Using an O-ring as a throttle lock

[Michael Hart]

I have a couple of pictures to show. This O-ring worked excellent. I don't know if the gap between the throttle and the bar end is the same on all of these bikes but, on mine it worked perfect. I brought 1 with me for my friend with a Honda VFR and the gap on his was to big. The O-ring fell in between and wouldn't work.
Mike

[Michael Hart]

[Mollygrubber]

Thanks for posting, Michael. I may just try that!

[Michael Hart]

[hjsbmw]

I have a couple of pictures to show. This O-ring worked excellent. I don't know if the gap between the throttle and the bar end is the same on all of these bikes but, on mine it worked perfect. I brought 1 with me for my friend with a Honda VFR and the gap on his was to big. The O-ring fell in between and wouldn't work.

+1
Worked great for me for riding on the interstate. I tried a 1 3/8 ID first but found it to release the throttle veeeery slowly. A 1 1/8 ID worked perfectly.

[idealistix]

I use one in conjunction with a crampbuster too, and it works well in damping the deceleration. One tip: get the o-ring in a bright color, so that it is easily visible. Mine is yellow, and I operate by feel, but sometimes a visual check helps too.

[larsn]

The photo shows a thin O ring from Home Depot: A Delta Kitchen Spout Repair kit, DL 15: Cost: Two bucks. You get two rings. They work great. The second ring is a 320 size from McMaster Carr. Total cost including shipping ~10 bucks for 50. They are a little tight, but they also worked great on my trip last weekend. Finally, I poached an advider link which is a definitive statement on O ring throttle locks. Enjoy!



http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthre ... aster-carr

1 9452K207 BUNA-N O-RING, AS568A DASH NUMBER 320 1PK
Merchandise Amount: 5.28
Shipping Charge: 5.00

[Stef.]

Thanks for the pics and the explanation. Good to know how it would work. I am not sure though that I like the idea of my throttle being locked...
Stef.

[deilenberger]

Thanks for the pics and the explanation. Good to know how it would work. I am not sure though that I like the idea of my throttle being locked...
Stef.

Depending on the O-ring used - you can have varying degrees of "locked"..

I use an O ring that is sandwiched between the bar-end weight and the end of the grip. It provides enough friction that the throttle, when released will stay where it is for about 2-3 seconds (long enough to shake a numb hand out), then very slowly start to close on it's own. I used an O ring coated in silicone grease to achieve this.

I can't really ride without this. I have enough carpal-tunnel damage that holding the throttle open for long periods of time isn't an option.. I first did this on a K100RT that I owned where the throttle and power were so twitchy compared to the R65 I was coming off, that I couldn't ride it smoothly. The early K bikes had a tapped hole in the grip assembly, with an optional spring loaded plunger screw made for exactly this purpose.

Having the right amount of friction means that not only is it easier on you keeping the throttle open, it also is easily rolled shut. As I said "locked" is relative... mine is not locked. That was the problem I had with bar-end locks - they would solidly lock the throttle when I put my heated grips on, and that to me was dangerous, even if you could roll them off...

YMMV..

[Michael Hart]

I agree, we don't want to lock our throttle. Throttle locks are designed to put enough drag on the handgrip to hold your speed, so that you can still move twist the throttle off when desired. Only to use when hand gets cramped. a quick 30 to 60 seconds enough time to shake the blood back in, then disengage.
Mike