I have been using a twist for the past year. I have not decided what I like better.
Twist Pro - Better comfort on long rides
Thumb Pro - The Feeling of better control
Twist Con - not as easy to do quick turns jumps and wheelies
Thum Con - Hurts after a while..

I cant seem do decide. I get one and want the other..

 

So true, We put the thumbsaver on the polaris (wife's bike) and the honda(youngest daughter's). Now we can go on longer rides and enjoy it, without hearing how much their thumbs hurts. Overall, I think on the quad, the thumb throttle is a lot safe to use. I like twist throttles, but think they work better on motorcycles.IMO

 

I like the thumb throttle for better control. I have noticed that my Honda's don't hurt my thumb as much as my Yamaha used to. Some require more pressure to push. I have a hercules sized thumb on my right hand and a popeye sized thumb on my left. j/k

 

Do any of the motorcycles come with a thumb throttle?

 

if your thumb hurts just ride more it will go away[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img] i like the thumb better, but have rode the twist and could live with that also.

 

The first mod i do on any quad I buy is to get rid of the thumb throttle. I do alot of 50+ mile rides and that thing has got to go. They are not for everyone though.

 

Some of us have a hard enough time just keeping the tires down to be able to handle anything more than just hanging on with my hands[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]. I have a couple friends that have them on their quads, and they love them, but they used to race motorcycles and that is just what they feel comfortable with.

Justin

 

I can't stand twist throttles for riding in the California Desert. I'm sure WHERE you ride has a lot to do with throttle preference as well, but around here a twist (for me) feels like a death wish. I'm not a big fan of having the front end come up a little, then try to get a good grip to bring it back down which on a twist means you're now heavily on the throttle making the front wheels come up REALLY quick. This just makes a minor situation into a bad one. With time and practice, I'm sure that goes away though.

About this thumb soreness thing - I remember having that during my first years of ATV riding; but these days I've never had any sort of bother at all & I've been on some pretty long rides. I think the REAL answer is you guys need to ride more! Also make sure you have the right grips - I've got pretty large hands - XXL gloves sometimes don't fit well if the brand is small so I use those cheap foam ATV grips on all of my ATVs. I did some research and found out which brand of the foamies have the largest diameter as well. Ever since I started using those my hands are no longer sore or cramped from long rides, which may be a direct link to the lack of thumb soreness. Perhaps you guys should look at your grips one more time as well. Also note that my Fiance even with her much smaller hands LOVES the foam grips for comfort. Considering they are cheap, I keep a few pairs on hand in case they get torn or rotten (hasn't happened yet) but at $3.99 each pair I really CAN afford to keep changing them and making sure I have brand new ones on the quad! (So far they've lasted about three years on the 2001, so I'm not risking much.)

 

I've been using the thumb for 20+ years and like it much better than the twist on ATV's. Using a twist on dirtbikes is a different story for some reason. You can't hang on to the handlebars with the twist in rough spots or hillclimbing. As far as my thumb hurting on long rides it never does. Just need to ride more and get that thumb use to it.

 

the first thing i did to all my quads, remove the thumb throttle's and throw them away as fast as i could!.i'm on the tall side where the tumber would hit my thigh in tight right hand turns,sometimes to bad results.i ride dirt & street bike alot and after 31 years of riding i've become bias i guess.my stand up 750 jet ski also has a twist.as on all it keeps me from hold it full throttle too much and i like to hold it wfo but the thumber easier to hold full throttle, ask OZZY about tumb throttle's,i'm sure he like's them alot,make's a stock banshee do a 150mph,hehe