Amperage change in fuse box

BikerFairy

BikerFairy

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I have a light bar on my shadow, not wired properly by PO. I kept blowing the 10A fuse for the headlamps on every start. Took it to my mech and he pops in a 20A and now I've got enough power.My question is...won't that overheat/melt/start fire in my wiring harness at some point? Seems like I got ripped off $100 for half an hour with my bike and a 33 cent part that could catch my bike on fire...
 
You're right, I'm afraid that it is true. That's my butt on that bike, not his. Wanted to make sure.
 
The wire gauge might actually support 20A, but the manufacturer placed a 10A fuse because that covered the original load. Switches and connectors are another factor that could limit the circuit to 10A. Technically he shouldn't have done what he did, especially for $100.
 
Your mechanic not only ripped you off but did not fix the problem. Do not go back to him.

Your wiring and switches are selected for the load of your headlight and anything OEM. This excludes the lightbar, which might pull over 100 extra watts of power. This might burn out your switches and possibly your headlight wiring harness.

You really need to install a relay for your lightbar. It is not hard and much less than $100 your mechanic should have done the right thing. A relay costs a mere $2. The relay allows your headlight to act as a trigger to turn on power from your battery directly to your lightbar. It sort of works similarly to you turning on a wall light switch. Without this relay you risk burning out your starter or other switch, resulting in costly replacement parts.

This is important. Please get a relay installed for your lightbar and any other electrical accessories.
 
Thank you!
I've had the bike for 5 years and the only repairs I've had done all had to do with the light bar. Fuses, starter etc.
2 different mechanics blew me off when I asked if they could do a relay on it. I might be just a chick on a bike, but I've learned quite a bit about my bike over the years. Got her into cycle world west now. Won't be going back to motorcycle int.
 
BikerFairy said:
Thank you!
I've had the bike for 5 years and the only repairs I've had done all had to do with the light bar. Fuses, starter etc.
2 different mechanics blew me off when I asked if they could do a relay on it. I might be just a chick on a bike, but I've learned quite a bit about my bike over the years. Got her into cycle world west now. Won't be going back to motorcycle int.
Click to expand...

This is an easy enough mod for someone with very basic wiring skills, complete tutorial found here:

http://www.canyonchasers.net/shop/generic/relay.php

All the parts can be had for less than $30.
 
TorontoBoy said:
Your mechanic not only ripped you off but did not fix the problem. Do not go back to him.

Your wiring and switches are selected for the load of your headlight and anything OEM. This excludes the lightbar, which might pull over 100 extra watts of power. This might burn out your switches and possibly your headlight wiring harness.

You really need to install a relay for your lightbar. It is not hard and much less than $100 your mechanic should have done the right thing. A relay costs a mere $2. The relay allows your headlight to act as a trigger to turn on power from your battery directly to your lightbar. It sort of works similarly to you turning on a wall light switch. Without this relay you risk burning out your starter or other switch, resulting in costly replacement parts.

This is important. Please get a relay installed for your lightbar and any other electrical accessories.
Click to expand...
Wiring a relay into a circuit that is blowing a 10amp fuse may be a really bad idea, not only because the wiring may not bear that amount of current but because the question of how much amperage is flowing through that circuit and will it cause damage to the charging system? I'd be worried about the Amperage because motorcycles don't have a bottomless ability to supply charge to their battery. Find out how much amperage those driving lights are pulling and maybe replace them with a lesser set if need be. Many motocycle charging systems only make 4-6 Amps of charge.
If I had a bike that's blowing 10 Amp fuses I'd be worried. In the 80's and 90's I saw a lot of bikes with halogen driving lights installed on them whose charging systems had failed, especially Gold Wings. These repairs were usually in the neighbourhood of $1800.
I would never just install a 20Amp fuse in one of my customer's bikes to solve this type of issue. There's potential for damage on a few levels here.
 
So now I'm thinking maybe it would be easier to just take off the light bar. Aesthetically it looks great, but I'm not a huge night rider and I'm not married to it.
 
Hey I think I saw you yesterday! Were you waiting in the parking lot at like 4pm? I was there dropping off my girlfriend's R6.
 
If you just want the look, LED based replacement bulbs could be your cheap and easy solution. I'm not sure if they are reliable and how visible they really are but their power drain is minimal.

theassassin there's no way any street bike generates only 4-6A. Your headlight takes about 4A. My SMC, which is a "minimal" bike puts out 200W.
 
BikerFairy said:
So now I'm thinking maybe it would be easier to just take off the light bar. Aesthetically it looks great, but I'm not a huge night rider and I'm not married to it.
Click to expand...

The least amount of work would be to simply disconnect the lightbar from your headlight, giving you the look but not the function, and solving the electrical issue. But the lightbar provides extra lighting at night and therefore safety for you to see and be seen. Adding a relay and a switch (to allow you to turn the lightbar off), is very inexpensive and you might be able to do it yourself. It would be better to simply install a relay.
 
bboySushi said:
Hey I think I saw you yesterday! Were you waiting in the parking lot at like 4pm? I was there dropping off my girlfriend's R6.
Click to expand...

Umm nope. Dropped off the bike around 2:30.
 
BikerFairy said:
Thank you!
I've had the bike for 5 years and the only repairs I've had done all had to do with the light bar. Fuses, starter etc.
2 different mechanics blew me off when I asked if they could do a relay on it. I might be just a chick on a bike, but I've learned quite a bit about my bike over the years. Got her into cycle world west now. Won't be going back to motorcycle int.
Click to expand...

A neighbour (Female) was a U of T professor with Phds up her ying yang. She wanted some landscaping changes and had drawings done by a professional. A bunch of dump truck drivers re-arranged her plans by totally ignoring her.
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