Foaming handlebars-A HOW TO with pics!

Im putting 06 bars back on with 07 wiring harness....they get hot with this setup.....see other thread of mine.

Ill test tomorrow...some say it might be too much and blow a fuse...so Ill test it first.

dan
 
Well I rode yesterday in -24 celius and I can tell you that it made all the difference in the world. Had to even turn them down at some point. 2 other Apex that did the mod said it also made a diff. Thanks again Dan.
 
I actually foamed my 06 bars with the new series wiring harness setup..and WOW,they are really hot and nice...tested for a day and worked great so far.

the newer style bars will never get as hot as the 06 bars will when wired with harness from 07 kit...

everyone is different and I personally always have cold hands,so I like them hot....some people who never get cold hands have said the new bars are fine...but IMO they were only warm to bare touch...while this new setup with old bars yeilds HOT grips at bare touch.

this is why you hear so many different opionions i think....different temps,different windshields,different people.....all come with different answer...

one answer seems to be same though...are they HOT to bare touch?..or just mildly warm?...

HOT is what i wanted...and now got it...06 bars work best with 07 harness for HOT...only negative here i think is the hooks will never get warm due to original design....so I foamed them and wrapped them with elec tape before screwing the hooks back on...this helps reduce the heat transfer to alum hook..as we all found last season helped slightyl....but with remainder of grip being so hot now..it keeps pinky alot warmer now...even if your on the hook.

Glad the foaming helped you...

dan
 
When I stopped for a smoke-break, I removed my gloves after one hour of riding and they were literally steaming, I touched my grip and it was HOT, not warm...HOT !!!
 
Time to bring this back to life!! Are the O8's fixed?
My 07 RTX hand warmers sucked so I plan on foaming them, I do not want to put 06 bars on it per Rockerdans other post (GREAT by the way).
I was wondering if Yamaha has come up with a cure for the stock 07 bars as they were not much better than the 06 bars?

Thanks!

Cobalt
:-o
 
i foamed my bars and i didnt notice a difference..

Get some guantlets its a guarenteed fix..
 
Thanks Brian! Do you have a recommendation for Gauntlets? I always thought the Gauntlets would be a pain to drive with?? Are they easily installed with the hand guards on the 07 RTX?

Cobalt
:-o
 
get the ones from skinz protective gear.. those will work with handguards..and they are nice and open so you can get your hands in and out easily..
 
welterracer said:
i foamed my bars and i didnt notice a difference..

Get some guantlets its a guarenteed fix..
Click to expand...

Im surprised you didnt notice a difference with the foam, I know those who changed to dirt bike style aluminum bars usually foam since the aluminum bars dont get hot like steel ones. Usually it helps alot.
 
You may not be able to get water up in the bars but I would be worried about condensation collecting in the bars from the consistant warm/cold effect. I foamed my bars and did a temp text with a pyrometer. Now I have an 03 with aluminum bars on it so it dosent really apply directly to you guys but there was a 10 degree C differance between foamed and not foamed. Before I foamed I took the sled out and rode it for 5 minutes and tested the grips for temp. I then foamed them the next day I tested the temp again and it was definatly aprox 10 degrees warmer. Both tests were done inside the garage after 5 minutes of running. To get a matching temp without foam I had to turn the grip warmer down to half way. I did my foam a lil differant than you guys did I attached a piece of rubber windshield washer hose to the end of the plastic straw taped off one end of the bars and stuck the hose all the way to the other side of the bars and applied the foam as I was removing the hose. I then left the one side open and a pail hanging off the grip to catch any excess. There was still foam left in the can so instead of wasting it I foamed my buddys sled and didnt tell him. Later out on the trail I asked him how warm his hands were he replied that his hands were warm for some reason (as he always complained the grip warmers didnt work) I told him I foamed his bars and he was impressed.
 
I still don't get this foaming making a big difference. Stationary air doesn't conduct heat very well, but metal does. By foaming the bars you are replacing air with foam and the foam probably conducts heat similar to air (at least if you spray in too much it would). Foam or no foam, the metal is still there conducting most of the heat away.

Another change the should help, but not all that much, is to install a standard padded bar cover. This keeps the cold air from blowing directly on the bars and taking the heat away. If you consider the cold air blowing on the outside vs stationary air on the inside, a padded cover would probably help the heat situation more than foaming.

With my RTX, I have a large windshield and a padded bar cover. With this my hands were fine, even on the coldest days last winter (but I still wish the bars were quicker to heat up). I also carry gauntlets in the trunk just in case my hands do get cold. These really work.
 
I did mine just for the hope of warmer hands. There is a small hole in each bar end but Plugging those would seal it off. eventually you will heat the air so may be the foam would push that heat back into the metal bar. Just a guess.
 
Effort???? 5 minutes and $5.00 is not to much of an effort IMHO>

Cobalt
:-o
 
(but I still wish the bars were quicker to heat up)
Click to expand...
Rex if you want them to heat up quicker foam the bars. If air conducts heat like foam why do people insulate with foam in many comercial applications? Why put foam under heated concrete slabs when heat rises? Why put foam in Refrigerated 54 ' trailers? Why are coolers made of foam or use foam filled walls? If air worked as well as foam dont you think more manufactures would just leave the foam out for an air gap just to be less expensive? Foam is an insulator. Period. If you dont believe us why not try it yourself ?

I know it works cause I tested with a thermometer and it made a serious difference.
 
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