I was wondering this... Why don't sleds have twist throttles? It would eliminate that cold thumb sticking out by itself and eliminate the additional thumb heater. Do race sleds have twist throttles? Just something that I've wondered about for some time.

Let me know your thoughts... thanks

I have always thought the same thing. How awesome would that be

I have thought about that too. Only thing I could thing of is it might be kinda wierd with all the bumps, but then again MX racers go through some big bumps too, soo who knows...haha

I have put twist throttles on all of my sleds.

I had a reall serious wrist injury from a motorcycle accident a few years ago and I have limited movement in my right thumb.

I have tried a few other alternatives but they were not as comfortable as the twist throttel.

The only problem is the heated grip does not work as well.

I tend to use motocross style bars and fill them with foaming insulation, this allows the heat to stay in the bars and heat through the plastic twist throttle and into the grip.

I have found the the Scott, AT-PRO MX grips work best because they are made very thin and there is not as much rubber to heat up.

It also make it easier to get on the gas in a sharp right turn as well.

that's just my $.02

DP

:hallo10:

Harder to bail out on a mistake. It's very hard to let go of while under hard acceleration. Speaking from experience (several unscheduled trips out into the woods) gained running high performance sport quads.....

AL

Cuz that just wouldn't be right. :p

Actually, its a good question, but I think I prefer the thumb. But then again, I haven't spent much time riding anything with a twist throttle.

FishHog


Well actually, fishing reels kinda have a twist throttle ;)
but that's different.

Then there are twist off beer caps. They are pretty good :inlove:

Originally posted by dpaige@Oct 17 2002, 07:09 PM
I have put twist throttles on all of my sleds.

I had a reall serious wrist injury from a motorcycle accident a few years ago and I have limited movement in my right thumb.

I have tried a few other alternatives but they were not as comfortable as the twist throttel.

The only problem is the heated grip does not work as well.

I tend to use motocross style bars and fill them with foaming insulation, this allows the heat to stay in the bars and heat through the plastic twist throttle and into the grip.

I have found the the Scott, AT-PRO MX grips work best because they are made very thin and there is not as much rubber to heat up.

It also make it easier to get on the gas in a sharp right turn as well.

that's just my $.02

DP

:hallo10:
What type of throttle cable did you use to make the conversion? Where does a guy get one. Just out of curiosity. ???

Hey Regor,

I used a single pull throttle assembly from a 1997 Kawasaki KX 100.

My brother had a spare so I threw on a pair of MX bars(thats a different story)

I would suggest using one from a newer bike, they have aluminum throttle tubes.

Then it was just a matter of getting a throttle cable the right length to run from the bars to the block that pulls both carbs at the same time when the single cable is pulled(don't know what its called)

The aluminum tube will be stronger and will hold heat better than the plastic.

Just make sure the heating element wire has enough slack to move through the entire range.

I am going to be adding this to my FZ soon, I will take some pics if you like.

DP

I still don't get it. We have the technology, look at Rev's reverse which makes the engine run backwards. Couldn't someone invent a twist throttle which doesn't freeze up and have a grip heater? How hard can that be?

I use to race Quadracers years and years ago. But I had to get rid of the thumb throttle because of cornering, etc. The twist throttle was the way to go.

I had someone email me saying that in the bumps that the accidental twisting of the throttle could send the sled out of control.. . to that guy, I say, get a sled you can control and ride at a safe speed..

Anyway, Just has me wondering how long before that comes on a sled... Hmmmm Now where did I put that patent application at?

Thanks dpaige, If you take some pics I'd love to take a look. :)

twist throttle wouldn't work to the way you ride a sled, you stand for bumps and the change of positions you put your body would cause less control.

Just try to imagine busting thru a big cornice wide open. Here you are hanging from the handlebars WOT, how are you going to let off the throttle while hanging from it with a twist throttle? There are many other reasons for the thumb throttle to, easier to control, ease of heating,less likely to freeze, ablility to control throttle while holding on for dear life and last but not least remeber K.I.S.S., Keep It Simple Stupid.

:withstupid:

omotm,
you are so right about the K.I.S.S theory

I guess Ricky Carmichael should have a thumb throttle too. How does he do it with that pesky twist grip???!! ???

From my experiences riding a dirtbike(I'm no pro at riding them), I have found that under hard acceleration they are hard to let go of, I once was going over a small jump and that unpredictable powerband that bike had came on right as I was going over. I either had to let loose with my throttle hand and fall backwards or hold on with the throttle wide open(yeah yeah I know "Ride within your ability" but experienced riders don't have a problem though

Originally posted by paul yarek@Oct 17 2002, 09:27 PM
twist throttle wouldn't work to the way you ride a sled, you stand for bumps and the change of positions you put your body would cause less control.
Im with Paul on this one

I think that out off all the throttle positions i wouldnt mind the pull type like on yamaha jetskis. Its very comfortable and you can use more then one finger to pull it. Thumb is ok though. I would stay away from twist. If your gunning it and somthing pops out infront of you letting go of the throttle may mean letting go of the machine.

it works on a mx bikes and they go through more than wat the average trail rider does?!!?

I'm not saying that the thumb throttle is bad at all.

For the particular injury that I have there was alot of damage done to my wrist and it affected the tendons to my thumb.

I used to race motocross so I guess the rehab I went through helped me get used to the twist throttle again. The thumb throttle causes me nothing but pain. I also spend alot of time riding a road bike so it just keeps things more consistant for me

I have never had a problem with letting go of the throttle or any of the other issues that were brought up.

Thats just my preference.

This is the injury that I was talking about.

DP

Just my thoughts and I may be off base but if you put a twist throttle on a sled wouldn't you lose your throttle safety switch? A bike accelerates from the moment you crack the throttle. A sled has to rev up to engage the clutches. I think it would be easier to keep the clutches engaged with the thumb than a twist. Of course there are always exeptions, but I think the thumb for the majority of riders is the way to go for safety and forwear and tear on the drive train. Any more thoughts? (This is a good thread)

Paul and OMOTM, KISS... hmmm... now isn't this thought exactly why sleds were not changed from the mid/late seventies until the early nineties?

Think outside of the igloo.

Perhaps there is a simple way to make the twist throttle work just as simple.

Some say "why" and some say "what happened".

I say "why".

I concurn woody,

K.I.S.S. isn't always the best answer.

Besides the twist is just as simple as the flipper, it just works a bit
differently.

DP

Keep it simple is not the same as "don't improve it". I don't know where you were in the 70's and 80's, but the changes and improvements in sleds were dramatic. You could actually go for a ride without taking along extra pistons. LOL