Best Way to Hard Wire a Light

[Tubamanandy]

Can anyone suggest the best way to hard wire eg. a front light to the battery ?

 

[Deleted member 4366]

Which front light is it?

 

[Tubamanandy]

The really powerful but cheap one that you recommended a few weeks back - silver finned with 1 x LED in middle

 

[Deleted member 4366]

That's easy then. You wire one wire to any positive battery wire and the other to the negative. Then you cut either one of the wires and put a switch on it. The light will only work with the wires one way round. This switch should do the job:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Universal-Handlebar-Motorcycle-Accident-Hazard-Light-Switch-ON-OFF-Button-GOOD-/131273777781?pt=UK_Motorcycle_Parts_13&hash=item1e9086e275

 

[KirstinS]

That's easy then. You wire one wire to any positive battery wire and the other to the negative. Then you cut either one of the wires and put a switch on it. The light will only work with the wires one way round. This switch should do the job:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Universal-Handlebar-Motorcycle-Accident-Hazard-Light-Switch-ON-OFF-Button-GOOD-/131273777781?pt=UK_Motorcycle_Parts_13&hash=item1e9086e275

D8veh - I though the light needed to be on it's own circuit to the main battery . If you link to positive and negative battery wires that power the controller then won't the light then have the varying amps running through it ? Ie whatever amps the motor is pulling at the time ?

 

[mfj197]

KirstinS, I think you and d8veh are saying the same thing. d8veh suggested wiring one wire to a positive battery wire and the other to the negative, which would be its own circuit to the main battery. He's then saying to cut one of the light wires (not one of the existing power wires) to put in the switch. Not touching the controller at all.

Michael

 

[Deleted member 4366]

D8veh - I though the light needed to be on it's own circuit to the main battery . If you link to positive and negative battery wires that power the controller then won't the light then have the varying amps running through it ? Ie whatever amps the motor is pulling at the time ?

No. It doesn't work like that. The light only takes what it needs. The controller current doesn't go through it.

 

[Tubamanandy]

OMG, just temporarily connected the light to a 36v battery and WOW !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! is it bright, couldn't possibly see you ever needing a brighter light.

 

[KirstinS]

Ooo - now I'm really looking forward to mine arriving!

 

[Tubamanandy]

If its the same one as I have you will really not be disappointed - such a powerful light.

Its basically a LED, reflector and large aluminium heatsink all built very well in a single unit. Still not that sure how to wire it up though. There must be an easier/better way than running a couple of wires direct to the main battery

 

[Deleted member 4366]

There's a couple of places you can pick up battery voltage closer to the front of the bike. The first is the battery indicator lights if you have them. The wire to them is battery voltage and they use the throttle ground as the negative. You could splice in to those two wires. That would be very convenient if your throttle has the red button, which you could re-purpose. Each LED is about 2.5A at 3V, so 4 LEDs would be 30w or nearly 1A from the battery, which is probably a bit much for very thin throttle wires

The other place is the LED or LCD control panel. It's powered by battery voltage, so has both wires that you can splice into; however, you have the same problem that the wires might be too small. They'd be OK for a single LED light, but those ones above take a lot of power