Honda cycles have been held hostage from custom grips for too long!! While Kuryaken grips are comfortable and look decent, there is no individuality between your bike and all the other Hondas out there. Stock grips? Fahgetabout it!! I wanted some flamed design grips to go with the new look of my Shadow but all I could find was grips for Harleys and customs....well mine is about as custom as Shadows come....so I ordered a set to see if I could delve into the unknown as to why 1" bar, Harley dual cable grips would not work on our bikes....
I removed the Kuryaken grips and slid the new Harley grips on...The left was the easiest so I started there. The new grip slid up on the bar no problem. It is retained not by some pathetic glue that will break loose on you going down the road, but by three allenhead set screws. It sits about 1/4" away from the left switch housing so the Harley grip is not as deep as the Honda grip. I am uncertain at this point if this is true for all the Harley grips or just the ones I bought.
On to the throttle side. The switch box on the throttle side fits over the grips cable retainers, so the grip actually enters the switch box. The switch box has a set pin in it which seats it onto the bar so it doesn't slide around the bar. The bar has a hole in the bottom of it that this set pin seat into.
Since the grip did not slide up on the bar far enough, the pin cannot seat into this hole. At this point there are two options....
You could drill a new hole for the set pin to seat into, thus moving your entire switch box, lever, and mirror down the handlebar about 1/8th an inch. Easily done if you can drill on a round surface. I would use a plasma cutter to pop the hole in there and then drill it round....but I chose option B.
I chose to grind the end of the bar down using an angle grinder. I figured if I took off 1/8th" the grip would slide up farther and allow the switch housing pin to seat into the bar. The following instructions are to that end.
To grind down the end of the bar you must first remove the bar end weight that Honda uses. There are two holes in the end of the bar. Use a punch or screw driver to press in and then out towards the end of the bar to release the clips of the bar end weight. Pull it out of the bar and save to reinstall after grinding.
Slide the grip onto the bar and put on the lower switch housing. Note the distance that the pin needs to go to reach the hole in the bar.
At the end of the bar, use a marker to mark that distance to grind off.
Cover the mirror and any other pieces of glass or plastic before grinding so you do not pepper them with hot shavings.
Using the angle grinder, grind the end of the bar until you reach that mark.
Wipe the bar off to remove dust and metal and slip the grip back on and recheck the housing seat pin.
Once the pin seats easily and the cable retainers on the grip is centered in the channel in the lower switch housing, pull it all apart.
Grind the openings on the switch housing that wrap around the grip as shown in the picture below.
Reinstall the bar weight, liberally grease the inside of the grip and lightly grease the end of the bar.
Slip the grip back on and put the cables back in place. Put the screw in the housings to hold the halves together while you reconnect the cable at the carb linkage under the tank.
*** NOTE: *** Do not twist the grip until the cables are secured at the carb ends or the cable will pop out of place from the grip.
Now tighten the screws and then check the twist of the grip. If it is bound and not twistable, you will need to take the cable back off of the carb linkage, separate the housings, and grind the housings open some more as shown in that last picture.
Repeat until the throttle twists easily and snaps back into place.
CONGRATULATIONS!!!
Gonzo
02' Shadow Spirit "Vicious Cycle", 98 Valkyrie "Eragon"