I put this in Electrics because I think a voltmeter should be a mandatory VFR electrical item - for your sanity!. For about the cost of 2 tanks of gas your can do it too!
Here is my Lascar Voltmeter install. Just thought I would show everyone since I had been holding off on this *ESSENTIAL* VFR farkel trying to settle on a location for it. Not having a voltmeter bit me yesterday when my battery packed it in while trying to get to work! This little sucker would have told me exactly what was going on.
http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/forum/uploads/1185263231/gallery_11167_3227_41908.jpg
Drivers View
I was going to drill a hole to mount the voltmeter but I really like the factory look of my bike and I don't like messing it up permanently. Don't get me wrong, I'll drill for frame sliders to protect $1000 worth of plastic but I don't like slapping stuff all over. That said I don't like "Mickey-Mouse" fixes or repairs either so I was having trouble figuring out how I was going to handle this mandatory little item.
The permanent mounting locations would have been on the dash or on the fairing. The dash option seemed way too stick-on "Canadian Tire" (Canadians will understand this). I almost stuck it on the flat upper of the fairing but I have had those fairing on and off so many #$%& times that it would have been pain to disconnect the wiring each time the plastic was flying.
So I came up with the following solution. It is secure, removable, and best of all puts the voltmeter in a nice central, fairly visible, location.
You will need:
DONE!
The only drawback of this location is that it is not protect from rain (like it would be if it was on the dash). The instructions say its "splashproof" and I don't think it would get wet while riding but it will if your bike is sitting out in the rain.
http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/forum/uploads/1185263231/gallery_11167_3227_7230.jpg
Side View
http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/forum/uploads/1185263231/gallery_11167_3227_21964.jpg
Instruction Pic
This may be a little "Mickey-Mouse" for some and I'm sure I could come up with something better than the strapping but you have to get down and look hard to see it. If I want under the tank I simply bend it out of the way and get to work. You could probably flex the strapping back and forth a couple dozen times before your broke it - big deal it's about 2 cents worth of strapping. The steel will likely rust so you could put something on it or use different strapping - the back of the box says it comes in Galvanized, Copper and Nylon Coated - take your pick.
http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/forum/uploads/1185572379/gallery_11167_3051_55923.jpg
Super cheap mounting stuff - next best thing to binder twine and bailing wire!
On the techy side this meter has a VERY fast refresh rate. The specs say 3 samples per second - so it is constantly flickering away (it's almost a bit too distracting to be on the dash I think). My setup is hot-wired so I can read it at any time - it draws 3mA.
BTW - It's a nice looking meter that matches the aluminum of the bike quite well. Too bad Honda didn't build a voltmeter into the left or right gauge panels. Then again maybe it's just as well, it probably would have shorted out, taken out the whole dash, and started a fire! :o
Here is my Lascar Voltmeter install. Just thought I would show everyone since I had been holding off on this *ESSENTIAL* VFR farkel trying to settle on a location for it. Not having a voltmeter bit me yesterday when my battery packed it in while trying to get to work! This little sucker would have told me exactly what was going on.
http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/forum/uploads/1185263231/gallery_11167_3227_41908.jpg
Drivers View
I was going to drill a hole to mount the voltmeter but I really like the factory look of my bike and I don't like messing it up permanently. Don't get me wrong, I'll drill for frame sliders to protect $1000 worth of plastic but I don't like slapping stuff all over. That said I don't like "Mickey-Mouse" fixes or repairs either so I was having trouble figuring out how I was going to handle this mandatory little item.
The permanent mounting locations would have been on the dash or on the fairing. The dash option seemed way too stick-on "Canadian Tire" (Canadians will understand this). I almost stuck it on the flat upper of the fairing but I have had those fairing on and off so many #$%& times that it would have been pain to disconnect the wiring each time the plastic was flying.
So I came up with the following solution. It is secure, removable, and best of all puts the voltmeter in a nice central, fairly visible, location.
You will need:
- 3 inches of 3/4" steel strapping (about $4 at the hardware store - in the plumbing section), and
- a Lascar 1200 Voltmeter (I got mine from Allied Electronics for $30 USD).
DONE!
The only drawback of this location is that it is not protect from rain (like it would be if it was on the dash). The instructions say its "splashproof" and I don't think it would get wet while riding but it will if your bike is sitting out in the rain.
http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/forum/uploads/1185263231/gallery_11167_3227_7230.jpg
Side View
http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/forum/uploads/1185263231/gallery_11167_3227_21964.jpg
Instruction Pic
This may be a little "Mickey-Mouse" for some and I'm sure I could come up with something better than the strapping but you have to get down and look hard to see it. If I want under the tank I simply bend it out of the way and get to work. You could probably flex the strapping back and forth a couple dozen times before your broke it - big deal it's about 2 cents worth of strapping. The steel will likely rust so you could put something on it or use different strapping - the back of the box says it comes in Galvanized, Copper and Nylon Coated - take your pick.
http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/forum/uploads/1185572379/gallery_11167_3051_55923.jpg
Super cheap mounting stuff - next best thing to binder twine and bailing wire!
On the techy side this meter has a VERY fast refresh rate. The specs say 3 samples per second - so it is constantly flickering away (it's almost a bit too distracting to be on the dash I think). My setup is hot-wired so I can read it at any time - it draws 3mA.
BTW - It's a nice looking meter that matches the aluminum of the bike quite well. Too bad Honda didn't build a voltmeter into the left or right gauge panels. Then again maybe it's just as well, it probably would have shorted out, taken out the whole dash, and started a fire! :o