Many people get tired of using a cigarette lighter port to charge their electronics (or maybe don't have one), and do this fairly simple modification.
This isn't a very in-depth tutorial. If you need more help than this, just ask. Or, perhaps, consider whether you actually want to do it.
The pictures are large so you can zoom in, if you want. My hands are in the photos (which I don't like, either). Apologies for that. I'm not a photographer.
Tools and Materials:
one DC power adapter (cigarette lighter port type) with USB outlet
-the one I'm using I bought for $5.25 from Target. It came with a wire with two male ends: micro-USB for my phone and mini-USB for my MP3 player. Look around, they're near the junk in the check-out section.
(http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t196/84CrapJ7/DSC06207.jpg)
You can buy a practice adapter here for $0.02:
http://www.amazon.com/Compact-Car-Socket-Power-Adapter/dp/B002HQYM5E/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1283279685&sr=8-5 (http://www.amazon.com/Compact-Car-Socket-Power-Adapter/dp/B002HQYM5E/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1283279685&sr=8-5)
-30w soldering iron
Onewith a hot knife attachment works well. Make your own or buy one:http://www.amazon.com/Xacto-X73780-Precision-Soldering-Knife/dp /B000BRBZUG (http://www.amazon.com/Xacto-X73780-Precision-Soldering-Knife/dp%20/B000BRBZUG)
-Super Glue/ epoxy (optional)
-solder
-shrink wrap
-diagonal cutters/ wire strippers
-Liquid electrical tape
-silicone sealant
-a few feet of 16 ga wire
-2 amp fuse and fuse block
-about an hour
Do not wear nice clothes. This will get pretty messy. You've been warned.
To wire it to your bike, you'll need the same from above plus the following:
-Relay or relay switchable fuse block
-Relay socket and required wiring
-mounting hardware (stainless steel hose-clamps work fine. Zip ties are okay. Velcro. Whatever you like.)
"Relays are $6! Screw that!"
It ensures your battery won't drain. Most of these USB adapters have a small red/green LED to signal that they're getting power. You want to keep that LED for troubleshooting purposes in case you crack the board or a soldering joint fails.
Also, if you forget and leave things plugged into it, you could possibly drain your battery overnight.
You can use a dedicated switchable circuit that turns off with your key, like the taillight circuit or something. That would save you $6 whole dollars. But, I don't like piggy backing power feeds off of each other. In case something fails, it's only that particular circuit affected. That's MY preference - do whatever YOU like.
Enough talk!
Step one:
Pry apart the outer casing. Like so:
(http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t196/84CrapJ7/DSC06190.jpg)
A small precision screwdriver works fine. Just pry it open. Don't stab yourself in the palm.
Don't just rip it open! The wiring is attached to the ground clips on the outer housing.
Inside, there will be a small circuit board. A spring. A glass fuse. And, a lot of empty space.
The small glass fuse by the spring on the "nipple" end is 2 amp. You won't see me wire a replacement fuse for it, I'm adding a dedicated multi-circuit block at a later date. I'll simply use a 2 amp mini-spade in that block, in a relay switchable circuit.
I'm not gonna show you how to wire a relay to your bike here. There are other tutorials for that.
Step two
Identify the (+) and (-) feeds:
Negative:
(http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t196/84CrapJ7/DSC06191.jpg)
Positive:
(http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t196/84CrapJ7/DSC06192.jpg)
The little nipple end is always the positive. The long rectangular plates on the cylinder are the negative.
It's printed on the board if you forget.
Look close, it's labeled something like "In +" and "In - ".
A wire feeds to the negative end - give yourself as much room as you can when you clip it.
The small spring can be hard to cut with cheap, rusted little snippers like mine.
Step eleventy seven
Solder wire extensions to the power leads:
(http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t196/84CrapJ7/DSC06199.jpg)
(http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t196/84CrapJ7/DSC06200.jpg)
In those photo, I've already soldered and shrink wrapped. I've double-backed the wires against the board and zip tied them. This provides stress relief.
When you tug and pull on the finished product, the wires won't simply pop out and ruin it.
You'll notice that I wired my leads straight to the board. You can do whatever you like.
BIG IMPORTANT NOTICE: !!! Do not reverse the polarity! You will fry either the board or the battery of whatever's plugged into it.
In case you need reminding: use red wire for (+), black for (-). I'm adding my fuse later, as I mentioned. The (+) side gets the fuse.
Step C
Gouge out the body of adapter to make room:
(http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t196/84CrapJ7/DSC06196.jpg)
(http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t196/84CrapJ7/DSC06194.jpg)
I used an exacto knife and my soldering iron. Looks ugly, but it works. The idea is to make enough room for the added bulk of the wiring.
The small end (where the little "nipple"/positive end used to be) can either be cut out or simply enlarged. Use your own discretion. If you're lucky, the two wires will fit through the original hole, but probably not.
You don't need the metal bands around the outer body anymore. Throw those out.
Step Aardvark
Prepare to ruin your carpet:
(http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t196/84CrapJ7/DSC06202.jpg)
Do this step outside so your wife doesn't get mad. Paint the entire thing in Liquid Tape. Yes, it's $10 a can. Use whatever you like. Peanut butter or something.
Give it a few good coats, with time to dry in between. Or just dip the entire thing into the can if it will fit.
NOTE: Be careful of the USB end. You can clean the goop out of it later, but it's easier if you just plug it first.
Step F12:
More messiness:
(http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t196/84CrapJ7/DSC06203.jpg)
Fill the case halves with silicone. It's gonna be very sloppy, so mind your expensive trousers.
Cram the circuit board in there, and smoosh it all together.
Run the wiring out of the small end, where the original little "nipple" used to be.
In this picture, the two halves have obviously been smooshed together already.
Yes, it looks like a turd. Yours probably will too. But, it will work, and you've only spent $6.
Note:
I don't have a picture of this, but it will be very obvious. There will be two rectangular holes on either side of the cylinder. That's where the old grounding spring plates used to be.
If you use enough silicone, it will smoosh out from those holes. That should be sufficient water resistance. You can beef it up if you want.
Step meatloaf:
Secure the case halves.
I don't have a picture of this step. My hands were too messy.
Simply secure it all together with a few zip ties while it's drying. The zip ties won't hold it permanently!
Here are a few options:
-superglue
-epoxy
-plastic welding
I just used my soldering iron to melt the two halves together. Cheap and easy. But, the vapors are carcinogenic.
Step Six
Goop stuff around the USB connection:
(http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t196/84CrapJ7/DSC06206.jpg)
No, it's not the best. I know. I just painted it with Liquid Tape.
You can also wire it straight to the board just like the power leads. But, I wanted to retain some modularity.
Notice the small round bump in the picture above. That's the LED. Wipe that off with a paper towel, keep it clean.
Retaining the LED let's you trouble shoot the unit - it indicates whether the board is getting power or not.
(http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t196/84CrapJ7/DSC06204.jpg)
Incredibly ugly, but functional. The point is to keep it out of sight, anyway.
Places you can put it:
-under your seat, by the battery
-in the spaces of the tail fairings
-tucked into the front fairing, if you have it
-possibly inside the headlight bucket, but probably not
-in your luggage/top box
Run the USB lead ends however you like. If you want to run them through your upper-front fairing, use grommets so the cables won't abrade.
I'll likely mount mine inside here, hose-clamped to the headlight bracing:
(http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t196/84CrapJ7/DSC06212.jpg)
I'll run the USB ends through a grommet here:
(http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t196/84CrapJ7/DSC06209.jpg)
The leads are long enough to prevent binding at full lock in both directions.
My high-end electronics package ( :icon_rolleyes:) is mounted here:
(http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t196/84CrapJ7/DSC06208.jpg)
Like so:
(http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t196/84CrapJ7/DSC06210.jpg)
(http://i160.photobucket.com/albums/t196/84CrapJ7/DSC06211.jpg)
I use industrial 3M velcro that clicks when it sticks together. It's fairly expensive, but holds INCREDIBLY strong.
Your phone will come apart before the velcro fails.
I'm getting an Evo or something later, and I'll mount around in the same place. Inside an otter box, maybe on a RAM mount.
Now, all you have to do is wire the power leads into the bike. This part is up to you. Remember the 2 amp fuse.
Ways to improve on this:
-use a small electronics project enclosure instead of the original casing
This way, you can get better water resistance. Especially with the main USB port.
You also gain mounting options, but you lose space.
-clean it up nicer, of course
-mount it permanently inside a top-box/trunk, perhaps with the main USB port showing to the outside
-whatever else you can think up
This may help you. If not, well... I'll get over it. :thumb:
Great write up Homer. I've procrastinated on setting mine up and perhaps i'll follow yours instead of trying to figure it out on my own. :thumb:
Looks good! I like how you have the phone conveniently mounted.
Pretty crazy, I did a somewhat similar thing last night to my bike.
I took some ring terminals and connected that to the battery, through a fuse and to a small waterproof connector. That is zip-tied right under the front of the seat to some other wires.
Then, I made a dongle with the mating waterproof connector on it that connects to a cigarette lighter outlet that has a pair of wires coming out. I only plan on using this on longer trips where I'll be using my tank bag, so I just plug in the dongle, plug in the 12V accessory and charge away. I didn't bother with a relay, since I'll never leave my tank bag on when I walk away, and I have to physically disconnect the cable to pull the tank bag off anyway.
And, coincidentally, I made it to charge my Evo! :)
dunno about wiring through the grommet in the fairing if the device is on the bars - lots of tugging going on there. I just ran it up along where the throttle cable is routed so it moves with the whole steering thing.
like the conversion though.