White finger

[Flipper_Man]

Related to the bike….so I thought I’d post here.

10th BMW bike, 9th GS and 7th GSA variant and this new one (Dec last year and 800miles now) is causing white finger like nothing before !

Yesterday was first sustained ride ‘at speed’ (140miles) following 600mile service a couple of weeks ago and the result is below. I’ve got the mototec (?) bar-end weights on it also.

I’ll take it out again today and see if it’s at certain revs but not looking forward to 5days in Scotland in May at this rate. I guess it’s just the boring stuff up to and back from the border at high speed. The rest will be lower speeds twisty road

stuff.

Any good remedies for white finger people have ?
Should I worry that it’s out of balance and vibration is more than in should be ? (I didn’t really notice yesterday that it was).

 

[Flipper_Man]

 

[Santa-2512]

How hard are you gripping the bars?

Are you leant forward on the bars, weight on the wrists ??

this may help

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[Robbi]

I've never seen the like of that before.

Even after many many years of rattley old brit bikes, I've never seen anything like that.

 

[shez1]

Very strange, my 1250 is the smoothest gs I have owned (of many). Perhaps your engine is not balanced correctly?

 

[10tenmen]

I have suffered from this syndrome sometimes called vIbration white finger or Raynaud's, I worked with hydraulic power tools during the 80s, the only time it causes a problem for me is when it’s cold out and riding the bike, this has happened on every bike I’ve owned and I rode motorcycles in my job.
I tend to ride with heated grips on as this alleviates the problem but doesn’t stop it occurring.

 

[squibb34]

New bike angst, excessive vibes, hanging on too tight, thin gloves or just the angle/height of the bars?

Whilst they impact effectiveness of the heated grips, you could try 'grip puppies' or similar if the condition persists.

 

[JohnnyBoxer]

Never seen that either

 

[Robbi]

How long does it last once you've stopped.?

 

[steveC]

I have suffered exactly the same issue, unpleasent and dangerous when you attempt clutch/braking operation.

It was probably 6 years ago. It was a GS1200 TC. If I remember correctly it was after a service and I took the bike back and explained the problem. The service department said all was fine but went over the settings and got them as close as possible to perfect. All was then good.

Ive had far too many bikes and the only other BM that gave me similar problems was a GS650 but only at motorway speeds.

Hope you get it sorted.

 

[bosnjo]

Grip Puppies would take care of lot of vibes.

 

[smudger64]

Another one for grip guppies.
Fitted them recently after I was being left with pins and needles in my fingers after a long rides.

 

[DevonAl]

I have had grip puppies on all 3 of my BMW’s, I have had nerve and carpel tunnel issues and the extra diameter makes a lot of difference, for me anyway.

Al.

 

[Micko123]

I have 'normal' adult male sized hands and take a size 10 glove,
I found the standard BMW grips a little too small in diameter so bought some Grip Buddies from Nippy Norman, not only does it increase the diameter of the bars to a more natural feel for my hands it also helps damp any vibration from the bars too.
I don't think the Grip Puppies increase the diameter as much as the Buddies... but they would probably let the heat through from the heated grips better, you can still feel the heat with Buddies fitted but Winter riding I use heated gloves as well. I also fitted Evotech handlebar end weights and don't notice any vibration through the bars now.
I worked with quite a few people with Renaud's syndrome (often called vibration white finger in industrial settings) and they were advised to keep hands warm to help with the tingling white finger tips. I formed the impression that keeping warm was just as important as avoiding the vibration which may lead to more damage. Maybe Grip Puppies for more heat from the grips and heavier bar end weight to tame vibration would be your first step and see how it goes from there. Your engine may get smoother the more miles you put on it. Best of luck anyway.

Sent from my SM-G981B using Tapatalk

 

[Flipper_Man]

Thanks for the comments. Went out today and did 35miles or so, varying engine revs and speeds etc…..no issue at all !? Think I’ll go for some grip puppies - I find the bar diameter a little small.

 

[Flipper_Man]

Beginning to think that I might have been sat on a nerve or something ?

 

[Popell]

Lik ly to be way off in terms of a solution, when I suffered from pins and needles in left hand I realised that either my watch, the cuff or the glove strap was a little tight , I guess it impeded blood fLow slightly. Loosening off cuff and gloves solved the problem at the time.

I did get a bit of pins and needles on last ride, different bike and cuffs not noticeably tight so I need to check tab balance.

 

[BigKev67]

Beginning to think that I might have been sat on a nerve or something ?

I would say thats Raynauds for sure. My 2021 GSA does not have vibrations, the smoothest bike I have had (50 yrs of biking), at least below 70mph. Bit of a tingle starts at 75mph
My wife has severe Raynauds. The circulation shuts down to the fingers and they turn milky white. Its triggered for her by touching something cold, just picking something from the fridge can cause it. Her fingers will only restore circulation if they are rubbed and warmed.
As the weather warms you should improve, just dont let your hands get cold and you should be fine

 

[Bobbin-Man]

As already mentioned, what you are seeing is Raynaud's phenomenon, it can be caused by vibration but there can be other causes, most commonly cold. It's characterised by the defined divide between the skin colours and is actually restricted blood supply to the extremities, worth a bit of internet research.

I also suffer from Raynaud's but it's related to my core becoming cold, possibly also linked to a low resting heart rate. It has happened on the bike, but is as likely to occur when I'm sat doing nothing. The arteries restrict and the blood supply to my fingers is reduced or even cut off completely, there's usually a tingling sensation first which is a useful early warning that it's going to occur. Swinging your arms around like a propeller will force blood to the finger tips but not particularly practical on a bike, also it can be quite painful as the blood returns to the fingers tips.

Strangely, I can go skiing, mess in snow even without gloves, go for a run in cold weather, but if I sit in front of the TV and the room isn't warm enough it triggers the Raynauld's. It's certainly not consistent person to person and in my case is definitely connected to heart rate.

 

[GSMarky]

I'm a size 9 glove, so normalish hand size and I find my 2020 GS grips just a bit on the small size diameter wise. Reading this I'm going to try the Grip Puppies..