I live in the Southwest, so you may wonder why I would be talking about heated grips. The fact is I ride a lot. I put thousands of miles on both my sport bike and my adventure tourer in a year. Yes, our riding season is long down here, but riding in 40 degree weather is riding in 40 degree weather no matter where you live. My sport bike does not have heated grips, my adventure tourer does. Guess which one gets the most winter miles.
First, let’s get one thing clear. Having warm hands is not just a comfort issue; it’s also a safety issue. Just think how many more functions and actions a motorcyclist’s hands must carry out while still controlling the vehicle than those of an automobile driver. Braking, clutch work, signaling, horn function, and throttle work, are just some of the actions that require fine motor-skills from our hands. The simple fact is that cold hands are not nearly as limber and dexterous as warm ones.
Okay, so warm hands are important, but how do we keep them warm when riding in cold weather creates a severe wind-chill? We really have three options: heavily insulated gloves, heated gloves, or heated grips. For my tastes, most insulated gloves are just too thick and bulky. I am also not a fan of having my hands tethered for warmth as in the heated glove option. That leaves my personal preference - heated grips.
Heated grips come in two basic versions. One version consists of a heating element that is taped or glued directly to the handlebar and then covered by any grip you like. This is the best option if you like to experiment with a lot of different grips. However, this style of heated grip is usually harder to apply, and it can be easily damaged during grip application or removal.
The other style is the one on which we will focus today. This style has the heating element in the grip itself. Obviously, your grip options are limited. However, installation is substantially easier with this type.
Hot Grips has been in the heated grip market longer than any other aftermarket manufacturer. The company produced its first heated grip in the era of bellbottoms and polyester. The nice thing about most of the variations of Hot Grips is that the installation is very straight-forward. That being said, you must follow the instructions carefully because heated grips expand and contract repeatedly, thus proper gluing is vital for safety. Proper wire routing is also important for a safe and effective installation.
Obviously the grip itself is not the only component of the system. Most of the Hot Grips systems come with a pair of grips, a three position toggle switch (off, low, high), extra wire, detailed instructions, and other electronics as needed for the application. There are also optional accessories such as variable heat controllers for a wider range of heating options.
Hot Grips come in styles for a variety of bikes and purposes. My perusal of the online catalog revealed styles for both 7/8” and 1” bars, as well as 4 or 5 different motorcycle grip configurations and textures. There are also grip options for bikes with or without bar-end weights. If you are not sure what grips will fit your bike, there is a “Grip Wizard” on the company’s site. Prices run from about $90 - $125 for most grip kits. For more information, go to Hot Grip’s very informative and thorough website: http://www.hotgrips.com.
