I know it's a Harley, but....

[Honeyburst]

There's got to be SOMETHING either I'm doing wrong or have changed...........my hands always go to "sleep" (get numb) after anything longer than a 1/2 hour ride.......(been on a quite a few 3-4 hour rides).........this NEVER happened with my 81 Shovelhead, and I rode it cross country a couple of times.......My father-in-law says it's probably the vibration in the bars (he rides a 100th ann. Road King).......I've put on mini-apes with custom grips.....arms are below the shoulders.....even tried one of those "cramp-busters"......and no, there's no "death grip" going on....

suggestions or just grin and bear it ???

[fatboydon24]

the only thing i can think of,have you replaced the rubber bushings with the polyurethane ones.if not, maybe try this,although when I replaced them,i had vibration,but not enough to put hand to sleep,I know what your talking about.

[Honeyburst]

rubber bushings where ???

[richvz]

I have notice the same problem but have figured out that it is not from vibration or the heighth of the the bars up or down but the angle of the hand in relationship of the hand grip right or left causing the strain and putting my hand to sleep so to say

[AlanS]

You can try some heavy bar-end weights. I'm talking the 12 to 14 ounce ones. There's also something called 'BarSnake'. The weights have always worked for me.

The 'rubber bushings' would be in the risers for the bars, down where the risers join the triple-tree.

That's good advice about the angle of your wrists in relationship to the grips, too. Not saying that's your issue, but a bad angle will make a bad situation worse.

[EODHOG]

...it can be tamed some with the bar snake (as mentioned) and some Iso grips. Sometimes just the angle or reach othe bars put your wrist at a bad angle. A different style of bars might be the ticket.

[EODHOG]

Originally Posted by Honeyburst

rubber bushings where ???

Riser bushings. Ruber from HD. With apes, some folks replace them with poly units to eliminate the slop.

[trackrat]

i had the same problem with my rk. iso grips and gel gloves took care of that.

[THEBEAR]

It seems to me numbness in the hands comes from tension in the neck and shoulders. I try to adjust the position of my arms slightly when my hands start to go numb. It works for me.

[mfalba]

Maybe it's not the bike!

Over 35 years old, worked with your hands all your life?

Could be experiencing Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.

Might want to get checked out.

[mungo]

A lot of good points here.

I'd give the Kuryakyn ISO grips and the poly bushing a try.

Even try something like taking an aspirin before you ride. It should thin out the blood and help it circulate better.

[Honeyburst]

good suggestions all.......I'll (like everyone) try the cheapest method first........going to pull the bars "back" a little (about an inch), which will change the wrist angle and lower them a tad......will keep you posted......thanks for the suggestions !

[DarrenLMP3]

i had the same problem. Turns out i had CPS. had surgery on the worst hand (Left) and waiting for the next hand this winter. No numbness at all now in the left hand. i was going to do both hands at the same time but my wife said she doesnt love me THAT much.

[Gunny4Sawx]

Look for some gloves with gel insets on the palms as well, helped me out a lot.

[smoke245]

Guys I have a question related to the handlebars. I have a 2005 Sportster 1200 custom with the drag bars and I have purchased pullback bars. Does anyone know what size and which cables I need to change out to make the fit?