[kingston73]

I just bought and installed today a set of Oxford heated outer grip wraps. They installed extremely easy, the only semi-difficult part was wrapping them around my grips because my grips are already pretty fat. The wiring is in several sections with quick connects on each section, so I'll be able to take the wraps off the grips and disconnect a short section of wire and leave everything else hooked up. They connect directly to the battery and have a toggle switch for on/off so it is possible you could drain the battery if you forget and leave them on. Maybe later I'll wire it into a switched power wire, for now I'll just make sure the remember to turn them off. The toggle has a bright green LED so it's pretty obvious when they are turned on, and they get HOT pretty quickly. I had them on for only a couple minutes and they got hot enough to be uncomfortable with bare hands. They cost $50, so overall I'm happy with them so far but we'll see what it's like riding to work tomorrow in 35F temps.



My question is: do I need to worry about battery drain while riding? In other words, does my CX have enough spare juice to deal with these grips without any stress? I just topped off my battery with distilled water and charged it before I installed these grips, so assuming I remember to turn the toggle off these won't leave me stranded with a dead battery, right?

 

[marshallf3]

Only way to know for sure is if they stated a current draw in the spec sheet, or use a meter to read how much they are drawing.



You could also insert some rectifier diodes in series with them to reduce the amount of voltage they get, won't be quite as hot but won't draw as much current on the reduced voltage either. Common 1N400x series diodes should be fine and Radio Shack carries them. Each diode will drop around 0.6 - 0.7V

 

[Blindstitch]

I will jump in and say no they won't drain the battery as long as the system is good. My heated vest only drains maybe 60 watts. You have 170 to play with roughly.



The one thing I will say is that I wouldn't turn the grips on without running the bike. I do the same with my vest.

 

[InWeldingWeTrust]

I used to sell tons of these when I ran a Hein Gericke, they are just so useful, and I used them myself and was always pleased. Easy to use and easy to stash. Just remember if you wear Goretex gloves not to use them in the rain. Someone madeup a small attachment to wire inline on mine that had a piezo buzzer in it that would sound if the ignition was off and the grips were on. I am sure some of our electrical boffins on the site could whip something like that up pretty quick for a low price if it bothers you

 

[jayhanig]

The heated grips I have aren't as hot as yours apparently, though I've never ridden bare handed. Mine are actual grips, not wrapped around existing grips. I don't know how many watts they're supposed to draw and mine have a rheostat so I can pick the heat level.



None of that helps you, I know. What may is that I have a digital voltmeter installed on my Silverwing, and the voltage drops from 14.0 - 14.2 with it off down to 13.9 - 14.1 volts with it on full blast. In other words, I drop between 1 and 2 tenths of a volt with them on.



As you know, 13.9 volts is enough to run what's on and charge the battery, so I won't get stranded. It's a normal voltage.



I will suggest this to you: 1) You seriously consider adding a digital voltmeter so you see a voltage drop before it leaves you high and dry. I'm not sure about CXs but I know the GLs won't run by stator alone. 2) You go ahead and bite the bullet and tie into an accessory source of power. Sure as Carter makes little pills, you are going to forget to shut that thing off and it's going to leave you stranded. It's not a matter of "if"; it's a matter of "when". You may blow me off now but later on you'll curse yourself. Trust me. The road to Hell is paved with good intentions.



On my GL, there was an unused accessory switched source under my front seat that I tied into. That also allowed me to fuse it closer to the battery.



I almost forgot: The palmar surfaces of your hands and fingers will be nice and toasty but the backs of your hands are gonna die. I've ridden at highway speeds in those sorts of temperatures and that is where I felt it the most. You're going to want to install some sort of wind break if you're going to ride much in cold air. Let us know how your ride goes tomorrow.

 

[MikeCMP]

The heated grips I have aren't as hot as yours apparently, though I've never ridden bare handed. Mine are actual grips, not wrapped around existing grips. I don't know how many watts they're supposed to draw and mine have a rheostat so I can pick the heat level.



None of that helps you, I know. What may is that I have a digital voltmeter installed on my Silverwing, and the voltage drops from 14.0 - 14.2 with it off down to 13.9 - 14.1 volts with it on full blast. In other words, I drop between 1 and 2 tenths of a volt with them on.



As you know, 13.9 volts is enough to run what's on and charge the battery, so I won't get stranded. It's a normal voltage.



I will suggest this to you: 1) You seriously consider adding a digital voltmeter so you see a voltage drop before it leaves you high and dry. I'm not sure about CXs but I know the GLs won't run by stator alone. 2) You go ahead and bite the bullet and tie into an accessory source of power. Sure as Carter makes little pills, you are going to forget to shut that thing off and it's going to leave you stranded. It's not a matter of "if"; it's a matter of "when". You may blow me off now but later on you'll curse yourself. Trust me. The road to Hell is paved with good intentions.



On my GL, there was an unused accessory switched source under my front seat that I tied into. That also allowed me to fuse it closer to the battery.



I almost forgot: The palmar surfaces of your hands and fingers will be nice and toasty but the backs of your hands are gonna die. I've ridden at highway speeds in those sorts of temperatures and that is where I felt it the most. You're going to want to install some sort of wind break if you're going to ride much in cold air. Let us know how your ride goes tomorrow.

I have these grips, and they are awesome, I love them. They get so hot I need to switch them on and off. They only draw 18 watts, so you should be good to go (I think that is each, they draw under 3 amps for the pair though) I run them and my tourmaster heated vest no problem. I also have the 250 stator on my CX though.



Mike

 

[kingston73]

Thanks for all the replies. I checked the box and it states "draws less than 3 amps" so I think I'll be good. Mike, glad to hear you like yours, if the GL stator can deal with a vest and the grips, I'm sure my cx stator will handle the grips alone. Did you hook them directly to the battery or tie them into the ignition?



Jay, I'm definitely going to take the time eventually to tie it to a switched power source so I can't forget, I just wanted to get it together and see how well it worked before spending more time on it. Turns out I couldn't test it this morning because I needed to carry a couple 5 and 6 ft pieces of board to work with me (I guess if somebody can strap a propane grill to the cx I could have found a way to hook these boards on). I'm hoping tomorrow will stay nice and cold and I'll get a chance to test them. I've got the backs of the hands covered, installed some extra large hand guards to keep the wind in control, they work pretty well.

 

[MikeCMP]

Thanks for all the replies. I checked the box and it states "draws less than 3 amps" so I think I'll be good. Mike, glad to hear you like yours, if the GL stator can deal with a vest and the grips, I'm sure my cx stator will handle the grips alone. Did you hook them directly to the battery or tie them into the ignition?



Jay, I'm definitely going to take the time eventually to tie it to a switched power source so I can't forget, I just wanted to get it together and see how well it worked before spending more time on it. Turns out I couldn't test it this morning because I needed to carry a couple 5 and 6 ft pieces of board to work with me (I guess if somebody can strap a propane grill to the cx I could have found a way to hook these boards on). I'm hoping tomorrow will stay nice and cold and I'll get a chance to test them. I've got the backs of the hands covered, installed some extra large hand guards to keep the wind in control, they work pretty well.

I tied mine to the battery, didn't feel like hooking them to the ignition. I have some wiring I need to do on the bike this winter and will hook it up then, until then, I just check the LED when I park the bike.



Mike

 

[Panther]

I would use a relay between the grips and the battery, then have the relay switch with key-on power.



Only on with key and you don't risk your ignition switch with the draw.