HEATED GRIPS

[ShinyPartsUp]

Do have a link to where you got the grips on the internet? I assume you don't need the accessory wiring harness Honda talks about?

I'm sorry I don't remember which vendor I bought them from, but you can do what I did....just check out a number of Vendors that sell Honda OEM parts (you already have the part number) & get different prices. Don't forget to check shipping costs because one place may have it cheaper than another, but then charges more in shipping that the other vendor that may ship it for free.

I bought the Honda grips yesterday from Gary McCoy (He just got a promotion, so I dealt with the new, and nice, Parts Department manager) and I was quoted $157 IIRC. Bought a few other things, so I can't talk about shipping for just the grips. And it felt good supporting a Forum member.

Ion -- an outstanding post. Thanks. :clapping:

 

[huchieglide]

I bought the Honda grips yesterday from Gary McCoy (He just got a promotion, so I dealt with the new, and nice, Parts Department manager) and I was quoted $157 IIRC. Bought a few other things, so I can't talk about shipping for just the grips. And it felt good supporting a Forum member.

Ion -- an outstanding post. Thanks. :clapping:

Mr. Shiny, I would like to know how the install goes and what you think of these. I am also in the market for some heated grips and some other goodies but my electrical technical skills need some polishing. May need to run up to Roseburg and check it out. Another + for University Motors. I have purchased from then also.

 

[ShinyPartsUp]

I bought the Honda grips yesterday from Gary McCoy (He just got a promotion, so I dealt with the new, and nice, Parts Department manager) and I was quoted $157 IIRC. Bought a few other things, so I can't talk about shipping for just the grips. And it felt good supporting a Forum member.

Ion -- an outstanding post. Thanks. :clapping:

Mr. Shiny, I would like to know how the install goes and what you think of these. I am also in the market for some heated grips and some other goodies but my electrical technical skills need some polishing. May need to run up to Roseburg and check it out. Another + for University Motors. I have purchased from then also.

I'm gathering a list of electrical farkles. Have to figure out which fuse block to get. My electrical skills are close to zero. My plan is to wait until the bike goes in for tires and have them install a bunch at my dealer. But when installed I'll let you know, and if the passes aren't iced up I'll drive down to show you. As for the install, I'm wondering if Gary at the shop will let me watch/help with all this. Depends how busy it gets probably. I'll PM you when I have details

 

[FjrVfr]

...and they're outta there. Thanks, Ionbeam for the great write-up.

I put the Kimpex elements on and they get nice and toasty.

 

[deanw]

I'm kinda sick... I put Symtec / Dual-Star grip heaters on, powered by a HeatTroller powering both elements. ~36 watts a side. Picture holding a 40 watt lightbulb in each hand...

I rarely turn them up past half-way, but when I want a quick blast of heat, I can get it.

 

[Dangerous Dave]

I also just installed a set of the Kimpex heaters today at work that I bought from Aerostitch for a scant $25. Only got to ride with them for about 15 minutes tonight in mid 30s temps at highway speeds. Initial reaction was that "Hi" setting was too hot. Switched 'em down to "low" and was comfy the rest of the way home (I have the V-Strom handguards too). Took power from the fused side of the "Hazard" fuse. I figure I almost never use the hazards, and if something went amiss with the heaters, I wouldn't lose a more critical circuit...you know, what with the fuse box being so darned accessible. :dribble: Anxious to spend a little more time with them. It was 20*F when I left for work this morning...wished I'd already had them wired and working, since my fingertips were the only thing that got cold.

 

[chornbe]

they don't have to get as warm as you might expect. my shoulder season gloves are pretty heavy watkins leather gauntlets. the heated grips just warms the blood going into your fingers as you lightly rest your hands on the bars.
derek

+1

The goal is to answer "no" to "Do I feel cold", not to answer "yes" to "Do I feel warm". You want to prevent chill and hypothermia (and frost bite), but you don't ever want to be so warm that you sweat. That will just make things worse.

 

[user 711]

What ionbeam said about the 'cheapie' controller

The controller does not Pulse Width Modulate. When the controller is at the minimum setting it produces a power pulse at roughly a 700 mS rate (1.25 kHz). As more heat is required the pulses come more frequently. The controller supplies either 0 power or 100% power, like a light switch. If you open the throttle 100% for a couple of seconds then turn loose of it for a couple of seconds then 100% again you will eventually hit an average speed but the ride is gonna suck. This is what the controller does. Every time it pulsed it whacked my power supply and visibly made the output sag and the current meter took a pounding. The current pulsed 0 amps then 1.4 amps then 0 amps then 1.4 amps…. This was brutal on my power supply, just think what it could be doing to your FJR's electrical system.

Interesting. The Heat-Troller FAQ has this to say about how they modulate power:

The Heat-Troller is a pulse-width modulated controller with a 1 second cycle time. That means that over a 1 second period, the power is turned on from about 10% to 100% of the time, adjustable with the knob on the controller. When the power is turned on, full power is applied to the load. In the example given, if the heated grip are 16 Watts each and the Heat-Troller is adjusted to 50%, the grips will get 16 Watts for half a second, then no power for half a second, giving an average of 8 Watts of power. The Heat-Troller is more efficient than a rheostat because it makes very little wasted heat when turned on. For two 16 Watt grips, the Heat-Troller makes less than 0.1 Watts of heat at 50%. A rheostat would make about 16 Watts of wasted heat at the same 50% setting.

I know nothing about pulse-width vs non-pulse-width modulated systems. So how does the Heat-Troller compare with the 'cheapie' controller with regards to a bike's electrical system? I have a backlit volt-meter on my FJR and even though the voltage display doesn't show the pulse, the backlighting does dim whenever the Heat-Troller's LED indicates that it's on.

 

[ionbeam]

The Heat-Troller delivers power pretty smoothly, plus, it is a very efficient way to regulate power delivery. Efficiency means that little power is wasted unlike drop resistors and rheostats where the unwanted power heats the resistor instead of the grips. There are other methods of DC power control but for cost vs effectiveness the Heat-Troller is the way to go.

In the same post with the pulsed power cheepie that you quoted I believe I also described Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) and I was referring to the same PWM that Heat-Troller uses. The Yamaha power controller works like the Heat-Troller, a very common circuit for controlling lights, motors and heaters.

The backlighting dims uniformly because the power is being drawn smoothly and the meter should show a corresponding drop in voltage. If the backlight is an incandescent bulb it may not respond fast enough to let you see flickering but if the voltage readout is stable for the two most significant digits - 14.xx - you don't have a problem.

Heat-Troller good

 

[user 711]

Thanks, ionbeam - that's good to know.