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Numb Hands

6180 Views 15 Replies 9 Participants Last post by  tgodon13
hey guys, for some strange reason while riding the 899 even for like 5 minutes my left hand gets numb. ( right hand has nerve damage and a lot of crap so its only my left hand) my upper body is relaxed, I'm not death gripping, and its not the gloves cuz i rode without them and have the same issue. any help would be greatly appreciated.
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Odd you mention this, I get the exact same thing too (my right hand tho), about 95% of the time I ride. I didn't get this with the 848 and I also am always double checking my riding posture. Weird. I get that limb "falling asleep" sensation where it gets numb and tingly. My left hand is always just fine. I thought it would only be me and just all in my head so I was embarrassed to say anything or ask.

In my case though, I think it might be that side of my body because my right foot tends to get the same way, shoes or boots, no matter where my foot is on the peg. Maybe it has to do with where my ass is on the seat and the shape of it, along with the position of nerves in my spine, and it just happens to be a combination that affects my physiology...but even that sounds like I'm crazy haha!
Do you both use the stock seat?
I do, unmodified.
Maybe the comfort seat is worth a try for you. My hands tend to get numb, too.
The 899 I got for a Weekend had this seat installed. You seat nearer to the fuel tank. This position takes some pressure off your hands.
you could look at installing some bar end weights
Wouldn't the comfort seat makes it worst. It place the rider higher, thus more pressure on your hands?
Maybe it's just something with the frequency of vibration and you. My last bike was a CBR600RR and my right hand would always go numb. Haven't had it happen with the 899 at all. Something about the 7k RPM range on the CBR used to disagree with my hand.
I get this as well in my right thumb only. Again I thought it was just me, didn't think there could be a 'cure' to this. Thought I would just have to live with it
ok im glad its not just me.... well not glad but at least I'm not alone in this. also to point out once it gets numb the only way to un numb is for me is to literally just let my arm dangle. even if i take all the pressure off the hand by going into the tucked position and pretty much my hands barely has any pressure on ta bars. for the bar ends I've used the stock for 3 weeks and then changed to the ducati anodized aluminum bar ends for a week with the same results. have u guys changed bar ends and it helped n if so which ones? thanks all
yea stock seat because i got a 899 i can't really afford a comfort seat at the moment hahhaa
so got this off another forum hope it Helps explain things……

Bar End Weights

How do they work?
AAAAAyyyyy!!! Bar-end weight theory: As your motorcycle runs, the handlebars form a resonant mechanical system. That is, the bars tend to shake at certain frequencies, in certain ways. The lowest frequency, or fundamental, is a motion you could call, "flapping." This is where the center of the bars, between the clamps, is motionless, and the tips of the bars are vibrating most. This is typically the strongest mode of vibration, and the first one you should attack. If this frequency is any component of the characteristic frequency spectrum of your motorcycle, then the bars start to flap away, bothering your hands. There are three ways to solve the problem.
Stop the vibration. Many aspects of motorcycle design can come into play to check vibration at the factory. Details of crankshaft design, firing order and angle, mounting location, and counterbalancers can be used in concert to make for smooth running. If the engineers who designed your bike were skillful and careful about these factors, as they affect vibration, you can stop reading now- you don't need this product.
Dampen the vibration. From an engineering standpoint, dampening means eliminating the resonant frequency of the handlebars. The proper way to do this is with a precisely designed flexible attachment between the vibrating part and a solidly mounted part, in other words, a shock absorber. The flexible attachment must be tuned to exactly oppose the specific frequencies of resonance, so vibration put into the bars will not be allowed to build up in them and hurt your hands. Unfortunately, there is no proper way to dampen the handlebar motion, without a mechanical linkage from the outside of the bars to the frame of the bike, other than the bars. There are products out there which purport to dampen handlebar motion, but they can't technically "dampen" the fundamental frequency, since there is no linkage between the bar ends and the frame. That is not to say they don't "work." I haven't tried them, but I know many who are quite satisfied with them. Why, if they aren't dampening the bars from flapping? The higher-order harmonics of the resonant frequencies should be effectively reduced by, say, inserting a combination of weight and viscoelastic material into the bars. Due to the physics of the situation, the higher the vibrational frequency, the less weight is required to disrupt the motion, and the less solid the mounting point of the dampening system needs to be. So having a heavy elastomer all the way through the bars would be great for the higher harmonics, with the internal motion of the elastomer discouraging the formation of standing waves in the bars. But that lowest resonant frequency, the flapping motion, is typically the strongest. For that motion, all that elastomeric stuff in the bars is only as good as its mass. In other words, it operates just like plain weights- it lowers the resonant frequency, and discourages the tips of the bars from changing speed quickly. This brings us to the last means of vibration control.
You could change the resonant frequency. When operating in this mode, the closer the weight is to the tips of the bars, the more effective it is. Solutions that involve equal mass throughout the length of the bars, have only a fraction of their mass working for the cause. The rest is dead weight. As a rule of thumb, any mass between the first two curves of the bar from center, is dead weight, and any mass at the tips of the bars is fully effective. That's why our bar-ends are designed to maximize weight just outboard of the bars. They are 12.5 oz. per side or more, and every ounce hits home.
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Interesting read, I didn't realise numbness could be so in depth. This has cleared up what I thought bar ends were actually for 👍
Odd you mention this, I get the exact same thing too (my right hand tho), about 95% of the time I ride. I didn't get this with the 848 and I also am always double checking my riding posture. Weird. I get that limb "falling asleep" sensation where it gets numb and tingly. My left hand is always just fine. I thought it would only be me and just all in my head so I was embarrassed to say anything or ask.

In my case though, I think it might be that side of my body because my right foot tends to get the same way, shoes or boots, no matter where my foot is on the peg. Maybe it has to do with where my ass is on the seat and the shape of it, along with the position of nerves in my spine, and it just happens to be a combination that affects my physiology...but even that sounds like I'm crazy haha!
My right hand only as well. It is better since replacing the stock grips with ProGrip gel Superbike grips, but I still get it after about 20 minutes or so, especially highway riding. It is not as numb as when I had the stock grips. I guess maybe I'll try some heavier bar ends. I have the comfort seat, but it happened with the stock seat as well. Any suggestions on bar ends?

Thanks....
My right hand only as well. It is better since replacing the stock grips with ProGrip gel Superbike grips, but I still get it after about 20 minutes or so, especially highway riding. It is not as numb as when I had the stock grips. I guess maybe I'll try some heavier bar ends. I have the comfort seat, but it happened with the stock seat as well. Any suggestions on bar ends?

Thanks....
UPDATE from this past weekend. It never dawned on me before, but riding around on the back roads and county roads near my home I was pretty much always riding in 5th gear. This past weekend I used mostly 6th while riding these same roads and there was no right hand numbness. I did about 70 miles. I guess the lower RPMs of 6th gear helped vs. the higher rev's of riding in 5th. Food for thought...maybe others have the same habit of staying in a lower gear than is really needed.
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