I did a search for swapping in a twist type throttle for the lt and found a post that LT80 respoded too suggesting not to do it, and was hoping to get some feedback on it.

I hate watching my daughter reach over with the other hand all the time trying to push the thumb lever down! She complains alot that it makes her thumb sore. She is eight and has only ridden the LT three times. I want to make it a positive experience for her and am worried she will not want to ride if it is always uncomfortable and makes her hand hurt!
How long does it take for the kids to get over this problem?

LT80 you said it caused a few crashes and would not do it again, why do you think it contributed to a crash?

Thanks tim

 

Think about it. Newton's law for every action there is a reaction. You pull back on throtte ,reaction is your body weight gets pushed back. This puts more action on the twist throttle giving it more gas. If you let go then there is only one hand on the bars. I would never think about a twist throttle. There has to be a reason they put thumb throttles on them in the first place. You may try an entender on the thumb throttle. Some of the little ones use them in our racing series.

 

Tim,

I see your question was directed towards LT80. While waiting for him to reply, here's my supporting info....

Approx 2.5 years ago, I was thinking of installing a twist throttle as well. From a "white board" perspective, the twist throttle looks so much easier. If we have them on motocross bikes, then shouldn't they also be on mini-quads too?? During my research, I came across a national racer who stated, "tried it, crashed it 3 times, remove it and would NEVER do it again" feedback. Can't remember who wrote it but I do know it was one of the 5 top racers on this forum. Their feedback instantly changed my thoughts about twist throttles on mini-quads. Like many, I listen to experience and learn from their many "lessons learned".

If you want to remove tensioner on the thumb control, the easiest way is to remove the Oil Injection system, install a single gas cable and go with 32:1 mix. We removed the Oil Injection on our Pred-90 and it immediately removed 50% of the spring tension. From a "less stress on the thumb" perspective, I'd do this change on our Pred-90 again. We'll worth it.

Other's install thumb control extensions. Some encourage their "young rider" to continue to drive their unit - until their thumb muscle gets stronger. This varies from rider to rider but could take 3 weeks to 3 months. Others install twist throttles and "play the odds" of improper body posture and hope he/she doesn't freeze in the death grip position.

What ever works best for you and your "young rider"....

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Tim,
The other fellas explained it very well. I still consider it to be one of my biggest mistakes.

Might I suggest possibly re-positioning the thumb throttle. Sometimes a little adjustment one way or the other helps with thumb fatigue and comfort..
Hope that may help.[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

 

Funny how timing is everything. I just started to fabricate a extended thumb throttle for my sons Kasea Skyhawk 50. I noticed that he could not grab the the grip and push the thumb throttle at the same time(not safe!!) So my first thought was to go out and buy a $19.00 thumb extension. Well the problem is not so much the legnth of the thing but more the angle that it come off the bars(No help!!) Into the shop I went. With about 8.00 worth of steel from Home Depot and 2 hours of shop time I was able to fabricate a new thumb throttle that is kind of offset and runs almost paralell to the handle bars. This enables him to hold on and use the throttle. As his hands get larger and he can reach the stock thumb lever I will just swith it out. I was actually quite a cool project for me. I had a great sense of accomplishment when it actually worked for him. I hope this helps! and if it doesnt at least I got to tell everyone that I built a custom part for my sons quad. LOL

 

Here's something I came across a few moments ago....

- Press Here -

Don't know if it will fit on a mini or how good it really is, but it looks really cool....

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