).

[stargazerinwg]

I bought the Moose Heated Grip kit from MC Superstore. It is the same kit I put on my Versys and put new Red 120 MM Pro Grip - 724 Dual Density Road grips on at the same time. They turned out to be a good choice. Installation was straightforward. I removed all the raised retainers from the Honda throttle tube with a knife, file and sandpaper to get a smooth, clean tube. I installed the heater elements, did the wiring, and then installed the new grips with soapy water. Getting the bar ends off was easy with the tools shown in the photo. I improvised a clamp to hold the bar ends with a piece of srap 3/4 inch ply wood and used my old fashioned impact driver and they came right off.

[Hoho]

Thanks for the tip, Metalstorm! Just ordered the Oxford grips... these should make riding much more comfortable. Would you be able to post pics of the relay setup? I'd like to make extra security that it offers.

My hands were so cold this morning that I could barely get my helmet off at the office.