I just spent the last two weeks installing a trailtech ac dc rectifier regulator, vapor speedo, cheap led turnstalks, an led capable relay, a battery, led aux lights, control switches for all systems on my '93 xr600r. Very easy to do. I tapped the rectifier into the ac headlight feed and then ran the headlight on dc.
I'd recommend going the DC route, and whole hog, too, so you can nerd out on accessories. Otherwise, you ought to be able to fix the AC relay issue cheaply. Assuming you're not using LEDs, it could be just that the signal bulb filaments are too low resistance. The summed wattage of two signal bulbs should be less than or equal to the watt rating of your relay. Oh, and I think you've got the right idea for the AC and DC loads. That's what mine's like, anyway: AC for the headlight, AC for ignition, DC for all else. The ignition and headlight circuits are different wires coming out of the stator, from different coils.
Thanks for the help, gents. I neglected to mention that my turn signals are, in fact, LED. I do have resistors to try in-line, but I thought that would only help with how quickly they blink, not whether or not they blink at all. As of now they are just a steady light. Will try the resistors and report back. I like the idea of having some DC available for accessories. As of now the Vapor is running off a battery so the backlight won't stay on for long. Annoying at night. I've heard it will run off of AC but haven't confirmed. A GPS and heated grips might be nice someday. Will price up a regulator/rectifier and battery or capacitor. Thanks, lucknau, for confirming that my plan might work. The carb issue is a much larger one. The Eddy is nice and smooth, but damned if I can get it running in the cold. Will dig deeper and see if I can sort it out. I really don't want to engineer a way to mount another carb at this point. I've done it, and would rather not do it again right now. My preference would be for a plug and play solution, even if it is more expensive. I see that XRsOnly has a Mikuni kit, but I think it is rebored and have read about issues with it. Anyone with first hand experience to share? Info on other options that are well understood and relatively easy to set up would be most appreciated.
I'm shocked your LEDs work at all on AC. BTW, resistors will still result in consuming the same amount of power as if you put a conventional incandescent bulb in the system anyways. Getting a turn signal relay that is designed for LED draw levels will result in more power being available for other devices. I really think you're best served putting your turn signals on a DC circuit. With the rectifier, you can still have DC and not have a battery if you really want. I bypassed the battery and ran off the rectifier, testing all my DC stuff. The backlight on my Vapor flickered very oddly, but the headlamp and turn signals and horn were all fine. A capacitor would even out the backlight issue if I really wanted to go without battery, but I like the battery for situations when I want lights to work without the engine running. My vapor runs off my battery. I don't think I'd try running it off AC. You really don't need much battery. I went overboard and have a 3amp 12v AGM battery mounted up underneath my rear fender. But as long as it's 12v, you could get away with a few hundred miliamps. It just has to buffer temporarily low RPM demand, and it'll get charged by just about anything over 2500RPM unless you run the CD player AND the coffee maker at the same time.
Thanks, WantToRideMoar. Good point on the power consumption with resistors vs using the proper relay. I'm leaning hard in the direction of adding a DC circuit. One side of my Ricky stator is unused right now (100w per side), so I might just feed that into a reg./rectifier and wire the horn, brake light, Vapor and turn signals into DC. Seems a better way to go. I already have a nice little 12v Ballistic battery I can use to even out the power. Should fit under my seat or tank with little trouble. On the carb tip, has anyone used one of these on a XR600?: http://www.xrsonly.com/mikuni-pumper-carburetor-40mm-kit-honda-xr650r I need to check the diameter of my current carb to see how much additional work would be required to fit it up. I don't want to lose any low RPM torque by fitting something too big.
Hi mcma111, thanks for chiming in. I've read many of your posts regarding XRs and was hoping you might offer an opinion on the carb issue. I'll look into what putting an XRR carb on my XR6 would entail. Cheers.
Ok, my bike started making a whirr upon start, I hit the magic button, it fires up and there is a decelrating whirr, for about a second. It sounds kike its coming frim the starter. It promotly goes away, no running or starting problems. Im thinking maybe the starter us goung bad, but theres no extended or difficulty in turning the engine over. Ideas?
XRR throttle, cables and the carb. Boom! I got one to install on my XR but then I got a FCR for it. :eek1
I'm doing a top end that includes: new valves - springs - piston .25 over minor o rings gaskets etc. Is there more I should do? Should I go deeper into motor. Looking at the cost now as to cost later for another neec I could do now. Any guidance?
drakehouse, Why valves and springs? Using the OE cam? Then it's unnecessary. What compression ratio is the piston?
I took my head and cylinder in to a local shop. (Not dealer related). He measured springs said outer spring in check. Innet spring are out of spec -too short. Intake valves are mushrooming -exhaust are pitted. He measured cylinder and reports that it will need enough work to true it so .25 over clean it up. So new piston. No report on what compression will be when complete. My big question is cost savings. I'm this far in to motor - IS there better money spent NOW that may save labor or other cost digging into motor next summer or winter? Labor and parts above is in the $700 range.
Whether you need a battery for DC depends on the reg/rect you buy. There's more than just a diode bridge rectifier in the device. Your stator will put out over 50V when your rpms are high enough, and the reg/rect, when it senses greater than around 12 V to 15 V, will drop its output to about 1.5 volts over what it expects to see as the common voltage (i.e. from the battery). If there's no battery, then the common voltage is 0, instead of 12.6. The result is that without a battery all of your crap might work when you're idling, and won't work at all when you're going. AC or DC is fine for an LED. With AC, though, the LED is off half the time, even though you might not perceive it visually. For both AC and DC, unless there is something limiting current, when lit, an LED is actually a short circuit. The comment above about inline resistors was right. You lose the energy saving bonus if you use an inline resistor. You still get more longevity out of an LED than a bulb, though, unless it's a poorly assembled device. I think the resistor method is a viable option, as a cost saving measure, but really, if you use LED signal bulbs, you ought to eventually spring for an LED flasher relay. The power electronics in the relay will limit current with transistors, and spare that extra power for your toys. :::: (@) :::::
Vapor TrailTech will run on anything, 9-400 VAC/VDC no polarity required. From their PDF http://gallery.trailtech.net/media/instructions/computers/vapor/vapor_instructions.pdf Might free up another connection.
It'll definitely work. The Ballistic battery should be work great for you. Just remember to keep your accessory load below the available power output of your stator :::: (@) :::::
I've been wanting to do that, too. If you install the trail tech, is there something that can be installed in place of the stock speedometer hardware, or do you just leave it as is? :::: (@) :::::
You leave the ODO drive in place as it acts as an axle spacer. Put something in where the cable was. A plug of some kind.
