I haven't seen much talk about this, other than heated grips. I just rode up to the Gerbings factory on Friday and picked up a jacket and pants with a dual controller. I haven't quite figured out how I am going to tidy this up, but I am certain it will involve me drilling holes in plastics. Has anyone else done a heated gear install? Care to share some photos?
I have a set of Warm N Safe and wired the cable to a male Powerlet plug and use the same female connector I've wired in that also powers the tank bag. I guess if I used the electric gear for a super-extended period I'd have a conflict with charging my iPhone and Sena, but haven't found a conflict yet. I have the same setup on my FJR except a dedicated Powerlet female plug that goes through a heat controller. Now, it's possible if this was either the only bike I had, first bike I'd used heated clothing, and didn't need to worry about heat controller--I'd probably just wire the coax plug and let it dangle under the edge of the seat.
I use a powerlet outlet mounted to the handlebar clamps with this bracket: http://www.twistedthrottle.com/sw-m...for-flush-mount-12-volt-bmw-euro-style-socket Don't need to do any drilling with this option.
Presently my cable comes out from the front of the seat. But I just bought a cigarette lighter adapter that will go to the cigarette lighter mounted on my handlebars between the clamps.
I'm thinking there has to be a better way to do this than having cables flapping around. I tried to figure it out today, but a friend needed help with a front tire, and that turned into an afternoon affair. My goal is to take this thing... And make it disappear like this...
Oddly enough, my buddy Next and I were just discussing heated gear. All the time I rode in Maine and I never used any. Mostly, I think I just want a nice pair of gloves. I have no idea what to get or what I need so this should be a useful discussion.
Are you planning on pulling it apart, or buying the permanent install version? http://gerbing.com/collection/temp-controller-permanent-dual.html $120, per bike :-) I'm a big fan of the warm n safe remote stuff. I have an early version, not the permanent mount variety. I just use velcro to stick it on whatever bike I'm riding. http://www.warmnsafe.com/remote-control-heat-trollers/ You get the benefit of the on bike mount, but only buy one unit. The batteries only last a season, but are easy to replace.
I am planning on pulling it apart and adding some panel ports if I can find the space to do it. I'm thinking the left plastic is going to get the job again, just like it did with the 12v accessory plug. It is kind of roomy in there.
I'm a big fan of the Gerbings gear. It isn't cheap, but when you fator in that it is made in America and comes with a great warranty, it just blows the First Gear and Sedici crap away. Plus, you have the added benefit of riding to the factory in Stoneville NC and picking it up. They fitted me there which was a great idea. I absolutely would have bought the wrong size without their guidance. Also, at the factory you can save a bit of money because they have backstock of "last year's" model. I literally hooked mine up in the parking lot on my trip and rode home wearing it. The G3 gloves are amazing. I just couldn't justify them when I've got heated grips. But since all my bikes don't have heated grips, I might be able to convince MrsDonkeys to get them for Christmas.
What kind of price tag would gloves run? Did they require a controller as well? I really don't know a thing but the idea of riding to the store seems like a great field trip.
No, the G3 is their motorcycling glove. The T5 was the predecessor, but I think the G3 is a lot softer and better feeling. These require a controller. If you are just going to do gloves, I would recommend doing battery powered gloves or just getting heated grips ($20). The G3 gloves are really designed to feed off the jacket, and are designed to integrate nicely.
They offer several motorcycle gloves. The T5 and G3 are currently offered along with some others. I'm on my fourth season with the original microwire T5. I've used them with and without heated grips, I don't need heated grips if I'm wearing the gloves. Pro's: - they are warm when dry, without the heat - they are really warm when dry, with the heat. - all day comfortable and warm, when dry. Con's: - They are horrible when wet. (1/2 the year here in sunny Oregon) They were horrible when new, and in spite of various treatment attempts, they are have remained horrible. 30 minutes of sold rain and you'll be waterlogged and wet inside the glove. From then on it's pure misery. I try to mitigate with Aerostich Lobster overliners, but that's a major hassle. It's a fundamental design flaw, the outside leather has 3 openings on the back of the knuckle. The water just loves it, crawls in, gathers with other water, and then soaks through. There's stitching all over the place. I cant' wait to replace them. I've got a pair of BMW summer gloves that I got on close out that have Gore-Tex. I don't know why they are called summer gloves, they are very warm, say down to 50. They are bone dry all day. I'm going to get some heated liners to try under those for the colder days. If they are still using the same design, I'd highly recommend they be avoided. Here's a pic showing the openings on the fingers, the inside appears to be retro reflective, but it shows up black in regular light.
Krussell, I got to compare both side by side this weekend. The factory had the old T5s in my size. They didn't have the G3s though. They are COMPLETELY different construction. I took one look at the T5 and immediately ruled them out. I tried them on anyhow because they suggested I do so to understand the difference. They were right, the two are night and day different. I found a set of G3s at the BMW dealer in Greensboro, NC the next day, and came really close to buying them. I think the G3 would be near the perfect winter glove even without the heating elements. A rider up in the Raleigh area said he bought his G3s last year, and never even got around to getting a controller because they work so well. http://www.advrider.com/forums/showpost.php?p=22748747&postcount=13621 I just can't justify the expense, especially since I just did heated grips. I suspect I'll give in eventually. I'll be riding to work tomorrow morning in the rain at 27 degrees Fahrenheit. That should be a pretty good test for the heated grips.
For now, I velcro'd my stuff down. I had racks to install tonight, and it was getting cold quickly. So I'm going to go this route until I really get a feel for where I want everything.
Good to know. When I first went with heated gear I bought a controller and jacket liner from both Warm-n-Safe and Gerbing. I tried them both back to back, and ended up keeping the Warm-n-Safe liner and controller, but went with the Gerbing gloves. I don't remember why. When the $ allows I think I'll order the Gerbing G3, and the Warm-n-Safe liner and do the comparo again. FWIW, The gerbing gloves work fine with the warm n safe controller and connect up nicely with the jacket as well. We get the best of both vendors hear in the Pacific NW. Warm N Safe distributes from the other side of town, and Gerbing has a store up in Olympia Washington.
My original Gerbing / Warm-n-Safe comparison lives on... http://bmwsporttouring.com/ubbthrea...=showflat&Main=49779&Number=546907#Post546907 The crux of the biscuit... "There's no wrong choice here. If you are using the WarmNSafe remote Heat-Troller, I'd recommend the WarmNSafe jacket if it fits you well. The Heat-Troller integration is excellent. Otherwise I'd go with the best fit."
Well, i tried installing the Hot Grips variable heat controller for my heated grips this morning. So far it isn't working. I have it wired correctly, but my grips aren't warming...unless it takes a really long time for them to get hot with the PWM module. I had to call it quits for a while, but I'll be back at it tonight.
http://hotgrips.com/pdfs/VHC-2.pdf shows the correct wiring. I wired my leads from the Bikemaster (under the grips) heating elements as shown in the diagram and all works well. I do have to be riding around for about 10 minutes with the knob turned fully on before I feel any heat. After the grips heat up I usually turn the PWM knob to about half. Works sweet. Also this setup makes it easy to troubleshoot.
Yep, that is exactly how I'm wired...in parallel as shown. I just hooked up a LED to test and I'm getting nothing. An led should exhibit some light at full tilt.
