Fitting 12v battery gauge/Monitor

[Redrum]

Ahh I see what you mean so an ammeter is the better option than a voltmeter, you have helped a lot with that recommendation unfortunately I have bought a voltmeter but it was less than a tenner , I will check Amazon for the ammeter this forum is valuable for this reason someone with the knowledge comes up with a better option I know what you are saying about it being something to worry about but I really would like a visible display of the battery's performance cheers max.ps I see you are this side of the pond all the best buddy

Get a good ammeter as this will be one more point of failure in your charging system since it will be wired in series not parallel

 

[Glenfruin]

Cant you run a wire straight from the battery?
would that be the best way to know what the battery is getting in and out ?

Yes I could run wires from the battery but I would like it to turn on and off with the ignition so I don’t forget and flatten the battery

 

[Glenfruin]

I use ignition relay on most of my bikes. Connecting directly from battery and using ignition switch to power relay. To much current thru the key switch usually end up with lower voltage. I use relay to power everything from heated hand grips to getting good voltage to my coils. To a more accurate voltage gauge. It takes load off of key switch and wiring loom. Do not buy cheap china relays. I’ve had the relays fail in less than a week. Try Eastern Beaver for relays. Sorry little long winded. Use accurate multimeter and check direct battery voltage to your new voltage gauge.

That sounds a bit too technical for me, unless you can give me a link to the relay and a short guide how to wire it in? I understand if it’s hard to explain cheers buddy

 

[Shaarth]

That sounds a bit too technical for me, unless you can give me a link to the relay and a short guide how to wire it in? I understand if it’s hard to explain cheers buddy

I’m not to artistic. But I will give it a try. Easternbeaver.com is where I buy relays.

 

[Glenfruin]

I’m not to artistic. But I will give it a try. Easternbeaver.com is where I buy relays.

Thanks so much that’s a really simple easy to follow diagram and the link for eastern beaver is good to cheers buddy

 

[brian hicks]

VOLTMETER. Here is my effort to fit a voltmeter to monitor the state of the battery. I connected the + wire to the 3A light fuse behind the left hand side air scoop with the -v wire fastened to earth. Remove the fuse then the connector pushes out of its holder from the inside by using a small screwdriver to push the white nylon retaining tab to 1 side then gently pulling the wire and it will come out easy .I ran the wire along the left side of the frame using cable ties where necessary. You need to remove the air filter assembly in order to run the wires and to remove the 2 bolts holding the instrument assembly . I joined the wire of the meter to the wire I had ran to the fuse by using 2 crimp connectors and cable tied the wires for neatness and pushed them inside the frame. Notice I fed the wires through a convenient hole in the frame and put a plastic sleeve in the hole for safety. I replaced the instrument assembly and stuck the voltmeter on top of the assembly. I mounted it with double sided sticky tape but if it comes loose I will use black silicon rubber. Tested and it worked ok.

 

[Fire-medic]

O.M.G.!!!
12.1 Volts! Something horribly wrong with the charging system!

Hopefully not... .

I had a '61 Ford Econoline pickup w/an ammeter and a generator and the ammeter would sometimes be on the negative side, as a matter of course. The needle would vibrate a bit back & forth, so you had to interpolate a value in between the shimmying needle. If the needle wouldn't spend much time above 0 then if you turned on the headlights you would notice them being dimmer than normal, and you knew something was wrong.

Eastern Beaver has auxiliary fuseboxes, switches, relays, M-F weatherproof fasteners and more. And don't forget the regulator/rectifiers! The 'good ones.'

 

[one2dmax]

What's the voltage at the battery? There are huge losses through the harnesses on these bikes. If its that low then you have a charging system issue (and most likely the regulator)