Accessory Outlets (12v)

can someone tell me which wire is the negative and which is the positive?


I used to have one on my last bike and am getting another one for my new bike. I just wanted to see what kinds people have installed on their bikes before I buy the same $12 cheap one from Can. Tire.

I'm only looking for the all-weather, cigarette type outlets - to charge my cell or GPS or whatever...

My old one looked like this:
cas212711.jpg
 
I assume you mean on the outlet. Positive will go to the small centre point and ground goes to the outer casing, if that helps.
 
I recently bought one very similar to yours except it had an inline AGC/glass fuse from Canadian Tire. Roughly $20 and came with more than 5ft of prewired...... wire. Ziptied it right next to the key switch and ran the wire between the forks but the steering lock ended up breaking the wire. What a dumb move on my part right?

Also saw a youtube tutorial where the positive wire got its power from the 15amp headlight fuse. Very easy installation.

My dual usb charger was a very loose fit in the socket. I found myself trying to fiddle with it and plug it back in while on the highway once or twice. I put a few strips of electrical tape on the non-conductive plastic body of the charger to make it a tight fit. She's not going anywhere!

Just thought I'd share what little experience I have.



I used to have one on my last bike and am getting another one for my new bike. I just wanted to see what kinds people have installed on their bikes before I buy the same $12 cheap one from Can. Tire.

I'm only looking for the all-weather, cigarette type outlets - to charge my cell or GPS or whatever...

My old one looked like this:
cas212711.jpg
 
princess auto in newmarket had at least 6 of them on the shelves yesterday
 
I got this:
[TABLE="width: 100%"]
[TR]
[TH]Product Name
[/TH]
[TH]Part No.[/TH]
[TH]Quantity[/TH]
[TH]Item Price[/TH]
[TH]Total Price[/TH]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD][h=5]Cobra Charging System, 12 Volt Power Outlet & USB (Chrome or Black)[/h]Chrome or Black: Chrome

[/TD]
[TD]EK1-110[/TD]
[TD]1[/TD]
[TD]$26.95[/TD]
[TD]$26.95[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]
Subtotal:
$26.95
Shipping & Handling:
$9.60
Tax:
$0.00
Order Total:
$36.55

[TD="colspan: 2"]
[/TD]

From here: http://store.valueaccessories.net/search.aspx?find=power+outlet (second one down on the left.)
 
I recently bought one very similar to yours except it had an inline AGC/glass fuse from Canadian Tire. Roughly $20 and came with more than 5ft of prewired...... wire. Ziptied it right next to the key switch and ran the wire between the forks but the steering lock ended up breaking the wire. What a dumb move on my part right?

Also saw a youtube tutorial where the positive wire got its power from the 15amp headlight fuse. Very easy installation.

My dual usb charger was a very loose fit in the socket. I found myself trying to fiddle with it and plug it back in while on the highway once or twice. I put a few strips of electrical tape on the non-conductive plastic body of the charger to make it a tight fit. She's not going anywhere!

Just thought I'd share what little experience I have.

I do not recommend wiring anything else to the headlights. It may be quick and easy but if you put something that draws too much in your power outlet you'll cook the fuse and loose your headlights.
It may be quick and easy but IMO it's a bad idea.

I would steal power off the horn before the headlights.
I used to run the wires back to an inline fuse until i put a fused powerblock in.

I have used the above with success on 2 of my bikes and ATVs. I highly recommend it.
 
Add a relay controlled fusebox under your seat and go nuts with adding stuff (well up to the limit of your bikes charging system of course).
 
Add a relay controlled fusebox under your seat and go nuts with adding stuff (well up to the limit of your bikes charging system of course).

Is this hard to do? Sorry I'm not very mechanically inclined and I really want to add a charger/USB to my bike soon.
 
Something like this would be excellent for a bike with lots of electrical add-ons: http://aviciouscycle.ca/MainPages/productpage.aspx?productid=3516

I could have sworn these used to be closer to the $80 mark though, and you can definitely find/build something similar for a LOT less than that. But the general idea is excellent: You can have some devices constantly powered (perhaps an accessory socket or USB port etc) and some only when the bike is running (heated gear, lights etc)
 
Is this hard to do? Sorry I'm not very mechanically inclined and I really want to add a charger/USB to my bike soon.

It's wired to your battery directly with a main fuse then you need to find a trigger wire for the relay. This way every socket in the fuse box is ignition activated and also has it's own fuse of course. No danger of blowing your lights. The only problem might be running leads under your tank to the fusebox if you need accessories up by your handlebars but even that's not a big deal if you follow the routing of the main wiring harness and zip tie leads to that.
 
It's wired to your battery directly with a main fuse then you need to find a trigger wire for the relay. This way every socket in the fuse box is ignition activated and also has it's own fuse of course. No danger of blowing your lights. The only problem might be running leads under your tank to the fusebox if you need accessories up by your handlebars but even that's not a big deal if you follow the routing of the main wiring harness and zip tie leads to that.

That's the arrangement on my bike. I just put all wires into a sleeve.
2
 
Something like this would be excellent for a bike with lots of electrical add-ons: http://aviciouscycle.ca/MainPages/productpage.aspx?productid=3516

I could have sworn these used to be closer to the $80 mark though, and you can definitely find/build something similar for a LOT less than that. But the general idea is excellent: You can have some devices constantly powered (perhaps an accessory socket or USB port etc) and some only when the bike is running (heated gear, lights etc)

I built my own for about $20, using a barrier strip and a fuse panel (http://www.princessauto.com/pal/product/8138224/Fuses-&-Breakers/6-Position-Fuse-and-Circuit-Panel). Takes up a lot of space and doesn't look clean, works fine though. Next bike, I'm getting this; http://www.centechwire.com/catalog/panels/ap2.shtml
 
Anyone know if the usb port outlet outputs 2amps for an iPad?
 
I just finished installing the USB port from Princess auto (http://www.princessauto.com/pal/pro...ous-Automotive/Weather-Proof-USB-Power-Outlet) on my bike.
Connected the black (negative/ground) wire to the negative terminal on the battery and the red (positive) wire to a relay that is used for my air horn.
Everything, including running wires and short trip to Rona for some cable ties, took about 45min to install.
I have checked with my GPS, phone and nexus tablet and I can confirm that all is charging and running fine.

Anyone know if the usb port outlet outputs 2amps for an iPad?
I just checked with my work iPad2 and can confirm that it is working fine too... I mean I can see it charging when connected, so I assume it is fine.
 
I just finished installing the USB port from Princess auto (http://www.princessauto.com/pal/pro...ous-Automotive/Weather-Proof-USB-Power-Outlet) on my bike.
Connected the black (negative/ground) wire to the negative terminal on the battery and the red (positive) wire to a relay that is used for my air horn.
Everything, including running wires and short trip to Rona for some cable ties, took about 45min to install.
I have checked with my GPS, phone and nexus tablet and I can confirm that all is charging and running fine.


I just checked with my work iPad2 and can confirm that it is working fine too... I mean I can see it charging when connected, so I assume it is fine.

Excellent! Will have to pick one up this weekend.

Thanks!!!
 
Back
Top Bottom