Any tips getting new handlebar grips on?

tardington

(I did try the Search function I promise!)

I got new handlebars for my bike in the sales... I picked up new grips because my old ones were knackered. Whats the best way of getting the new grips on? They don't seem to slide on very easily. The man in the shop tried to sell me a bottle of degreaser to use, but I didn't believe him - more fool me!

Is there a simple (cheap) way? Can I *really* boil the grips first to expand/soften them??

Or am I missing something obvious?

Totalnewbie

Washing-up liquid works quite well

Random Vince

hair sprey works well,

it works as a lube before leaving a slightly sticky resudue which disolves in water when you come to get them off

depending on what the grips are made of (soft rubber, hard rubber etc) its indeed possible to do it by putting them in hot water to expand them a little before sliding them on

partly cos you're using water to lube the grips on and the water will dry out
partly cos you've expanded the grip and it'll shrink on


i roll my grips on, but then they're soft rubber and i can roll them up

tardington

Well, both ideas sound good - my grips are soft rubber, so hairspray should work a treat to slide them on. But boiling them up sounds fun!


Um, squeezy liquid, wouldn't that make bubbles come out when it was raining?

ALSO I am full of pride, I have just changed my stem! Without looking at manuals etc! Only possible from asking the guy in the bike shop, I admit, and the late discovery that my pedal spanners other end was the size for the big nut-type thing that helps hold the stem in!

Totalnewbie

The boyf used the washing up liquid tip and he hasn't reported bubbles on the bike

I got it from the bloke in the LBS

tardington

Ooh, ixnay on the boiling for now - the gf just came in when I was about to put them in the pan and said No. :shock:

Though it is the pan we use the most for cooking... Wimmen!

tardington

Totalnewbie wrote:

The boyf used the washing up liquid tip and he hasn't reported bubbles on the bike

I got it from the bloke in the LBS

Bike specific washing up liquid? *intrigued*

Totalnewbie

No, just the stuff you (or your gf!) uses to wash up with...it's slippery stuff.

jefferee

Be careful with the boiling--some polymers actually have negative coefficients of thermal expansion so your grips might shrink slightly (although this is likely to be more than offset by the additional flexibility).

Anonymous

Hair-spray.

Random Vince

i'm not fond of the washing up liquid due to its potential lubricating properties when i dont want it to twist

i now use lock on grips

el_presidente

I bought soem hair spray specifically for grips. It lives in my toolkit. though now I have bought lock-ons for my latest build as I've been moving kit round so much

Anonymous

Here in the US, every bike shop has "Hair Net" hair spray on the bench. I've used it since I was a kid.

prj45

Any tips getting new handlebar grips on?


Onto what?

Anonymous

prj45 wrote:

Any tips getting new handlebar grips on?


Onto what?

Certainly onto the handlebars they are made for.

This isn't a gardening forum.

Cheys03

Methylated spirit.

Use a rag to apply liberally (and quickly!).
Slip the grip on
The methylated spirit will then evapourate leaving no residue, and a very secure grip.

whyamihere

WD40 will help, as that evaporates very quickly. also handy when you're taking them off, squirt a bit of WD40 under the grips and slide them off.

prj45

My Fnar Fnar meter is going crazy.

richardjallen

I used washing up liquid last time and it worked but the grip did twist for a while after. There were no soap suds Hairspray sounds good I imagine it would secure the grip once it dries.