Electrical add ons

[Conehead]

I have a charging point I am going to put on my bike. What I know about electrics is dangerous so after a little advice before i mess it up.

I was going to wire it direct to the battery with a 12v fuse on the live wire but my research has revealed that the voltage fluctuates whilst riding due to variations on speed etc and I dont want to fry my mobile phone. I am also going to get a simple on/off switch so that the battery is not drained when the bike is not in use.

What I really want is to wire it to the ignition so that it will only be live when the bike is on and the switch is on. How do I do this? Ideas or offers would be greatly appreciated.

[Uber Dave]

Depending on how good your wiring prowess is you can make up your own loom like I did for my car when I hard wired my satnav to my ignition.

I knew I should have taken some photos of mine, but basically this is the loom I made up.

http://www.audi-sport.net/vb/a3-s3-sportback-8p-chassis/89936-hard-wiring-road-angel.html#post918241

Instead of spade clips on the end you can put ring clips then screw it onto the battery terminal and feed the 12v socket under the rear seat. You can also get hold of a simple switch and add that to the loom just below the socket on the positive. Obviously make sure you get a socket which has a cover and is waterproof!!!!! Also do a good job of sealing any connections you make yourself with electrical tape.

I used a 10amp mini fuse on my loom for my satnav, but for a phone 2.0 amp will keep it safe from issues.

I made my own up as I am cheap, and I couldnt find exactly what I needed to buy off the shelf. Thats not to say they dont exist. But I know a couple of lads who had similar on their bikes who have no problems.

All you need then you just need a car charger which will be fused anyway itself if its not cheap, plug it into the socket and off you go. Beauty of doing it with a 12v socket will be that you are not limited to just phone chargers and can get a generic USB one which could charge anything at all.

[Conehead]

I have a waterproof 12/24v charging point with waterproof cap. I also have a fuse the same as the one in your loom. I still need to get a waterproof on/off switch that I willl put on the live (red) wire close to the charging point.

I will use it mainly for my phone but might connect a satnav at some stages. Would the 2amp fuse still be ok for both or do I raise it to a 10amp?

Do I connect the live direct to the battery and the earth to the frame?
Is the spiking I heard about a load of tosh then or will the fuse blow all the time?
What guage wire do I buy for the job?

Sorry for all the questions but always do all my own work where possible and this is a small job that I just need to get my head round.

[Jon_W]

You'll be fine. I've go this on my Sv as a phone charger. The voltage variation is around 2 volts in 12. This equated to around 0.8 of a volt in the 5 that is phone is using. I'd use a 1-2 amp fuse as the currents will be minimal.

Based on the Sv,
I'd connect both to the battery. You then have a large smoothing capacitance to remove any junk the alternator throws out. I'd use 20AWG, preferably tri-rated, with a proper automotive blade fuse and an inline switch to turn it off.

Make sure you double cover all exposed contacts to a protect from fretting to the frame and to waterproof. As Dave says make up a little loom as you go, (it is easy trust me) to keep it tidy and consider where the cable will sit to prevent trapping, flapping and fretting.

[Conehead]

Cheers Jon and Dave for your advice. Think I got it now. Will get the switch and wire on payday and fit it sometime just after.

In no rush at the moment as found the waterproof case i have been given cant be fitted as easily as thought and I need to have a think about what I can do now.

[Conehead]

Sorry to reopen this thread. I am trying to save on costs as much as possible.

I have found an old extension lead that is not being used and was wondering if I could pilfer some of its wire for this project. Would it be ok? It was a 25mtr extension with 4 outlet plug sockets.

On the other hand I have made the waterproof case fit to the triple tree by means of cable ties (bodge job supreme but looks ok, there was no other way, trust me I tried them all). I have temporarily fitted the power outlet and I think it looks quite smart. It is in plain sight but looks like it was meant to be there. My opinion anyway.

Please could you let me know about the wires so that I can start building the wiring harness in the next few days.

Still need to get 2amp blade fuse, on/off switch and electrical connectors but have them sourced ready for payday.

[Conehead]

All done and working perfectly. thanks for all of your advice and help.

Cheers :cool: