Handwarmer Mod - Instructions & Schematics

[ralger]

Apparently, the '06 Apex bars are only 25 5/16 without the extensions so that won't work. Looks like I might end up just chopping off the stock bar.

 

[BLUEBALLER]

This "fix" doesn't work. Well, it does to some degree, but it's not consistent.

Rode yesterday in -25C with the windchill felt like -39.

Grips got DAMN hot after riding for 1 mile till I got to my destination 30 kms away. To the point where they were almost too hot to hang on to.

Shut sled off. warmed up. waited for Rancidjo to get his suited up, then we proceeded off into the blizzard.

Grips sucked ballz the rest of the day. Even riding home with my gauntlet on, klim togs & under armour glove liners, my hands froze.

So.. like I said earlier, gonna try a 0.5 ohm resistor instead of the 1.0 ohm.

If that doesn't work, I'm running them off the battery with the hotgrips controller.

Just like last year, they are too inconsistent when I NEED them to be reliable.

On a side note - we both got frostbite to our faces and I've never seen skin do, what his neck did. scary stuff. looked like a block of frozen ice.

lesson learned - when its that cold out, stay the hell home.

 

[arteeex]

So, -25C isn't t-shirt weather anymore?

I got frostbite on my face a few years ago and I didn't even know it was happening. It did let me get a new helmet through purchasing though. She seemed to agree that this wasn't an optimal outcome.

The RSI heaters are working great! I've got over 340 miles on them now. It's so nice to have hot grips now. I do need to work some similar magic on the throttle however.

 

[Mtnviper]

arteeex, how is the shrink fabric holding up? I'm fairly rough on my grips, constantly changing hand positions during mountain riding.
Finally got my first ride in on my XTX! There is a lot of things I really like about this sled. But the hand warmers really suck. Kept having to stop and warm my hands on the exhaust.

 

[BLUEBALLER]

So, -25C isn't t-shirt weather anymore?

I got frostbite on my face a few years ago and I didn't even know it was happening. It did let me get a new helmet through purchasing though. She seemed to agree that this wasn't an optimal outcome.

The RSI heaters are working great! I've got over 340 miles on them now. It's so nice to have hot grips now. I do need to work some similar magic on the throttle however.

I'm still fighting with purchasing on a new BV2S. She was like " you just bought a new helmet/goggles at haydays, do you really need to spend $450 more?"

I said "look at my face!!!"

My HJC gave me frostbite right between the eyes, and that's where I got it again yesterday with my FXR adrenaline.

Are your hotgrips inconsistent at all? Mine worked great at the start of the ride then went downhill from there. even with the gauntlets on I froze.

similar event happened a few weeks ago. no heat from bars. shut off sled, re-started, then I had heat.

I think the ECU control is crap - time to bypass altogether.

 

[arteeex]

Mtnviper: The fabric heat shrink seems to be pretty tough stuff. I can’t see any wear in it at all, nor has it shifted on the grip. If it does begin to wear, it won't be hard to replace. If you decide to use the shrink tube be sure to install it with the seam on the underside of the grip.

Blueballer: The "look at my face" comment didn't sway purchasing? Either she's really tough or you weren't that pretty to begin with...hmmmm

I commented on the inconsistency of the stock grips last year. It seemed like they would shutoff completely at times and could be "reset" by running the indicator bars to zero then shutting off the motor and restarting. But I wasn't sure if this was real or just my imagination.

Anyway, if the inconsistency is a real problem then it's in the ECU or the wiring and probably independent of the type of grip heater. With 340 miles of testing so far, I haven’t noticed this with the RSI setup. Maybe I’m just lucky.

 

[Zak.Kostyna]

Very nice... I love the mesh/loop analysis. You must be an engineer?

 

[Mtnviper]

Mtnviper: The fabric heat shrink seems to be pretty tough stuff. I can’t see any wear in it at all, nor has it shifted on the grip. If it does begin to wear, it won't be hard to replace. If you decide to use the shrink tube be sure to install it with the seam on the underside of the grip.

Sounds good! Where did you buy the fabric?

 

[arteeex]

Mtnviper; I got the fabric shrink tube thru mcmaster-carr.com, but I'm sure other vendors carry the stuff. Just to be clear, I put the shrink tube OVER the existing grip.

If you download the install instructions I posted on pg 19 of the "09 handwarmer resistance" page you'll find a parts list with more info on where to find materials. Or send me an email address via a PM and I'll forward a copy to you.

 

[BLUEBALLER]

Very nice... I love the mesh/loop analysis. You must be an engineer?

Electrical Engineering Technologist actually. 2 year program rather than 4.

Arteeex: Purchasing caved in.......so within minutes of approval, I just bought me a new BV2S on ebay. whoop whoop.

Now I won't be ugly like you anymore!!!!!!!

 

[mryamaha]

"I'm still fighting with purchasing on a new BV2S. She was like " you just bought a new helmet/goggles at haydays, do you really need to spend $450 more?"



Hey Blueballer 2 things 1. try riding north of Winnipeg we have trees and not those high wind chills like in the south. LOL j/k

I have a BVS I would have given you to try first, I hate it it frosts up on weekends like last weekend. Not worth $50 IMHO. The guys that love them dont ride in -28 plus the windchill. I can't stand that breath box on my face either.

 

[Mtnviper]

Mtnviper; I got the fabric shrink tube thru mcmaster-carr.com, but I'm sure other vendors carry the stuff. Just to be clear, I put the shrink tube OVER the existing grip.

If you download the install instructions I posted on pg 19 of the "09 handwarmer resistance" page you'll find a parts list with more info on where to find materials. Or send me an email address via a PM and I'll forward a copy to you.

Cool, I see the download

 

[BLUEBALLER]

"I'm still fighting with purchasing on a new BV2S. She was like " you just bought a new helmet/goggles at haydays, do you really need to spend $450 more?"



Hey Blueballer 2 things 1. try riding north of Winnipeg we have trees and not those high wind chills like in the south. LOL j/k

I have a BVS I would have given you to try first, I hate it it frosts up on weekends like last weekend. Not worth $50 IMHO. The guys that love them dont ride in -28 plus the windchill. I can't stand that breath box on my face either.

Trees? What are those? lol It wasn't bad going south into the pembina valley, but coming back out & riding directly into the north wind sucked bad.

Well, I don't know what to say about the BV2S. Personally I haven't tried one, but a few guys I ride with have them and they seemed to like em.

Do you have the newer BV2S with the updates? My face still hurts at the moment so it was an impulsive buy. You know the ones.

As for the handwarmers - new 0.5 ohmers are on the way. Hopefully get them mounted on the weekend.

 

[Bamboo]

Heres some info from the 2009 service manual. Hope this helps someone. I'll try and fin the other threads and also post this info.

 

[Doogs]

I just had another flash of brilliance. When I get home this week I'm gonna do this:

1) Cut off the stock grips and hooks
2) Throw in some plug style heaters, and wire them in place of the stock heaters
3) Wire in Hotgrips on a toggle switch, from a power source that is only on with the sled running (ie headlights)
4) Put thumb warmer on that mounts on the side of the flipper your thumb sits on, wired in with aux. heaters (hotgrips)

This should give me what I'm looking for, which is stock-ish appearance. I just dont want to say "oh, the bar warmers don't work, you gotta flip this switch." Instead it'll be more like "it has 6-postion adjustable warmers, and I added these super-cool auxilliary warmers in case it's real cold out."