A cheap, simple fix for an achy throttle hand

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I disagree that the throttle rocker is a good solution. If you ever get into a tank slapper, or a need to turn the handlebars tightly to the right, your palm can inadvertently press on the lever, goosing the engine and causing you to fall over.

A better solution would be to solve your the cable routing if it is not right, or get lighter return springs. (http://www.bmwthrottlesprings.com/)

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Here’s how NOT to do it…

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I’m kind of leery of anything that makes it easier to accidentally rev. On my last bike (mid 80’s Honda) I had a friction lock on the throttle that I appreciated on long trips. I don’t know if there is a kit for your bike, but if there is you might consider it.

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I have that one, but it seems a less intuitive change, and just as dangerous?

The throttle lock will ‘barely’ hold the throttle open, requiring much less pressure to keep it open and you can then move your hand around a bit. Danger being it might stick in place as the plastic head on the friction screw can stick in odd cases. It feels really unnatural to me when its on, and I tend to forget it when coming up on freeway offramp after 60-80miles. Exactly when its most useful, cause my hand can rest a bit, it scares the crap out of me.

The lever still lets the throttle snap back when there is zero pressure on it, but it lets me move my hand off the throttle and open it completely, flex my fingers, etc, if I just keep a bit of pressure on the Cramp Buster. Sure, coming off the bike I might snag it – but I could also snag a mirror, or any other random sticking up part of the bike. Once you are used to the lever’s position and function, you’ll treat it fine.

I think the Cramp Buster gives me more function for about the same increased danger as the friction screw?

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I like the subtle revelation you’re in–or from–Los Angeles.

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These gadgets are killers. That’s from someone with 5 decades in the saddle. DO NOT USE!
Just stop and rest for a while before continuing on with your trip.

Highway 101 is 800 miles long.

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The 101 is only in SoCal.

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After ruining my last motorcycle vacation, friends recommended the $10 Cramp Buster…

It’s really the least they could do, if they ruined your vacation.

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Don’t know about that. I spend a lot of time in Sonoma, and “the 101” is pretty common there, especially when discussing traffic.

The colloquialism is mostly attributed to the LA area, but certainly is used across California. I am a Californian, like totally for sure. Grew up south, now live north.

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I say this as someone who now lived in SoCal for the past 25 years–and as someone who went from Long Beach to Griffith Park yesterday (i.e., the 605, to the 5, to the 710, to the 10, back to the 5, then exiting on Los Feliz Blvd.)–that the SNL The Californians skits are amusingly authentic. I never heard or used “the 99” or "the 880" while growing up in Central California or driving in the bay area.

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Same here. The only people I hear using “the (highway)” north of Oxnard are either visiting or have recently moved from the southland.

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A cramped throttle hand is a sure sign that you should have taken a more interesting route. Or the bus.

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I suffer from throttle-hand cramps while riding, even for relatively short amounts of riding time. This is on every bike, every throttle. It’s just my hands.

That said, there are better solutions, truly. The cramp buster (and variations thereof) suffer from needing to be rotated to a fairly high-up position in order to be in the correct position at highway speeds, where you’re using a pretty decent amount of throttle. This leads to accidental throttle incidents when you come to a slow part (i.e. stop-and-go traffic), or exit the freeway onto surface streets.

I hated mine so much that I threw it away, rather than inflict it on some other unsuspecting fool.

Though there will be much disagreement here (because it’s a near-religious topic in the MC world) I think throttle locks, scary-sounding though they may be, are actually quite a bit less dangerous than the cramp buster. At least the throttle lock is predictable and doesn’t randomly cause the bike to accelerate unintentionally.

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I don’t know which category I fall into; I’m usually visiting for weeks to months at a time, but have been doing it almost every year for over 25 years (and normally I live wayyyy south of LA, in a place where the main highway is called “the H1” by practically everyone, tourist or resident.)

“The” is also standard for motorways in the UK, of course.

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Ah, the main artery from Pearl City to Kahala. We rented a house in Haleiwa (well, really Pupukea) and had to drive to Kahala in order to meet some friends at a restaurant near the mall. Nice traffic on the H1!

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what’s funny is “the Nimitz” is OK for 880 but when using highway numbers, someone from the bay area will never append “the”. i grew up in LA and after 25 years here “the XXX” sounds funny to me. only 880, 237, 280, etc. sounds right anymore.

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