I have a 2001 GS and I would like to add a few things to it for safety and touring. I am looking into adding the following below, please fill in with any suggestions and insight:
-Accessory power port: cigarette lighter or usb, I haven't decided yet
-2nd Brake Light: Something really powerful with modulating ability
-Fuse block: to manage above accessories and future accessories. I am thinking I will probably add LED driving lights in the future and possibly heated handgrips for fall/winter
I have been doing some brainstorming for these farkles, for the fuse block I have found a nice kit from Eastern Beaver. They have multiple different kits, the 3 Circuit Fuseblock- All Switched looks great, especially for $42.95.
http://www.easternbeaver.com/Main/Products/Fuseboxes/3_Circuit/3_circuit.html
Not sure what else is out there. I would run the relay switch from the brown (accessory) wire in the headlight and wire the power wires to the battery. One terminal would be for a power port, another for the 2nd brake light, and the third for future accessory (heated grips or LED drivelights).
(http://www.easternbeaver.com/Main/Products/Fuseboxes/3_Circuit/a_3cs-new_1.jpg)
For the 2nd brakelight I am pretty set on going with the Whelen LIN3 LED ($50). I live in Philly and about 50% of the cagers here text and drive, so I need to get their attention.
(http://www.vlsusa.com/images/items/lin3ralg.jpg)
http://www.vlsusa.com/cgi-bin/vlsusa/RS%2A02ZCR.html
I would modulate this with a universal brake light flasher ($19.95)
(http://www.3rdbrakeflasher.com/bmz_cache/5/5f44f540055b87a43898cbd8419c3c29.image.412x550.jpg)
http://www.3rdbrakeflasher.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=65&products_id=181
This is where I get confused, can I run the 2nd LED brakelight off the the taillights? Will it get enough power to the LEDs? This way I can free up extra space on the fuseblock for the future accessories.
As an FYI, I will be switching the gauges/idiotlights/taillights to LEDs to save a little on power so that the system won't be as taxed when I add these accessories. Again, thanks in advance for your input!
I see no issues with your plan.Just be aware that when you make these changes to the lighting system you will need to step up to an electronic flasher relay.They aren't much.I think I gave $6 for mine.Any auto parts store will have them.You can do a search here for electronic flasher relay and the part number will come up.
which part will need an electronic flasher relay? doesnt the brake modulator suffice? i am not upgrading the turn indicators/signals yet (thats the only thing i understand id need an electronic relay for)
Quote from: jfoley on June 01, 2011, 07:43:19 PM
which part will need an electronic flasher relay? doesnt the brake modulator suffice? i am not upgrading the turn indicators/signals yet (thats the only thing i understand id need an electronic relay for)
When you change the load, the GS flasher relay will hang and not flash.Replacing it with an electronic unit eliminates any issues.
Just wanted to share this from another forum I follow. Looks like a good way for me to make some auxilary LED driving lights:
(http://i1047.photobucket.com/albums/b480/duckrider1/IMG_20110331_180150.jpg)
http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=674118&highlight=leds
I looks like the LIN3 has several built in flashing modes so you won't need the external modulator.
The only concern is power draw. The factory brake lights draw 21W each for a total of 42W. (the running light filaments draw a few more watts, but they're on a different circuit so we don't care about them) According the the spec sheet (which is more of a marketing flier since it lacks any useful information), the LIN3 will draw about 5W.
That's about a 12% increase in power draw through your brake switches. Will that be OK? Probably. The biggest risk is in welding your brake switches closed - switching direct currents with mechanical contacts is tricky as they tend to arc when closing, bringing bits of metal from one terminal to the other. DC contacts will always fail, it's just a matter of when and upping the load on one will shorten its life.
That said, I don't think it will be an issue here - the life span of the brake switches are probably well beyond that of the rest of the bike and the added wear from such a relatively small load will be negligible in the grand scheme of things.
The issue that ben2go is referring to is the turn signal flasher. It's an old style mechanical flasher where the flash rate is dependent its load. So if you install low power LED turn signals, it will flash way too fast. This can be fixed by installing a solid state flasher. I don't think anything you're planning on doing will cause a problem though.
Lima: the flasher modes on the LIN3 are for emergency and synchronized flasher as such on a police vehicle. I want to have the system be legal so I am going to use the modulator for 4 quick flashes followed by ON. I have ordered LED taillights from superbrightleds.com, so that should cut down the power drain on the tail light circuit significantly.
I also ordered the above parts for the LED driving light assembly above (eBay lights + MR16 LED bulbs).
I will run the driving lights straight off the brown wire, will I need a fuse? I will not be doing the fuse block for now and will just run the accessory port with a relay on the battery switched from the brown wire.
Ahhh, I didn't realize constantly flashing tail lights were illegal. It may depend by state, but I can understand why - I see guys with them all the time and think they are incredibly annoying. It's almost as if they're trying to encourage people to hit them to stop the incessant flashing.
Only thing I'd be concerned about the LED tail lights is if they're at least as bright as stock. I haven't looked into them in a few years, but last I checked, they were not. Of course LEDs have come along a bit since then, but cooling the LEDs is still the biggest challenge with high brightness LED lighting and that can be tricky with retrofit bulbs.
I probably wouldn't use a fuse for this, but you have to be comfortable in the quality of your connections and the reliability of the devices you're adding. If there is any doubt, adding a single 1A inline fuse wouldn't hurt anything. I would suggest using heat shrink crimp butt connectors for your connections. I think you can get them at Radioshack, Walmart, or Amazon - just make sure you use the proper crimp tool. You can probably also find them at a boating store. Solder and heat shrink works well too. IMHO, using IDC splice connectors, nylon insulated butt connectors, and electrical tape are inappropriate for this type of electrical work.
well the lights aren't necessarily illegal, but I want to be noticed, not annoying...so I am going to use the flash module.
I don't really know too much about wiring (I'm an ME not an EE), 1 amp fuse in the headlight bucket would work for the front lights? I will probably wire in a female bullet connector for future addition of a relay switch wire to go down to an accessory cable or fuseblock on the battery (I still need to add the power socket for my GPS).
Lima: thanks for the info on the connectors. I was looking for some advice with that. My soldering is pretty awful and I always seem to goop the solder all over the wires. Connectors will be nicer because then I have the ability to connect/disconnect in the future.
The 3CS kit looks nice and the fact that it is switched makes it even better. :thumb:
(looks like it is relay switched to me - grounding the black wire on the left looks like it would pull in the relay, center left with the fused red lead)
Regarding your brake light addition -- if you keep the original lamps and add the LEDs in parallel, there would be an insignificant increase in the demand on the system. I wouldn't worry about that.
Ben2go is correct about the turn signal circuitry (and GSTwin has had thousands of words written about that, half are mine).
The issue is not just the load but also the 'trick' that Suzuki used to make the circuit work.
There is a sticky about this in the FAQ section.
I'm glad to help. I'm a CE/EE and just so happen to work in a shop that does a lot of custom wiring - I'm no expert when it comes to actually laying and terminating the wiring, but I've picked up a thing or two over the years.
As per the fuse selection, I was previously talking about the LIN3. A good rule of thumb is to select a fuse at least twice the maximum rated current draw of whatever device it is protecting. The LIN3 is rated at 390mA @ 13.6VDC, doubled and rounded up to the next integer gives you a 1A fuse.
For the running lights, you'll need to calculate current draw from the light's power rating. This is pretty easy for DC circuits:
I (current) = P (power) / V (voltage)
The LED running light bulbs consume 4W each, for a total of 8W. Since we want to know the maximum current, we'll use the minimum voltage they'll normally see - 12VDC. Note: when you crank the engine, the bus voltage will drop significantly below 12VDC, but I don't think this will be an issue here. So:
8W / 12VDC = ~667mA
Double that is 1.2A, so round up and use the next integer rated fuse - 2A.
You also need to make sure you use an appropriate gauge wire that can handle more current than the rated fuse. Since you're dealing with fairly small current and short distances, you don't need to go too crazy here. I would say 22 gauge stranded wire would be more than enough.
Bullet connectors are good, just make sure you use the weather resistant type. There are a number of these already on the bike, so you could get them from the dealership if you wanted to be consistent. Or just get whatever you can find is good too. You can also find multiple terminal weather resistant automotive connectors at your local auto parts store.
To do the setup you're thinking about, I think the kit you had in your first post would be perfect (the one with the relay, fuse holder, etc all ready to go). The positive and ground cables should connect directly to the battery and not spliced into any existing wiring. Splice the ignition wire, connect your accessories, and you're all set.
Now not to toot my own horn, but I am a god at soldering - I've been doing it for over a decade now, I solder almost everyday as part of my job, and can hand solder SMT parts down to 0.5mm pitch. That said, I much prefer crimp connectors for this type of work; they're faster and easier to do, and if done properly, yield a more professional and reliable result. Plus, the cheap wiring used in automotive applications doesn't like heat all too much, and the insulation will melt and shrink. Not that there is anything really wrong with soldering, but IMHO crimping is better.
The trick is using the proper crimping tools and you'll probably need 2 different tools. First, a butt connector crimper, but there are 2 types - insulated and non-insulated depending on if the connector has insulation over the part that you crimp. Most tools have slots 3 sizes of connectors - red, blue, and yellow - and connectors will be color coordinated to match (a blue connector gets crimped in the blue labeled slot on the tool, etc). I suggest a ratcheting tool like this one (http://www.amazon.com/Ratcheting-Crimp-Tool-Insulated-Terminals/dp/B0002KR9GQ/ref=pd_sim_e_3) - it comes with a die for insulated terminals but you can buy a separate die for non-insulated if needed. These will cover you for the butt and bullet connectors (which die you need depends on the connectors you use obviously).
Next, for the multi-terminal connectors like those for the accessories in the kit you have pictured above, you'll need a 'Molex' type crimper like this (http://www.amazon.com/Delphi-Packard-Five-cavity-Wide-range-Crimping/dp/B003MWJ6SA/ref=sr_1_cc_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1307207610&sr=1-2-catcorr) one. This will crimp the individual terminals that are inserted into the connector housing. Technically, each type of terminal needs its own special crimping tool provided by its manufacturer, but this can get very expensive for the average Joe, so I just use a generic tool and make due. I'm sure you've seen these types of terminals before - they have 2 pairs of tabs where one pair is bent around and into the insulation and the other into the conductor. All you have to do is use a smaller slot in the tool for the conductor, then a slightly larger slot for the insulator. With a little practice, I'm sure you'll figure it out. I highly recommend getting extra terminals if possible and they're usually only a few cents a piece.
With a little practice, your crimps can be almost indistinguishable from those in the factory harness.
well im thinking ill wire the driving lights in parallel (?, Y-type splice) then use a 4A Inline fuse and crimp connectors to the brown wire in the headlight bucket and the black wire (negative?) wire in the headlight bucket. I would also add in a bullet-type connector on the brown wire and driving light connection for a relay switch in the future. I'm not going to do the whole fuseblock thing yet I think (too much money at once).
I didn't think of running an inline fuse on the LED taillight. I will be running it in parallel and now I will definitely run a 1A fuse on it. Thanks for the suggestion! I'm away this weekend so I am hoping by the time I get back most of the parts will be there.
My roommate is a ME/Mechatronics/hobbyist EE so I am hoping he'll be able to help me out a bit.
Yeah, definitely wire the driving lights in parallel, but you only need a 2A fuse for both lights - my calculations earlier were based on that assumption, so the 2A fuse is for both.
Driving them both off the brown wire will probably fine, at least temporarily. I would definitely still get that relay kit at some point, and it's good that you're planning now for it.
Yes, the black/white wire is negative or ground as it's usually called. For now, you can use the headlight's ground, but when you go to the relay kit, you really should use the ground it provides and connect the kit's main power and ground directly to the battery. Ideally, every device should have its own direct path to and from the battery; if installed correctly, this kit does a pretty good job of this.
I put the LEDs in the idiot lights, gauges, and the taillight. Very happy. Taillight was more noticeable at running, but not more noticeable when braking. If I were not doing the 2nd brake light, then I would not have found it worth it to change the taillights to LEDs, they are not as bright as incandescent on braking and are pricey.
I will update with a pic at some point this week, kinda tired now.