Installation of ISO grips, any tips? - Motorcycle-Journal Forums

NA7A · 08-10-2007, 09:05 AM

I am thinking of purchasing the ISO Throttle Boss grips for my bike but everyone I have talked to so far states not to install them yourself but to have a dealer do it. They all tell me stories of grips falling off while riding by those who installed them without professional help.

Any thoughts positive or negative or "yes you can do it, they are easy" kind of posts from others that have done it themselves?

tallannie · 08-10-2007, 09:50 AM

it is very easy... at least on my Suzuki and my husband's VTX. search for the threads on 'ISO' and "numb hands and fingers"...or some such... lots of comments here on this grip and installing it. We really like our grips and the throttle boss.

if you have bar end weights, it changes your vibration levels (usually for the worse in the mirrors for instance.)...

these puppies are NOT falling off....lol... used Gorilla glue instead of the stuff they send....

Hillsboro, oregon here.... if you are close enough you can ride over here and we will do it with ya...

koolbreeze25 · 08-10-2007, 08:46 PM

I used these on the ends of the grips:

Product Page

Love the look myself, and can tell you that the vibration is a whole lot better than over the stock weights.

NA7A · 08-11-2007, 12:45 AM

Hey Tallannie and Koolbreeze, thanks for the tips (no pun intended).

Koolbreeze, do those tips also secure the grip by the screws I see there?

Tallannie, thanks for the invite and I may take you guys up on that. I do a lot of work with Intel over there in Hillsboro so I am over there a lot during the week. That was cool they had the air-show tonight over there, I may ride over there this weekend to see some of it. Anyway, if I get serious about the grips, I will contact you guys again and maybe you can help me with them.

Bud

tallannie · 08-11-2007, 10:00 PM

bud,

ok... give us a day or two notice here so we are sure to see it before you come. yeah the airshow is pretty nice..we watch the practices and but then this time we got out of town... we live so close the traffic is a nightmare. We often go up on our roof to watch... (only about a mile from the airport). Last year the plane that crashed landed about 1000 ft from our home!
Annie

BCblvd · 08-12-2007, 01:00 PM

I got my Iso grips, $49 on Ebay. I have received them now, and just got the Bike - Suzuki C90 - back from the 4000 mile service and safety recall yesterday. I was wondering if the stock bar end weights will work. The stilletos are my next choice, but they look too light, as they appear much smaller than the stock bar wieghts.
Thanks, doug

NA7A · 08-14-2007, 08:50 AM

Hey BCBlvd, ok on the C90 and grips, nice ride you have there. Dang good price too on the grips.

Tallannie, ok will do on the notice but it may be awhile as I have racked up a big list of wants first (hee hee). Ok on the airshow, yea, that must be a pain every year to have to deal with the traffic but you get front row seats on the roof!. Wow, that was sad about the crash but glad no-one got injured in any of the homes or area that got hit by it. Too bad about the pilot but I guess he went doing the thing he loved most. We as riders take some of the same risks. Take care and I will get hold of you if I/when I get the pegs. Thanks again for your support.

koolbreeze25 · 08-14-2007, 04:50 PM

NA7A,

Sorry for the late post. To answer your question, yes it uses the "long" bolts to secure it to the gribs. Just look on the web site or any shop should help.

Doug,

Yes they are smaller than the stock end weights, but have you picked them up? I would bet they weigh close to if not more than the stock weights.
Has I posted earlier I did notice that the handle bars didn't viberate near has much.

NA7A · 08-14-2007, 08:43 PM

Hey Koolbreeze, thanks for the update on the grips. It seems that would be a much better way to secure them by screwing them on. Ok on the anti-vibe, I don't really notice much vibe from my ride except at certian speeds.

MoonRunner · 08-18-2007, 11:11 AM

I assume you are buying grips for the Harley. Unless the sportster is very different than all the 88s and 96s then you shouldn't have to worry about them falling off. All the Harley grips I have seen are pre-glued at the manufacturer to a base sleeve surface that requires opening the two halves of the handlebar switch padcovers to mount the grips. Now, that being said I have seen a couple of the grip chrome outer surfaces come off, but the bike is still perfectly operable because the inner sleeve cannot come off without again splitting the control pad covers. And since it was supposed to be properly glued at the factory both occasions I'm aware of resulted in a new set of grips for free. As for the Kurys; if they do not list a specific model for the Harley then you are now dealing with peeling the old grips off and doing your own gluing in place for the new ones. The dealers sell contact glue designed for this but those and most suitable glues dry in about 3.2 seconds so you had better be ready, quick and get it right the first time! I know this from mounting some nice grips on my Honda GW and if I wasn't a big strong, quick thinking guy with a high pressure air hose immediately available I'd have been cutting the @#$$% things off and still cursing them. As far as screws, anything requiring screws or bolts on a Harley; BLUE LOCTITE is right for it 85% of the time. If it's cotter keyed you won't need the loctite. If the manual calls for red loctite, use it. If it just says tighten with any torque other than finger or hand tight, then Blue loctite is probably a great idea.

tallannie · 08-18-2007, 11:19 AM

FYI.. the 'long screw' are only to screw the end cap or the throttle boss onto the ISO grip itself. They are tiny and have nothing to do with holding the grip itself in place. For ISO grips on metric bikes, that is only done with a glue of some kind (and as you are reading there are many ways to glue it).

If this is a harley and needs disassembly of something to get the grips on, I may not be able to help you....ours were metric bikes and did not require any removal or dissassembly of housings as I read here.

annie

NA7A · 08-18-2007, 01:15 PM

Ok all, thanks for all the good information.

Moonrunner, thanks for the info on the Harley install, that makes since about the grips and the swtich. I will look into this more as I get closer to making the purchase.

Thanks Tallannie anyways.

Rickster · 08-19-2007, 05:04 PM

na7a, I had the Iso grips on my M50, and they were great, but like MoonRunner said, the grips on most Harley's are glue less. I installed a set of HD's "nostalgia" grips on my Road Kind, and I like them every bit as much as the Kuryakyn Iso's.

BCblvd · 08-19-2007, 05:14 PM

Annie,
I dont have a Harley, so I jumped in here, even tho it is the Harley forum. I guess what I am questioning is if you have to take off the clutch grip housing if you are not cutting the grip off. I want to save the stock grip. per the article on removal and installing Iso's here. They said a clothes hanger could be jambed between the grip and the bars to work them free. I just dont see it, with the little clutch grip in the way.
Thanks everyone - doug

Rickster · 08-19-2007, 05:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BCblvd

Annie,
I dont have a Harley, so I jumped in here, even tho it is the Harley forum. I guess what I am questioning is if you have to take off the clutch grip housing if you are not cutting the grip off. I want to save the stock grip. per the article on removal and installing Iso's here. They said a clothes hanger could be jambed between the grip and the bars to work them free. I just dont see it, with the little clutch grip in the way.
Thanks everyone - doug

On the HD's, the clutch side grip is sleeved, just like the throttle side, so you don't have to glue the grip to the bars, or cut the old one off, it, the new one, just slides over the bars, than locks in place under the clutch housing.
If you are trying to save the stock grips on your C90, GOOD LUCK, I have been able to roll them off at times, but you always wind up having some of the rubber on the inside of the old grip sticking to the bars, and if you try to use them again, it's real hard to get them to stay in place.

tallannie · 08-19-2007, 06:11 PM

..like Rickster said... I dont think you will be able to save the rubber of the grip... I just cut mine off. But the rubber grip covers should be all you have to take off on your C90...dont think you have to unscrew or unbolt anything to make this swap to the ISO grip.... I didnt need to on my C50 anyway.

BCblvd · 08-21-2007, 08:46 PM

Thanks, Rickster and Annie,
I dont think its any big deal, as I doubt seriously I would ever need the stock grips again, so I will plan to cut them off... That is what the instructions say, also for the C90.
My son bought a bike with Iso's already on it, and thinks they look too chrome, was wanting to get rid of his and use my old grips after I bought my own Iso's. I am still trying to get him to just look at them for a few days. I have the stilleto endcaps on order, along with the trim rings, maybe once he sees mine all together, he will change his mind.
Thanks again, doug

NA7A · 10-06-2007, 08:30 AM

Just had my grips installed yesterday, cost me $15 and they did a nice job too. Wow, what a difference...no more viberation in the hands, throtttle control is more responsive and now I can rest my right throttle hand and let the lower palm of my hand control the throttle with the Throttle Boss option on long trips. What a nice addition, i'll get some pics soon. Thanks to all for the support.

NA7A · 10-10-2007, 08:40 AM

Added one grip pic in above post.

08-10-2007, 09:05 AM	#1 (permalink)
NA7A Clunked into first gear Joined: Sep 2005 Bike: 07 HD Sportster 1200C, 05 Suzuki M50 (sold) Location: Oregon Posts: 220	Installation of ISO grips, any tips? I am thinking of purchasing the ISO Throttle Boss grips for my bike but everyone I have talked to so far states not to install them yourself but to have a dealer do it. They all tell me stories of grips falling off while riding by those who installed them without professional help. Any thoughts positive or negative or "yes you can do it, they are easy" kind of posts from others that have done it themselves?

08-10-2007, 09:50 AM	#2 (permalink)
tallannie Sit speling cheker Joined: Dec 2006 Bike: C50 Boulevard Location: Hillsboro, Oregon Posts: 1,816	it is very easy... at least on my Suzuki and my husband's VTX. search for the threads on 'ISO' and "numb hands and fingers"...or some such... lots of comments here on this grip and installing it. We really like our grips and the throttle boss. if you have bar end weights, it changes your vibration levels (usually for the worse in the mirrors for instance.)... these puppies are NOT falling off....lol... used Gorilla glue instead of the stuff they send.... Hillsboro, oregon here.... if you are close enough you can ride over here and we will do it with ya... __________________ ...Just in Time moto-cookie delivery

08-11-2007, 10:00 PM	#5 (permalink)
tallannie Sit speling cheker Joined: Dec 2006 Bike: C50 Boulevard Location: Hillsboro, Oregon Posts: 1,816	bud, ok... give us a day or two notice here so we are sure to see it before you come. yeah the airshow is pretty nice..we watch the practices and but then this time we got out of town... we live so close the traffic is a nightmare. We often go up on our roof to watch... (only about a mile from the airport). Last year the plane that crashed landed about 1000 ft from our home! Annie __________________ ...Just in Time moto-cookie delivery

08-12-2007, 01:00 PM	#6 (permalink)
BCblvd In Training Joined: May 2007 Bike: 2005 Suzuki C90 Blvd Location: Austin, Texas Posts: 112	I got my Iso grips, $49 on Ebay. I have received them now, and just got the Bike - Suzuki C90 - back from the 4000 mile service and safety recall yesterday. I was wondering if the stock bar end weights will work. The stilletos are my next choice, but they look too light, as they appear much smaller than the stock bar wieghts. Thanks, doug __________________

08-18-2007, 11:11 AM	#10 (permalink)
MoonRunner Seat Tester Joined: Aug 2007 Posts: 59	I assume you are buying grips for the Harley. Unless the sportster is very different than all the 88s and 96s then you shouldn't have to worry about them falling off. All the Harley grips I have seen are pre-glued at the manufacturer to a base sleeve surface that requires opening the two halves of the handlebar switch padcovers to mount the grips. Now, that being said I have seen a couple of the grip chrome outer surfaces come off, but the bike is still perfectly operable because the inner sleeve cannot come off without again splitting the control pad covers. And since it was supposed to be properly glued at the factory both occasions I'm aware of resulted in a new set of grips for free. As for the Kurys; if they do not list a specific model for the Harley then you are now dealing with peeling the old grips off and doing your own gluing in place for the new ones. The dealers sell contact glue designed for this but those and most suitable glues dry in about 3.2 seconds so you had better be ready, quick and get it right the first time! I know this from mounting some nice grips on my Honda GW and if I wasn't a big strong, quick thinking guy with a high pressure air hose immediately available I'd have been cutting the @#$$% things off and still cursing them. As far as screws, anything requiring screws or bolts on a Harley; BLUE LOCTITE is right for it 85% of the time. If it's cotter keyed you won't need the loctite. If the manual calls for red loctite, use it. If it just says tighten with any torque other than finger or hand tight, then Blue loctite is probably a great idea. Last edited by MoonRunner; 08-18-2007 at 06:12 PM. Reason: spelling

08-10-2007, 08:46 PM	#3 (permalink)
koolbreeze25 In Training Joined: Aug 2006 Bike: 2002 Suzuki VL1500LC Location: Lutz, Florida Posts: 128	I used these on the ends of the grips: Product Page Love the look myself, and can tell you that the vibration is a whole lot better than over the stock weights.

08-11-2007, 12:45 AM	#4 (permalink)
NA7A Clunked into first gear Joined: Sep 2005 Bike: 07 HD Sportster 1200C, 05 Suzuki M50 (sold) Location: Oregon Posts: 220	Hey Tallannie and Koolbreeze, thanks for the tips (no pun intended). Koolbreeze, do those tips also secure the grip by the screws I see there? Tallannie, thanks for the invite and I may take you guys up on that. I do a lot of work with Intel over there in Hillsboro so I am over there a lot during the week. That was cool they had the air-show tonight over there, I may ride over there this weekend to see some of it. Anyway, if I get serious about the grips, I will contact you guys again and maybe you can help me with them. Bud

08-14-2007, 08:50 AM	#7 (permalink)
NA7A Clunked into first gear Joined: Sep 2005 Bike: 07 HD Sportster 1200C, 05 Suzuki M50 (sold) Location: Oregon Posts: 220	Hey BCBlvd, ok on the C90 and grips, nice ride you have there. Dang good price too on the grips. Tallannie, ok will do on the notice but it may be awhile as I have racked up a big list of wants first (hee hee). Ok on the airshow, yea, that must be a pain every year to have to deal with the traffic but you get front row seats on the roof!. Wow, that was sad about the crash but glad no-one got injured in any of the homes or area that got hit by it. Too bad about the pilot but I guess he went doing the thing he loved most. We as riders take some of the same risks. Take care and I will get hold of you if I/when I get the pegs. Thanks again for your support.

08-14-2007, 04:50 PM	#8 (permalink)
koolbreeze25 In Training Joined: Aug 2006 Bike: 2002 Suzuki VL1500LC Location: Lutz, Florida Posts: 128	NA7A, Sorry for the late post. To answer your question, yes it uses the "long" bolts to secure it to the gribs. Just look on the web site or any shop should help. Doug, Yes they are smaller than the stock end weights, but have you picked them up? I would bet they weigh close to if not more than the stock weights. Has I posted earlier I did notice that the handle bars didn't viberate near has much.

08-14-2007, 08:43 PM	#9 (permalink)
NA7A Clunked into first gear Joined: Sep 2005 Bike: 07 HD Sportster 1200C, 05 Suzuki M50 (sold) Location: Oregon Posts: 220	Hey Koolbreeze, thanks for the update on the grips. It seems that would be a much better way to secure them by screwing them on. Ok on the anti-vibe, I don't really notice much vibe from my ride except at certian speeds.

08-18-2007, 11:19 AM	#11 (permalink)
tallannie Sit speling cheker Joined: Dec 2006 Bike: C50 Boulevard Location: Hillsboro, Oregon Posts: 1,816	FYI.. the 'long screw' are only to screw the end cap or the throttle boss onto the ISO grip itself. They are tiny and have nothing to do with holding the grip itself in place. For ISO grips on metric bikes, that is only done with a glue of some kind (and as you are reading there are many ways to glue it). If this is a harley and needs disassembly of something to get the grips on, I may not be able to help you....ours were metric bikes and did not require any removal or dissassembly of housings as I read here. annie __________________ ...Just in Time moto-cookie delivery

08-18-2007, 01:15 PM	#12 (permalink)
NA7A Clunked into first gear Joined: Sep 2005 Bike: 07 HD Sportster 1200C, 05 Suzuki M50 (sold) Location: Oregon Posts: 220	Ok all, thanks for all the good information. Moonrunner, thanks for the info on the Harley install, that makes since about the grips and the swtich. I will look into this more as I get closer to making the purchase. Thanks Tallannie anyways.

08-19-2007, 05:04 PM	#13 (permalink)
Rickster Bridal Boutique Manager Joined: Oct 2005 Location: St Paul Mn Posts: 2,901	*na7a, I had the Iso grips on my M50, and they were great, but like MoonRunner* said, the grips on most Harley's are glue less. I installed a set of HD's "nostalgia" grips on my Road Kind, and I like them every bit as much as the Kuryakyn Iso's. __________________ Ever notice that the person telling you to calm down, is the same one that got you worked up in the first place. 2008 1250 Bandit ABS 2008 DR 650 2006 HD Road King 2005 DL1000 V Strom (sold) 2004 Twin Peaks 700 2003 KTM 525 EX/C (for sale) 2005 Santa Cruz Heckler

08-19-2007, 05:14 PM	#14 (permalink)
BCblvd In Training Joined: May 2007 Bike: 2005 Suzuki C90 Blvd Location: Austin, Texas Posts: 112	Annie, I dont have a Harley, so I jumped in here, even tho it is the Harley forum. I guess what I am questioning is if you have to take off the clutch grip housing if you are not cutting the grip off. I want to save the stock grip. per the article on removal and installing Iso's here. They said a clothes hanger could be jambed between the grip and the bars to work them free. I just dont see it, with the little clutch grip in the way. Thanks everyone - doug __________________

08-19-2007, 06:11 PM	#16 (permalink)
tallannie Sit speling cheker Joined: Dec 2006 Bike: C50 Boulevard Location: Hillsboro, Oregon Posts: 1,816	..like Rickster said... I dont think you will be able to save the rubber of the grip... I just cut mine off. But the rubber grip covers should be all you have to take off on your C90...dont think you have to unscrew or unbolt anything to make this swap to the ISO grip.... I didnt need to on my C50 anyway. __________________ ...Just in Time moto-cookie delivery

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08-21-2007, 08:46 PM	#17 (permalink)
BCblvd In Training Joined: May 2007 Bike: 2005 Suzuki C90 Blvd Location: Austin, Texas Posts: 112	Thanks, Rickster and Annie, I dont think its any big deal, as I doubt seriously I would ever need the stock grips again, so I will plan to cut them off... That is what the instructions say, also for the C90. My son bought a bike with Iso's already on it, and thinks they look too chrome, was wanting to get rid of his and use my old grips after I bought my own Iso's. I am still trying to get him to just look at them for a few days. I have the stilleto endcaps on order, along with the trim rings, maybe once he sees mine all together, he will change his mind. Thanks again, doug __________________

10-06-2007, 08:30 AM	#18 (permalink)
NA7A Clunked into first gear Joined: Sep 2005 Bike: 07 HD Sportster 1200C, 05 Suzuki M50 (sold) Location: Oregon Posts: 220	Just had my grips installed yesterday, cost me $15 and they did a nice job too. Wow, what a difference...no more viberation in the hands, throtttle control is more responsive and now I can rest my right throttle hand and let the lower palm of my hand control the throttle with the Throttle Boss option on long trips. What a nice addition, i'll get some pics soon. Thanks to all for the support. Attached Thumbnails Last edited by NA7A; 10-10-2007 at 12:48 AM.

10-10-2007, 08:40 AM	#19 (permalink)
NA7A Clunked into first gear Joined: Sep 2005 Bike: 07 HD Sportster 1200C, 05 Suzuki M50 (sold) Location: Oregon Posts: 220	Added one grip pic in above post.