HotHands heated grip wraps.

[denydog]

During the occasional rides I've been able to get in this winter, my hands would start aching from the cold after about 20 minutes, causing me to re-think my decision to ride in the cold. I tried warming my hands on the valve cover while waiting at stop lights, but that only helped marginally.

I first looked at heated gloves, then heated grips, then under-grip heated film. I decided that these were either too bulky, too expensive, to permanent, or too much trouble to install.

So I bought a set of the HotHands heated grip wraps http://www.webbikeworld.com/r3/heated-motorcycle-grips/ and installed them a few days ago. They work as advertised. They do get quite warm. My thumbs still get pretty cold, but at least most of my hand stays comfortable. The installation was simple and took about 20 minutes. I did have to fold up the extra wire length, tie wrap, and tuck it between the handle bar and instrument housing. I connected the main wire from my fuse block accessory terminals to just behind the head light. The on/off switch, mounted on the handlebar connects there. The wraps themselves unplug in a second, and can be stowed away in less than frigid weather. When the weather starts to warm up, I'll take the wraps and switch module off for the summer. Very quick to do.

The wraps do add bulk to the grips, and are a little cumbersome, but not too bad. Battery drain, at 1.3 amps per wrap (18 watts), does not seem to be a problem. Definitely a compromise solution, but one I'm glad I chose.

I bought them at http://www.lockitt.com/AccessoriesGrips3.htm

Installed picture. On off switch with LED is next to the handlebar clamp. I do turn them off occasionally while riding. They get pretty warm.

 

[bwringer]

Excellent! Thanks!

I just installed Symtec grip heaters on my VX800 and Hot Grips on my GS850. Both products are great (very toasty), and a full review will be forthcoming soon.

Hot Grips are pretty much permanent -- you'd have to buy a new handlebar and an extra throttle tube to remove them for the summer, since they must be epoxied into place. The Symtec grip heaters do allow you to carefully cut off and replace grips, but the heaters themselves can't be removed without destroying them.

The Hot Hands are an excellent solution if you don't want to make the more permanent modifications, and they're a bit cheaper than Hot Grips. Was the nice little lighted switch included?

 

[denydog]

Was the nice little lighted switch included?

Yes, the switch was included. I almost went for the Dual-Star "under the grip" heaters. But I really liked the wrap's ease of installation, and the ability to just pull the whole works off, later in the spring when the weather warms up a little. The Velcro holds the wraps on tight and they don't slip, but as mentioned, they do make the grips fell, how do I say this... mushy.

But I like that the wraps can be used at the start of a ride, in the morning when it's cold, and then just unplugged and stowed away for the rest of the ride if it warms up. You can see in the picture where the wrap plugs in, just to the right side of the switch. The switch itself, and main power feed are semi-permanent. You have to cut the wire ties to remove them.