Throttle - Shorter throw?

[Activator]

Hey all-

I've been riding my new SH150i for a few days now, and loving it! Not quite the pickup or braking power of my Ducati, but then... that's kind'a what I was after!

Anyway, one thing I'm noticing is that the throttle has a very long "throw". I'm used to covering the front brake with 2 fingers, especially in the city, but I'm finding I can't do that because I have to twist the throttle so far, my hand is out of position. I'm getting used to just relying on the left, linked brake lever, and keeping my right hand just for the throttle, but I feel "exposed" without covering the front as well.

I'm going to look at the throttle tube assembly today and see what's what. It's, I believe, a standard 7/8" grip, so I'm wondering if I can fit a G2 Throttle tube on there. (http://www.g2ergo.com/) They make a range of cams that will change the amount of twisting... either to "tame" it or to tighten it up. (Which is what I'd like to do)

Anyone done a mod like this?

[robber57]

One thought/warning/caution:
from the workshop manual:

"Do not snap the throttle drum from full open to
full close after the throttle cable has been
removed. It may damage the throttle bore and
cause incorrect idle operation."

I can imagine that a throttle tube with a shorter "throw" will open the possibility to let the throttle really "snap" thus possibly resulting in damage to the throttle bore...

If you watch the original you may have noticed that it has a kind of smooth/damped way of closing, i am not sure where this is coming from, it may be just friction of the throttle cable but also may be a kind of friction intentionally build in the throttle tube... ( a spring loaded piece of plastic dragging on the throttle tube?)
Old BMW's R series used to have a friction/brake build in to the throttle grip which you could adjust.

[Baysidebob]

I don't get it. I have no problem covering the front brake with four fingers while operating the throttle with my thumb and the heal of my hand. Grabbing the front brake involves moving my hand up a bit and shutting down the throttle. That's a good thing. I don't have big hands. Perhaps my gloves are stickier than yours.

[Activator]

Hey, thanks for the replies. I understand what you're saying robber57... sounds like I shouldn't mess with it.

I sat in the garage yesterday and played with hand positioning...

If I start with the throttle closed and my hand in a comfortable position, fingers draped over the brake lever, and then open the throttle all or most of the way (as in accelerating away from a stop light), if I don't adjust my hand position on the grip, my wrist must become fully "folded backward" in order to achieve full throttle! I actually have to drop my shoulder and bring my elbow down slightly.

I guess it's something I'll (have to) get used to.

[robber57]

I love modifying so dont let my comment hold you down to change whatever you want.
It was meant as a "caution!" , something to keep in mind when modifying , a simple test would be to detach the throttle grip and see if the throttle still has this dampened return to close, if so you can safely change the grip to another brand/type, if not you may still be able to change the grip but perhaps it would require some tweaking, i know that a good dab of thick grease between throttle tube and steering tube will slow down the movement as i found out years ago when i thought to do the right thing to "lubricate' the tube with NLG2 grease, it turned out that normally you just have to apply some oil.

[Activator]

I just took a fairly long ride, and I'm getting used to shifting my hand grip position depending on if I'm going more slowly in town, or opening it up on a faster road. I think I'll be OK.

What I may do is take a little of the "slack" out of the throttle. It's moves a good 1/2" (10cm) before it starts to engage. I know there needs to be a little slack, but this feels like too much.

[robber57]

If you make it to short the throttle will hang/rev up when steering to the far right, i found about 4 mm free play to be the minimum.

[Activator]

I ended up tightening it up to about 2mm of play. I checked the idle by turning the steering hard left and right multiple times... no problem with the idle speeding up.

The tighter throttle tube makes the whole bike feel faster and more responsive! It's great to twist and really GO... no hesitation due to the throttle slop! Love it!