Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Cruise Control for my Airhead

Did some initial testing of the throttle friction screw from BMW, it provides tension on the throttle handgrip so one can lock the throttle in position while doing a carburetor sync during tuneups and such. You can also use it to "rest" one's throttle hand on the long rides, though I am sure BMW does not advertise that as a function.

It's promising and works on same principle as the Kaoko "cruise control" I use on Maria.

It's not that easy to get to while moving, so you have to be careful

Both pics from Google

I've been trying it out on long straightaways with no traffic around me and while it's not "easy" to adjust it on the fly; it's doable. Just get it where it's barely slowing the throttle grip's spring assisted return to idle while at a stop, then when you want to adjust it, it's slow enough that you can tighten it more while moving.

After that, its just a matter of putting the throttle where you want it, and tighten it down a bit more till it holds the throttle in the position/speed you want. Make damn sure you've not tightened it so much that you can force the throttle to idle with your hand! Both this and the Kaoko Cruise Control I use on Maria allow me to cut the throttle easily.

Remember to loosen this screw when in city/heavy traffic or you'll be expending more effort than usual actuating the throttle. Not to mention, if you have a get off, the dang throttle will be held open which could it make it interesting trying to engage the kill switch on a bike that's spinning around on its jug because the rear wheel is still spinning!

Read here for snowbum's story and warnings re using this and other similar devices! LINK


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