V649HP-Kawasaki's new gravel runner

[jdrocks]

i planned on doing a series of changes to the lights as the photos show, but i had one perplexing little problem. my donor bike was an ER6, the rat bike is a Versys and used the Versys tail light. there are only two differences in the wiring harness connectors that i know of, the main instrument connection and the tail light. i used generic uninsulated pin connectors and a little goop to make it this far, but it always bothered me.

i didn't want to buy the whole harness just for one little piece of it...hmmm, i happened to know of this Texan who was dismantling a Versys for his next ptwin powered KLR build, what are the chances...?

sent down a PM inquiry, and only a couple days later, this shows up in the mail



thanks again Mr. KLRsys, it was one heck of a favor.

[jdrocks]

slooooow progress. every time i completed one thing on the list, i added a couple from the season of deferred maintenance. the poor rat took a beating out there this season, nothing serious.

new color, that other white had too much brown in it, plus a real red tank. the red i sprayed before wasn't red enough.

now i need to get the rest of the wiring tied in, bingo, i'm ready for a road trip.

[jdrocks]

one of the things i wanted to do when i had the front apart was to reinstall the ADVmonster LED lights. i crushed one of the lights up against a tree a while back so i had been running the PIAAs since then. the folks at ADVmonster fixed my light, great customer service, but i hadn't had the chance to stick them back on. i set up both sets of lights with the same connectors and it was just a matter of unplugging one set and installing the other. the lights are on a completely independent circuit from the main lighting, and i had a red pilot light on the dash to indicate "ON", but that light burned out and i replaced it with a new red LED. hope it lasts longer.

i had forgotten how bright these lights are, way brighter than the PIAA 510s. these lights are the 44s, Sanjoh at ADVmonster may have an even brighter light now.

[MTrider16]

Its looking good JD, like the pictures and the upgrades. -David

[nononsense4857]

Envy your Buell setup JD. Those dual head lights look beautiful on the bike.
Spent a LOT of time online to find the assembly for purchase, but i gave up.

Once i was back from my long trip on the 650, the bike refused to fire up one morning. When i press the ignition switch i can hear the FI pump do the humming and then nothing happens. There was no cranking.

Finally the problem worked out to be the battery.

I just run it everyday and clock 10k kilometers in a month and the battery dies?? This scares me now to do any kind of electrical upgrades fearing the same problem might happen over a trip. I was on an almost stock setup - electrical wise... i did not have anything modded except replaced the stock lights to one single 100 w bulb which was switched off during day time running.

You have two cigarette lighter sockets taking care of your GPS and others stuff which i presume remain ON through out your trip...

How did you go about this?

I just ordered the marinco cigarette lighter assembly + some in-line fuses and hope to have power outlets for the electrical pump and another for a communication solution which i have not bought yet.

[jdrocks]

Originally Posted by MTrider16

Its looking good JD, like the pictures and the upgrades. -David

thanks. looking at some western routes, man, i'd like to get back out there.

[jdrocks]

Originally Posted by nononsense4857

Envy your Buell setup JD. Those dual head lights look beautiful on the bike.
Spent a LOT of time online to find the assembly for purchase, but i gave up.

You have two cigarette lighter sockets taking care of your GPS and others stuff which i presume remain ON through out your trip...

How did you go about this?

the OEM Buell headlight is still available, new and used, at modest prices. if you want to source a new Buell, just ask the question up in the "Beast" subforum, ADV guys know about everything there is to know about motos and part sourcing. if you find a used Buell headlight, determine the condition of the reflectors before buying. the reflectors can get tarnished depending on where the bike was used, and i suspect salt spray as the culprit. there are also twin headlight assemblies similar in appearance to the Buell.

on my moto, i wired dedicated fused circuits for both the lights and power outlets. the wiring is all oversized tinned marine grade, and runs directly to the battery. all connections are soldered, coated with liquid electrical coating, shrink wrapped, and enclosed in corrugated wire loom casing. the fuse holders are fully enclosed marine grade.

the auxiliary lights are completely independent of the OEM main lighting circuits and switches. the dedicated circuit also powers the relay/switch/pilot light, there is no cross connection with any other power circuit on the bike. i also installed an unused 20A marine grade toggle on the dash complete with matching connectors for redundency in the case of mishap.

i have two power outlets on the bar rise, both dedicated and fused separately, also connected directly to the battery. yes, the circuits are hot whether the bike is running or not, an advantage.

any new electrical work you do on the moto should be of the same quality as the OEM, if not better.

[sanjoh]

Originally Posted by jdrocks

one of the things i wanted to do when i had the front apart was to reinstall the ADVmonster LED lights.

Your electrical system thanks you

[Roadracer_Al]

Originally Posted by jdrocks

thanks. looking at some western routes, man, i'd like to get back out there.

Well, if you get as far as Oakland, CA, give a holler.

[xs904]

Originally Posted by jdrocks

sent down a PM inquiry, and only a couple days later, this shows up in the mail


.

If you can show me some good close up photos of the pins, we probably have these at work. If we do I could mail you some.
I dont know about anyone else, but I hate to see joints in wires. If I can avoid it I use the correct pins.

Rob

[jdrocks]

Originally Posted by sanjoh

Your electrical system thanks you

yeah, maybe, but the flip side is found when you're way the heck out there, the 44s pointing the way.

from the Yukon border, September 2011...

I can’t say I’ve gotten used to running this fast in total darkness, the only lights on the face of the earth are pointing right out the front of the bike. This road is off the grid, there’s no one out here anyway, and you can’t see a single light all the way to the horizon in any direction, no moon, no stars. I rode in Labrador in similar conditions and described it as running a moto through a coal mine, total blackness.

I changed my driving lights to ADVmonster 44 LEDs before this trip, and those lights were blazing out the front, incredible reflective range. With everything lit, I could see anything in the road almost ¾ of a mile away. The reflective shoulder stakes were lighting up at one mile, damn, these things are bright, now was not the time to run smack into a bear or buffalo. No real surprise, I suddenly had another bright light in front of me, the low fuel warning light, and I backed down another notch.

[jdrocks]

Originally Posted by Roadracer_Al

Well, if you get as far as Oakland, CA, give a holler.

will do, i need an autographed copy of the "Bible".

[jdrocks]

Originally Posted by xs904

If you can show me some good close up photos of the pins, we probably have these at work. If we do I could mail you some.
I dont know about anyone else, but I hate to see joints in wires. If I can avoid it I use the correct pins.

Rob

thanks for the offer, but the connector with pigtail in the photo is the OEM Versys tail light connection that KLRsys cut off the end of his Versys wiring harness and mailed to me. KLRsys was kind enough to extend a 100% solution to that little problem, can't get any better than that.

[xs904]

No problems JD, been a long time fan of your work. You have excellent skills in building. I did look at building one on this side of tbe pond, but they want 3k for a wreck over here,and the insurance are getting funny over anything non standard here. Probably go Africa Twin now.
Still enjoy your ride reports though, you have a writing style thats easy on ths eye.
If I can ever lend a hand, drop a line.

Rob

[MTrider16]

Originally Posted by jdrocks

thanks. looking at some western routes, man, i'd like to get back out there.

Come on out. Maybe wait until July though. Its a nice enough fall, but still a little chilly for the moto.

David