clarke Posted November 2, 2009 Share Posted November 2, 2009 Right, posting this here as I've fitted them to my XVS 125 Dragstar (review may differ on a non-custom bike?) Ok, bought a set for £40 thinking as 'overgrips' easy to install, remove, less hassle than replacing the standard grips as they just velcro over the top. First thing I noticed is the wires coming off each grip aren't long enough to reach more than halfway down the handlebars, which means that the connections (which aren't waterproof) are exposed halfway down the handlebars. Ended up electrical taping them up, which kind of defeated the purpose of buying them. Also, alot of wires exposed on the bars which whilst spent ages making them neat, still look pretty ugly. Perhaps on a non-custom bike they may connect in a more discrete place/behind a panel? The rest of the installation was pretty straight forward with them connecting direct to the battery (just need to remember to turn them off) As for the finished product, they make the grips massive (much bigger than my 1300 grips - again may differ from a non-custom bike) which feels a bit weird to use but not too bad. Tried them today and they do get warm. Whether they'll work well on a cold day is another matter. Will have to wait and see Think if I was going to buy them again I'd go for the Oxford Heated grips and just replace the standard grips - at least that way the feel of the finished product would be similar to normal grips. Oh, they also came with free Oxford bar muffs. Not sure if they'd fit, but they just looked too ugly to bother to try. Again maybe on a non-custom bike they's look less ugly & be worth the effort of installing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu_B Posted November 3, 2009 Share Posted November 3, 2009 Right, posting this here as I've fitted them to my XVS 125 Dragstar (review may differ on a non-custom bike?) Ok, bought a set for £40 thinking as 'overgrips' easy to install, remove, less hassle than replacing the standard grips as they just velcro over the top. First thing I noticed is the wires coming off each grip aren't long enough to reach more than halfway down the handlebars, which means that the connections (which aren't waterproof) are exposed halfway down the handlebars. Ended up electrical taping them up, which kind of defeated the purpose of buying them. Also, alot of wires exposed on the bars which whilst spent ages making them neat, still look pretty ugly. Perhaps on a non-custom bike they may connect in a more discrete place/behind a panel? The rest of the installation was pretty straight forward with them connecting direct to the battery (just need to remember to turn them off) As for the finished product, they make the grips massive (much bigger than my 1300 grips - again may differ from a non-custom bike) which feels a bit weird to use but not too bad. Tried them today and they do get warm. Whether they'll work well on a cold day is another matter. Will have to wait and see Think if I was going to buy them again I'd go for the Oxford Heated grips and just replace the standard grips - at least that way the feel of the finished product would be similar to normal grips. Oh, they also came with free Oxford bar muffs. Not sure if they'd fit, but they just looked too ugly to bother to try. Again maybe on a non-custom bike they's look less ugly & be worth the effort of installing? The Hot Grips get so hot on maximum that you wouldn’t want to hold the bars without gloves on :-) Also the grips are the same size as normal I mounted the controller on a little bracket It sits on my Garmin Sat Nav mount.. I use the car Nuvi on the bike. The wires sound much longer I got all mine fairly neatly back into the headlight, it T's off the driving lights so only works when the engine is running. On my wife’s bike I wired the grips into the back light, so you don’t have the worry of leaving them on... Below is a pic of the controller on the 1300... Fits quite nice in-between the screen and the bars Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldtimer Posted November 3, 2009 Share Posted November 3, 2009 clarkegray be glad you bought the oxford hot hands and not the hot grips,i also have a xvs125 and last year was going to fit hot grips but found out that although it was a 12 volt bike that the oxford hot grips were not suitable as the xvs 125 system would not cope and they would end up flattening the battery, after talking to a couple of yamaha mechanics they confirmed this but recommended oxford hot hands as they only draw 1.3 Amps each, and only 18 Watts each at full power. This isn't very much of a load, so they should work on just about any motorcycle, even those with weak alternators. the best thing is with the hot hands you can take them off and put them back as and when you need them with out to much hassle,a bonus where you can get 3 seasons in one day in this country. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clarke Posted November 3, 2009 Author Share Posted November 3, 2009 Glad I bought the Hot Hands then!! Only disappointed with the fact I've had to tape them up to waterproof the connections, meaning I can't simply unplug + plug in when wanted (which is why I bought them in the 1st place). Still, small price to pay for not having a flat battery - will have to remember to charge my battery up regularly now I ride home in the dark. Looks good on the 1300 - will def get the Hot Grips for the 1300. Also good to know the headlight can cope with the load (do your lamps also tap into the headlight as well?) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ttaskmaster Posted November 4, 2009 Share Posted November 4, 2009 Dunno aught about headlights... I wired my Hot Grips to the system, via a 5-pin relay and a switched live. Same effect, but I can also wire in many other accessories and still only operate them with the ignition on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gas up - Let's Go! Posted November 4, 2009 Share Posted November 4, 2009 they only draw 1.3 Amps each, and only 18 Watts each at full power. This isn't very much of a load, so they should work on just about any motorcycle, even those with weak alternators. the hotgrips have a load of 3amps, 36w on full power, so with the hot hands drawing 1.3 each thats 2.6amps and 31watts total load - there is only 5watts in it! change your sidelight bulb for an LED and you have the budget for the grips - if you so desire,...... I have Hotgrips on two of my bikes, they are not as good as the older style (the ones with the knob rather than the press buttons) but they are as good as the Honda OEM ones I had on my Varadero but 1/4 of the price !! ,,,, and better than the BMUU ones I've tried on a GS I've tried heated gloves too, the current draw is much higher but you get all round warmth as well as inbetween the fingers!! (EXO2 gloves) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu_B Posted November 4, 2009 Share Posted November 4, 2009 Glad I bought the Hot Hands then!! Only disappointed with the fact I've had to tape them up to waterproof the connections, meaning I can't simply unplug + plug in when wanted (which is why I bought them in the 1st place). Still, small price to pay for not having a flat battery - will have to remember to charge my battery up regularly now I ride home in the dark. Looks good on the 1300 - will def get the Hot Grips for the 1300. Also good to know the headlight can cope with the load (do your lamps also tap into the headlight as well?) Sorry to confuse... I just ment the wire is in the headlight... its connected to the aux socket ( which BTW has a seprearte fuse under the seat ) So the running lights and the grips are on the same feed.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clarke Posted November 4, 2009 Author Share Posted November 4, 2009 Sorry to confuse... I just ment the wire is in the headlight... its connected to the aux socket ( which BTW has a seprearte fuse under the seat ) So the running lights and the grips are on the same feed.... That's what I meant too (just not explained very well) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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