Riding your bike with no hands can be a fun, easy way to show off your biking skills and balance. But just because you can ride without your hands on the handlebars doesn't mean you can ride with worn-out, slippery or damaged hand grips. Hand grips affect your riding control and comfort. Replace your old hand grips and you can ride longer, more easily and with better performance.
Removing Old Grips
Step 1
Loosen your brake clamp and shifting levers and slide them away from your old grip.
Step 2
Pull out the bar plugs from the handlebar ends.
Step 3
Insert a screwdriver between the handlebar and the grip.
Step 4
Spray a lubricating substance --- water, rubbing alcohol or other lubricant --- between the grip and the handlebar to loosen the grip.
Step 5
Twist and pull the handlebar grip until it comes off the handlebar.
Step 6
Wipe the handlebar down so that there is no debris or moisture on the bar. Let the bar dry for a few minutes before proceeding.
Putting on New Grips
Step 1
Spray water into your new handlebar grips to help ease them onto the handlebars and lock them in place once positioned correctly.
Step 2
Place one handlebar grip on the end of the handlebar and slide and twist the grip to move it fully onto the handlebar. Repeat on the other side.
Step 3
Slide the brake clamp and shifter back into place and secure them to the handlebar.
Step 4
Put the bar plugs back into the handlebar ends.
Tips and Warnings
- If you plan to throw your old grips away, try cutting them off with scissors instead of pulling and twisting. When attaching your new grips, you can spray the grips inside with hair spray instead of water. This helps the grips to not move or twist around once you have them attached.
- Be careful not to damage your handlebar when sliding the screwdriver between it and the old grip.
Things You'll Need
- Flathead screwdriver
- Spray bottle
- Water or other lubricant
- Hairspray (optional)
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