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Adding an auxilliary fuse block Mon Sep 29, 2014 12:41 pm
mvhyde
active member
When I decided to add some driving lights and other accessories. The problem was where to put the fuse block so that it was easily accessible, yet out of the elements. I like to keep my tools in the rear of my bike instead of the provided tool box under the seat. So the tool box compartment became the location for the new fuse block.
What I used was a an ATO 5 fuse raised block with horizontal tabs. for running the wires, I grouped the wires into a harness and used two layers of shrink tube over them. You can get shrink tube on 8 to 16 ft. rolls from harbor Freight for really cheap, or you can get it from Grainger for not-so-cheap. You'll need different diameters and typically 1/4" to 1/2" works well depending upon how you're building the harness. I would also suggest using small 1-1/2 inch sections to cover the male and female blade connectors (it cuts down the corrosion and oxidation they're exposed to).
For running the wires into the box itself, you'll need to drill appropriately sized holes and use rubber grommets for pass-through channels. Again, this will keep the water out.
One thing to note that I did to the fuse block was that I hot-glued the underside of the base. Being as the control computer is under there, you need to find or cut down a couple of self-tapping screws to mount the fuse block to the tool box.
An easy way of measuring your wire run lengths is to remove the body pieces necessary and run from the tool box to and through the channels where the other harnesses are to where you'll anchor it to where it ends up (the accessory you're adding). Once you have that length, add 4 inches on each end (better to have more than not enough).
Take a piece of plywood for your harness template and use a pencil or a Sharpie and draw out your harness (with junctions, any splits, pigtails, etc.). Then use some finish nails to create guides to lay out your wire. Cut your lengths, use appropriate colours and lay the runs out. once you're satisfied with the runs of wire, bind them about every 6 to inches with cloth electrical tape (1/2" wide tape), you only need about 1 inch of tape. Then add your first layer of shrink tube and use a heat gun to shrink it (a hair dryer will kind of work, but a proper heat gun is better). Then add your second layer (optional) and shrink it. Lastly, strip the wire ends and crimp on the connectors and you've made a harness!
What I used was a an ATO 5 fuse raised block with horizontal tabs. for running the wires, I grouped the wires into a harness and used two layers of shrink tube over them. You can get shrink tube on 8 to 16 ft. rolls from harbor Freight for really cheap, or you can get it from Grainger for not-so-cheap. You'll need different diameters and typically 1/4" to 1/2" works well depending upon how you're building the harness. I would also suggest using small 1-1/2 inch sections to cover the male and female blade connectors (it cuts down the corrosion and oxidation they're exposed to).
For running the wires into the box itself, you'll need to drill appropriately sized holes and use rubber grommets for pass-through channels. Again, this will keep the water out.
One thing to note that I did to the fuse block was that I hot-glued the underside of the base. Being as the control computer is under there, you need to find or cut down a couple of self-tapping screws to mount the fuse block to the tool box.
An easy way of measuring your wire run lengths is to remove the body pieces necessary and run from the tool box to and through the channels where the other harnesses are to where you'll anchor it to where it ends up (the accessory you're adding). Once you have that length, add 4 inches on each end (better to have more than not enough).
Take a piece of plywood for your harness template and use a pencil or a Sharpie and draw out your harness (with junctions, any splits, pigtails, etc.). Then use some finish nails to create guides to lay out your wire. Cut your lengths, use appropriate colours and lay the runs out. once you're satisfied with the runs of wire, bind them about every 6 to inches with cloth electrical tape (1/2" wide tape), you only need about 1 inch of tape. Then add your first layer of shrink tube and use a heat gun to shrink it (a hair dryer will kind of work, but a proper heat gun is better). Then add your second layer (optional) and shrink it. Lastly, strip the wire ends and crimp on the connectors and you've made a harness!
