In my case, Parkinson's has been chipping away at my stamina reserves and weakening my right hand and arm, so that I've been having to shorten my horizons and take more frequent rests. Cold is a major problem, and I try to avoid riding after dark. Roll on summer. Anyway, there are several devices which ease the strain, and while not exactly elevating me to Duracell Bunny status they do help - in fact, without them I'd scarcely be riding any more. I've not indulged in the big-money electronic cruise controls, but have dabbled a fair bit in simple mechanical gizmos designed to ease the pain. These divide roughly into two classes which I'm calling the "rockers" and the "lockers".
1) "Rockers" =: devices to reduce the effort of turning the throttle and holding it steady., Called throttle rockers in the US, and crampbusters here. Cue first picture:.
On the left at the back is the original Crampbuster - a strip of very strong but springy plastic about an inch wide, that clips around the throttle grip and allows the weight of your hand to open the throttle and hold it at a cruising position. More pressure increases its hold on the grip. Variants of different shape are available, like the second, broader version shown rebadged by Scottoiler. They do work,and some people love them, but I've found they get in the way of my big ol' hands when I'm trying to cope with slow traffic - hence my attempt to take up less space on the grip by cutting one down as shown. Better, but still a pest and liable to cause a potentially dangerous throttle surge if knocked accidentally. What has worked best for me is the "Throttle Boss" by Kuryakin, the home of Harley accessories - see front of picture. This is a tough, grippy rubber strap (For knife fans, it's like Kraton) that wraps round the grip and has a lump or knuckle that's just big enough to work as effectively as the Crampbuster's blade without getting in the way so much and is easier to put on and take off.
None of these devices, though,solves for me the pain and fatigue of holding the throttle open long-term, and so to....
2) "Lockers" - devices to hold the throttle open at a set position for cruising. Some people are nervous of the concept of a throttle lock, imagining an uncontrolled bike barrelling headlong into oblivion, but with common sense it's not so bad as the throttle can still be closed at will, It does call, though, for a certian presence of mind as to whether the lock is on or off, eg when approaching the end of a motorway, off-ramp or a roundabout, so isn't for the novice rider... There's a bunch of stuff in this category that address the issues of locking and unlocking in various ways, and involving different levels of attack on the bike, and the cost. e.g. The "Brake-Away" (popular in the US) is a neat idea that holds the throtttle till you operate the front brake, but it's pricey so I've not tried it. Cue second picture:
At the front is a gadget that works quite well for me, particularly as it takes up v. little handroom. It clips firmly but not too tightly around the grip, and rotates forward & downward with the forefinger, to rest on the front brake lever and prop the throttle open until you choose to close it. It can still be awkward for me, though, especially with winter gloves, so I've been going to try re-using the bigger item shown here - the Vista cruise control, which I found was popular in the maxi-scooter world, and worked well on my Burgman. It just needs tweaking, I think, for the hot grips on my TDM. ( There's a newer version that would avoid the issue). All it does in essence is place a ring around the inner flange of the throttle grip, and close on to it when the lever is flicked down with the thumb; Release is simple by flicking the lever back up..The other parts are just a clamp on to the handlebars to provide a fixed point, and a bridge to it over the RH switch block. The last item in this picture is a simple home-made job out of bungy cord which fits around the groove between the throttle grip flange and the switch block; pulling one end tightens the loop to grip the throttle and pulling the other end releases it.
3) So, you'll be asking, which is best? It depends on individual needs and tastes. I use a combination of 1 and 2 - cue 3rd picture:
All bits are available on Fleabay etc.
Hope this helps to summarise things, and doesn't offend those who are in the know anyway.
Sorry about the usual typos.
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Edited by Pict, 02 April 2013 - 10:23 pm.