vibration

[DJones]

My hands are numb from vibration after riding about 20 miles. Would pouring sand in reduce the amount of vibration felt in the handle bars? I have oury touring grips installed.

[Anonymous]

There have been many suggestions. Not sand though. BBs and silicone--lead shot etc. I have weights inside my handlebars.

[AOD]

the key is adding weight...because vibration is not based on volume or area...and the material properties of your handlebars (steel) aren't going to change.

i reccomend a good pair of gloves to help with vibrations as well.

~Adam

[KEITH KRAUSE]

You might want to re-torque the engine mounting bolts and bars, forks, etc. Sometimes a good carb synch' will help.
I have found that numb hands are not always due to vibration. Depending on the position of your bars, your wrists may be turned up a little and this pinches the blood vessels on the top of your hand. Gloves can make it worse. Dropping your throttle or clutch hand for just a few moments can help a lot. If it does help, you know the immediate results are bad circulation and not vibration.

[SqDancerLynn1]

another thing that can help is to relax your grip on the bars. If you have a death grip on the bars it will agravate the problem

[earlfor]

Re: vibration

What kind of bike?

Earl

My hands are numb from vibration after riding about 20 miles. Would pouring sand in reduce the amount of vibration felt in the handle bars? I have oury touring grips installed.

[Anonymous]

I was about to ask that same question, Earl.

I can say that a GS850 is incredibly smooth, particularly at 65 to 70 mph, and the GS1100GK at 70 to 75 is also quite smooth.

I just don't understand how anyone can complain about GS vibration when we talk about some of the smoothest bikes ever made, even 20 years after they came out.

Nick

[silverhorse47]

Keith actually the entire blood supply, both to and from the hand goes through the carpal tunnel on the palm side of the wrist, along with the nerve supply. Your idea of keeping the wrist straight is definitely correct, though the carpal tunnel is 'designed for movement' as it were, and usually there is something wrong with it if numbness is occurring when the wrist is cocked.

Vibration is a separate issue and is on it's own damaging to nerves. It causes a condition called 'white hand' if sustained over long periods of time, as for example with chainsaw operators with years of experience.

Ideally the wrists should be straight, there should be no vibration, and the hands and arms should be loose and relaxed. As the square dancers say..."Hold on loosely, but don't let go."

silver

[KEITH KRAUSE]

Unless there is something mechanically wrong, I really don't think a GS will vibrate enough to numb your hands. And if the blood flow into your hands is on the palm side, then gripping the bars, especially the throttle,
is going to restrict some of the flow of blood.
silverhorse47, I have 1 large vein on the top of each hand. Are these for RETURN flow?

[argonsagas]

Keith, ALL veins are for return flow.
Pressure in the veins tends to be less than from the arteries which have to get the blood to where it is needed, in quantity, but after that it returns to the lungs in the veins.

[earlfor]

Thats where I was going Nick. Between the two of us, we cover
the GS750, 850, 1100 and 1150. My sewing machine vibrates more than my 1150 and the 750 is even smoother. :-) Before filling thing with sand and lead shot, I'm inclined to check alignments, torques, engine specs, ignition timing and carb tuning and set up. Instead of covering up a problem, why not fix it?

Earl

I was about to ask that same question, Earl.

I can say that a GS850 is incredibly smooth, particularly at 65 to 70 mph, and the GS1100GK at 70 to 75 is also quite smooth.

I just don't understand how anyone can complain about GS vibration when we talk about some of the smoothest bikes ever made, even 20 years after they came out.

Nick

[silverhorse47]

Keith...only one vein? Holy doodly! that would mean either your cepahlic or basilic vein is missing. *S* Yes they are for return flow.

You are right in pointing out that venous return is part of circulation. You are also right in pointing out that there ARE veins on the dorsal surface of the hand.


My point is that these are not in a bony canal... they are superficial veins and are thus not really subject to compression when the wrist is bent, because the skin and fachia that overlies them yeilds to them.

This is an adaptation which accomodates the 'gripping' abilities of the hand, and allows the hand to have veinous return even when the palmar surface is grasping an object.


I was more trying to make the point that it is more likely the nerves of the hand...the nerves that for example control dilation and constriction of the blood vessels, and which supply the nerve and tendon sheaths, that are most negatively affected by vibration, that it must be prolonged vibration, and that in the presence of straight wrists, loose hands and a well tuned machine, it would not be a problem at all.

[Anonymous]

One vein - is that then the main vein?

I agree with the suggestion to get a proper fit on the bars in relation to your hand - AND - to check it over for mechanical issues (carbs out of sync, etc.).

There is no way that bike should numb your hands, especially after 20 miles.

Why - that's only 15 minutes on a chain and 2 hours on a shaft. 8)