Replacing center gauge lights with LEDS

[barelycompetent]

Once again I apologize if this has been asked and answered a thousand times, I have searched and searched but have not come up with what I am looking for. Could be my wording in the search I dunno. I have a 1981 special, all stock ignition and charging system. I have already converted the turn signals to LEDS with the flasher relay from superbrightleds. I am also running an LED brake/running light. My question is, I want to remove the idiot lights and the center gauge cluster and make my own little gauge with three simple LED idiot lights in it, yellow, red and green. Using the stock wiring can I just wire in the LEDS for each circuit or do I need a diode or resistor in the circuit somewhere? I know this has been covered before and again I am sorry for asking again, I just could not find it in my many searches. I know that when I changed the turn signals to leds, I had to pull the regular bulb out of the cluster to make them work, thereby losing my idiot light for the turn indicator, until I wire in a diode to make the regular bulb work again. I want to forgo all of that and just use leds as my idiot lights. Is it plug and play, or do I need something else in the circuit? Thanks for putting up with all my asked and answered questions again.

 

[queenslegs]

hopefully this can get from barely to somewhat... It is current, NOT voltage which makes an LED "Light" therefore an LED requires (either external or some have them internal) a resistor to set the amount of current through the LED. Lets for a moment assume that the LED is nice and bright at 10 milliamps, (0.010 Amps) and of course our XS650 uses a 12 volt battery/charging system. So, using ohms law, V= IR, we have 12 = 0.010R. Solving for R, R = V/I = 12/0.020 = 1200 ohms, or 1.2 KOhms.

Now if we hope on our XS650 and head down to radio shack and buy our said LED without a built in resistor, we will also have to purchase a 1.2Kohm resistor.

Hang on, I'll throw up a diagram as soon as I get a second here.

 

[queenslegs]

K here's a little diagram, I'm not sure if the switches involved are on the + or Gnd side of the circuit but it doesn't really matter as long as the "LED" circuit looks like this. If you get it backward, no damage, but no light either. Let me know if you need any further help! The box around the resistor LED pair represents an LED with a built in resistor.

 

[barelycompetent]

Thanks queen, I know how to wire them, just wanted to make sure I could do so with the stock wiring, and whether or not I needed a diode or resistor in the circuit.

 

[TwoManyXS1Bs]

Excellent diagram, queenslegs! A typical choice of 470 to 560 ohm gives good brightness...

 

[weekendrider]

I want to remove the idiot lights and the center gauge cluster and make my own little gauge with three simple LED idiot lights in it, yellow, red and green.

If you aren't "dead set" on removing the cluster this may be an option?
http://en.650wiki.org/index.php/12.01._Bulb_to_Diode

 

[barelycompetent]

If you aren't "dead set" on removing the cluster this may be an option?
http://en.650wiki.org/index.php/12.01._Bulb_to_Diode

That seems a little labor intensive for me lol. I was wanting to make a small, clean panel to replace the center gauge console, but that is good information for sure.

 

[XSLeo]

Radio Shack sells LED,s with the proper resistors built in. Just get 12 volt LED's.
Leo

 

[yamageddon]

giving this thread a bump: What does one do in winter?

Ordered some 8mm LEDs....$1.79 a piece and drilled three holes in the headlight assembly.

Voilá....
Idiot LEDs

 

[xjwmx]

Interesting. Some leds don't need resistors, and others, just regular raw traditional leds do. If you need a resistor, somewhere on the package it'll say max current, or max fwd current, so to get maximum brightness you would choose the resistor to satisfy this: resistor = 14 / max current. If it says something like 15ma for current, be sure to use .015, instead of the number 15...

 

[gggGary]

From banggood, buck a throw shipping included 4 colors and white. I've got some with a few thousand miles on them. no problems. 12 volt, no external resistors needed. They are a bit bright, best if they aren't pointed right at your eyes at night.

 

[yamageddon]

Interesting. Some leds don't need resistors, and others, just regular raw traditional leds do. If you need a resistor, somewhere on the package it'll say max current, or max fwd current, so to get maximum brightness you would choose the resistor to satisfy this: resistor = 14 / max current. If it says something like 15ma for current, be sure to use .015, instead of the number 15...

Maybe the resistor is built in the wire? See the black part of the wire in the picture.

I was told some LEDs only work 'one way' (can't switch between + & -) so I was wondering if I would encounter problems with my indicators, but no problem at all. It works like a charm

 

[yamageddon]

From banggood, buck a throw shipping included 4 colors and white. I've got some with a few thousand miles on them. no problems. 12 volt, no external resistors needed. They are a bit bright, best if they aren't pointed right at your eyes at night.

Yeah, different name but same kinda shop here as well:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/8mm...32802966568.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.shGEin

 

[xjwmx]

Maybe the resistor is built in the wire? See the black part of the wire in the picture.

Probably the resistor would be formed into the same die as the led, and the thing under the wrap is reverse voltage protection, but who knows Stick a pin through the wire and put a meter on it and find out what it is.

 

[CoconutPete]

Great minds think alike Yamageddon:

 

[yamageddon]

Great minds think alike Yamageddon:

Haha! Great! That looks really neat. Clean looks. I like the voltage gauge!

 

[yamageddon]

Probably the resistor would be formed into the same die as the led, and the thing under the wrap is reverse voltage protection, but who knows Stick a pin through the wire and put a meter on it and find out what it is.

I reversed the polarity on the LEDs but that makes no difference. It's not a good idea to let ME stick things in electronical stuff. Before you know it the Magic Smoke that's captured inside electronics will come out

 

[xjwmx]

I reversed the polarity on the LEDs but that makes no difference. It's not a good idea to let ME stick things in electronical stuff. Before you know it the Magic Smoke that's captured inside electronics will come out

Are you saying it lights up no matter what the polarity? I like that. It might have two leds inside actually with opposite polarity, and reverse voltage protection for each. Would make it a lot easier for a monkey trying to hook it up.

 

[yamageddon]

Are you saying it lights up no matter what the polarity? I like that. It might have two leds inside actually with opposite polarity, and reverse voltage protection for each. Would make it a lot easier for a monkey trying to hook it up.

Exactly. I tested it first with a 9V battery, I was curious if I would encounter polarity problems with the left- and right indicator. After that I tested it on the 12V it got from the bike before installation. Reversal of + and - makes no difference; the LEDs light up.

 

[yamageddon]

@xjwmx : I'm not an electronic monkey, but I think I know now what you mean: I found a 'bicolor non polarity diode'...which are actually TWO diodes:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Bic...id=9eedb458-1156-430b-81b3-c59e5fa43240&tpp=1

So my LEDs are actually two LEDs of the same color in one housing. That might also explain why there's no black and red wire, but just two red ones.
Learned a lot here