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headlight, taillight and ignition switch wiring questions.
- Thread starter section8joe
- Start date
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- Tags
- electrical
Purplezinger
XS650 Addict
The analogy at the top in incorrect It would be more accurate stated this way:
Using a Garden hose as the example,
Water pressure is the voltage
The diameter of the hose is the wire gage
The amount of water passing a given point, in the hose, is the amps (current)
The amount of water collected in the bucket is the watts.
Using a Garden hose as the example,
Water pressure is the voltage
The diameter of the hose is the wire gage
The amount of water passing a given point, in the hose, is the amps (current)
The amount of water collected in the bucket is the watts.
Section8joe didn't say just how he hooked up the switch. Generally a switch that is marked B, IGN, L.
The B is the battery, hook this to the battery with a 20 amp fuse.
IGN hooks to the ignition thru a 10 amp fuse.
L hooks to the lights thru a 10 amp fuse.
Some are a two position on/off switch, some are three position off, on, on with lights.
Your "crappy Harbor Freight" meter is a very good meter. It's as good or better than most $40 meters. Once you learn how to use it you will find it works very well.
The B is the battery, hook this to the battery with a 20 amp fuse.
IGN hooks to the ignition thru a 10 amp fuse.
L hooks to the lights thru a 10 amp fuse.
Some are a two position on/off switch, some are three position off, on, on with lights.
Your "crappy Harbor Freight" meter is a very good meter. It's as good or better than most $40 meters. Once you learn how to use it you will find it works very well.
section8joe
XS650 Addict
Thats exactly how I hooked up the switch. I only have a 20 amp fuse by the battery but I think I'm going to add the other ones too. Thanks again everyone for the help.
With just one fuse, if the tail light shorts out the bike quits. A fuse for each subsection of electrics makes troublshooting easier. One main, one for ignition, one for lights is minimum. One for the brake light and horn. Another for the turn signals.
section8joe
XS650 Addict
Should I put these fuses here?
What about the b/w wire on the ingition unit that goes to the sidestand relay. I know I don't use it how can I identify it? There are two b/w wires on the ignition unit.
What about the b/w wire on the ingition unit that goes to the sidestand relay. I know I don't use it how can I identify it? There are two b/w wires on the ignition unit.
Not exactly, Instead of the fuses being one for the headlight and one for the tail light, I would use one for both. Put one fuse in blue wire from the switch before the junction where the headlight and tail light come together.
Where the red/white from the coil and TCI box come together, instead of going over to the brown wire to the reg/rec, I would have a 7.5 or 10 amp fuse and a kill switch.
More like in this diagram. You can see the power flows from the battery to the switch then to three fuses, one for the ignition, one for the head and tail lights, one for the horn and brake lights.
If you want turn signals you can add a fuse or hook the on the one for the horn and brake light.
On the TCI box the 7th wire is black with a white tracer. It is easy to identify. There are two b/w wires one goes to the pickup and is in a three wire plug, the other b/w wire is by itself.
Where the red/white from the coil and TCI box come together, instead of going over to the brown wire to the reg/rec, I would have a 7.5 or 10 amp fuse and a kill switch.
More like in this diagram. You can see the power flows from the battery to the switch then to three fuses, one for the ignition, one for the head and tail lights, one for the horn and brake lights.
If you want turn signals you can add a fuse or hook the on the one for the horn and brake light.
On the TCI box the 7th wire is black with a white tracer. It is easy to identify. There are two b/w wires one goes to the pickup and is in a three wire plug, the other b/w wire is by itself.
Attachments
Ksboy19
XS650 Addict
So leo, put 20 amp in-line fuses for headlight, tailight and signals? would you recommend putting them in as the line leaves the ignition? Also, will 14g wire work for all the accessories? Headlight, taillight, turn signals etc..?
Ksboy19
XS650 Addict
Also, section8joe, did you have to run a blinker switch/interrupter for your turnsignals?
section8joe
XS650 Addict
I'm not running any signals. Just a headlight and taillight.
KentMoney
XS650 Addict
section8joe, do you BMX?
Section 8 was somewhat of a BMX mecca! Does chris doyle still ride? haha
Section 8 was somewhat of a BMX mecca! Does chris doyle still ride? haha
section8joe
XS650 Addict
Yeah, I used to own Section 8. I still ride and so does Chris. He lives in Pittsburgh.
tonyc
XS650 Guru
8 I am putting the final touches to my homemade wiring harness. I did it in sections and ran a ground from every component to a specified ground lug. I did not trust the powdered coated frame. If you fuse every component, lights,brakes, ignition, turn signals, and horn, it becomes simple. Good luck Tony C
Ksboy19;
When fusing headlights and signals etc., normally use 10 amp fuses. 20 amp is only used in the connection from the battery to the ignition switch and rectifier.
14 gauge wire will do a fine job, but its really too heavy and bulky to wire the entire bike. 14 gauge wire is good for the connection from the battery to the ignition switch and rectifier. Also its good for the feed from the ignition switch to the fuse panel. Everything else can use 16 gauge.
When fusing headlights and signals etc., normally use 10 amp fuses. 20 amp is only used in the connection from the battery to the ignition switch and rectifier.
14 gauge wire will do a fine job, but its really too heavy and bulky to wire the entire bike. 14 gauge wire is good for the connection from the battery to the ignition switch and rectifier. Also its good for the feed from the ignition switch to the fuse panel. Everything else can use 16 gauge.
Ksboy19
XS650 Addict
Thanks alot gentleman! You are the man! Appreciate it.. just put the fuses in the line from the battery?
KentMoney
XS650 Addict
that's sweet. check out my build thread for a little BMX video of yours truly, hheh.
Ksboy19, If you look at the diagram I posted you will see that a 20 amp fuse is between the battery and switch, after the switch are 10 amp fuses. One is power to the headlight and tail light. One is for the neutral light, the brake switches and the horn. One powers the ignition.
Turn signals can go on the fuse for the brake switches, horn, neutral light.
Leo
Turn signals can go on the fuse for the brake switches, horn, neutral light.
Leo
Ksboy19
XS650 Addict
as you can tell, i know nothing when in comes to wiring haha. Thanks for your help and patients. Ill study that diagram and see what I can do!
Cody
Cody
Electricity isn't hard to understand. If you think of it needing a circle or circuit to work then you have it half whipped.
Electricity flows out from a power source, to a switch to control the flow, to the item or load you want to operate then back to the power source.
Like with your wiring, power flows out of the battery to a 20 amp fuse to the main switch, from the main switch to the fuses. On one fuse power flows out to the headlight switch, to the dimmer switch, to the headlight and from the headlight to ground that leads back to the battery. Thats a circle or circuit
Power to switch, to coils to points to ground, another circuit.
Every circuit needs a power source to a switch to a load to ground.
A fuse between the switch and power source is a good idea. Some circuits with small individual current draws can be hooked to the same fuse.
I have the ignition on it's own fuse. The turn signals and brake lights on a fuse. The head/tail lights on a fuse. A fuse feeds power to the reg/rec and brushes. One for the horn. I guess the horn could go on with something else, like the turnsignals and brake lights.
I think you can see the point. Each circuit using it's own fuse, if a problem occurs you can find the problem quicker and on the road side you can swap a fuse from a less important circuit to a more important one. LIke from the turn signals to the headlight in the middle of the night.
Section 8 on your meter when testing a low ohm device, as in the rotor or stator. Before you test touch the probes together, this reading is just the leads, Now when you do the test subtract the leads ohms from the test ohms to get the actual reading. My HF meter reads .8 ohms today, it can vary some + or - some. When I test a rotor and get say 6 ohms I subtract the .8 and get 5.2 which is fine. If I didn't do the leads check I might think the rotor a problem an spend money I didn't need to.
Even on days my HF meter reads 1.5 ohms on the leads it still checks the rotor ok.
I have $40+ Sun Pro meter that has better leads they ony read .1 off. Both meters get a good reading, just have to use different numbers when subtracting.
On higher ohm reading the subtracting isn't nessary. Once you get up to 50 ohms or so the leads are well with in the tolerances of most things you test.
Most things are 10% or more tolerance. 10% of 50 is 5, so .8 is well inside that. About 1.6%.
Leo
Leo
Electricity flows out from a power source, to a switch to control the flow, to the item or load you want to operate then back to the power source.
Like with your wiring, power flows out of the battery to a 20 amp fuse to the main switch, from the main switch to the fuses. On one fuse power flows out to the headlight switch, to the dimmer switch, to the headlight and from the headlight to ground that leads back to the battery. Thats a circle or circuit
Power to switch, to coils to points to ground, another circuit.
Every circuit needs a power source to a switch to a load to ground.
A fuse between the switch and power source is a good idea. Some circuits with small individual current draws can be hooked to the same fuse.
I have the ignition on it's own fuse. The turn signals and brake lights on a fuse. The head/tail lights on a fuse. A fuse feeds power to the reg/rec and brushes. One for the horn. I guess the horn could go on with something else, like the turnsignals and brake lights.
I think you can see the point. Each circuit using it's own fuse, if a problem occurs you can find the problem quicker and on the road side you can swap a fuse from a less important circuit to a more important one. LIke from the turn signals to the headlight in the middle of the night.
Section 8 on your meter when testing a low ohm device, as in the rotor or stator. Before you test touch the probes together, this reading is just the leads, Now when you do the test subtract the leads ohms from the test ohms to get the actual reading. My HF meter reads .8 ohms today, it can vary some + or - some. When I test a rotor and get say 6 ohms I subtract the .8 and get 5.2 which is fine. If I didn't do the leads check I might think the rotor a problem an spend money I didn't need to.
Even on days my HF meter reads 1.5 ohms on the leads it still checks the rotor ok.
I have $40+ Sun Pro meter that has better leads they ony read .1 off. Both meters get a good reading, just have to use different numbers when subtracting.
On higher ohm reading the subtracting isn't nessary. Once you get up to 50 ohms or so the leads are well with in the tolerances of most things you test.
Most things are 10% or more tolerance. 10% of 50 is 5, so .8 is well inside that. About 1.6%.
Leo
Leo
