Zeta hand guard model

Hi guys, just bought an 08 WR250X in another city and will be flying to pick it up and ride it back home in a couple of weeks. One thing I am a bit worried about is the cold seeing as its winter in NZ. I would like to prebuy some zeta hand guards and plastic sheilds to help keep my hands slightly out of the weather. Can anyone tell me if I need to buy anything specific to get the guards to fit? Here is a pic I have of the bars

Here is what I am intending on buying

zeta_armour_alloy_handguard

zeta_x2_protector_black

Cant post links as im a newbie still

I can see two problems with your plan:

1. Handguards are not that easy to install. How much time will the seller allow you to spend there in order to install them?
2. Handguards don't protect from the cold that much

I have ridden my WRR through 4C weather and my hands were freezing, despite the handguards.

I therefore suggest that you get some handlebar muffs; they may look dorky, but I have ridden through sub-zero temperatures with these and my hands were toasty.

Hi, that’s a good point, will it take more than a couple of hours? The bike is at a friends place but I arrive in the evening and leave first thing in the morning to get to where I need to go. I will have a look at the silly looking hand muffs

Two hours would be sufficient if you had all the correct components. The question is, what are the correct components? I presume you're looking at these Zeta Handguards? Should you get the Standard clamps, or the U-Style ones? It all depends on the handlebars you have; on the ProTaper ones I use the U-Style ones fit a lot better. You really won't be able to know until you try them on.

But again, the handguards don't protect that much from the cold.

How long do you expect the return trip to be, and what are the minimum temperatures you are likely to encounter?

yeah looking at those handgaurds

The return trip will be 3 days, with lowest temperatures being around -5c or 20f

I am thinking the hand muffs will be the easiest option for me now. I would like heated grips at some point but the ones I want will take too long to arrive now

These are seriously low temperatures. Forget about handguards, get the muffs and some good winter gloves; for that matter, make sure you have some good winter gear from top to bottom.

I never liked heated grips: they keep your palms warm, but the back of your hands still freeze; heated gloves work much better. In fact, if you can get some heated gear, that would be the ideal solution, and you don't have to bother with muffs. They're expensive, but if you plan on riding during winter, it may be a worthwhile investment. Plus, the installation would be easier than installing handguards.

Hey mate,

Our NZ winters are not exactly happy days out on the motorcycle, but I have found that a combination of heated handgrips, handguards & winter gloves do make things bearable if not toasty & sweet as.

I have a 09 WRR and they came with a pair of Zeta XC Handgrips which didn't do much good to cut the cold out last year, so this year I picked up and installed the Oxford heated grips and they have made the cold bearable. I don't get toasty grips on a cold day and fingertips do always go cold.

In terms of install, the Zeta handgrips are not hard at all, pretty easy & quick to install. After the handguards broke because they had gotten brittle, I just made new larger ones using acrylic, this has helped cut down the amount of wind hitting my hands as well.

If you don't have the time and inclination to install either handguards or heated grips, then muffs are the best way!!!

Thanks for the input guys, as I am going to pick up the bike next weekend I have bought some oxford muffs at this stage as they are the cheapest and easiest option, but will look at shields and heated grips going forward. The heated gloves definitely look good but not sure I will use them much outside of this ride so its not very good value for money, and having to keep the batteries charged isnt ideal for something I might use a few times a year

I have heated grips and barkbusters storm which deflect most of the wind. With good quality winter gloves that's probably OK for most of NZ winter, bar the Mainland on a really cold day!

I ended up going with these items. They havent arrived yet, but I hope they fit. Still having trouble finding a decent set of heated grips, they seem very controversial

ZETA PRO ARMOUR GUARD TIT
SKU: DF-ZE71-8003

ZETA ARMOUR XC OPT FLASHER OR
SKU: DF-ZE72-3991

ZETA ARMOUR PL GRD XC BLK
SKU: DF-ZE72-3106