I don't remember the gauge of those green/yellow wires, but if they are of sufficient gauge, this would work if you can't find the origin of the two brake light wires.
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Brake light wiring
- Thread starter markchgo
- Start date
Thanks for the diagram. This is exactly what I was fishing for when I said I wanted an "upstream master brake light wire" to hook the flasher into. I just need to know where that single master wire is. Is it one of the many yellow/green wires in Ana's Dad's picture?... or is it further into the tail section requiring removal of the rear cowl?
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Not a problem! Personally I'd leave the stock brake lights alone, and install the flasher circuit on the top box light only. The stock brake lights are so dim they are useless anyway.
ST Gui
240Robert
I agree. No sense in compromising the reliability. At least they have that going for them. It would be so much easier to add an additional brake light. I don't know about Texas, but here in CA it's not legal to add a flasher to the OEM brake lights. Adding a "deceleration warning" light is not a problem, though that's supposed to conform to CVC requirements. (But I've never been stopped.)
I'm unsure what you mean by 'single master wire'.
Both brake switches pass on +12vdc (when either one of the brake switches is closed) by way of a single Green/Yellow wire, thus one wire for the front brake switch, and one wire for the rear brake switch. These two wires (from the brake switches) connect to two more Green/Yellow wires (the connection is hidden within wire harness) that pass the +12vdc to the two brake lamps (one wire for the left-side brake lamp, and one wire for the right-side brake lamp).
Perhaps a sketch showing how to connect these four Green/Yellow wires to the Kisan brake flasher module would help.
To answer his question, there is 1 brake light wire going to the tail light housing of the bike. The wiring splits in there for the bulbs.
For my opinion, I would suggest leaving the OEM brake light alone. I played with mine both ways (the beauty of my terminal strop...5 minutes and I can change what goes through the flasher) and found that the flashing rates needed to make the LEDs the most visible are too fast for what the regular bulb can handle, so doesn't look right. Even if it did, I like having one brake light that comes on steady, with the upper lights flashing to draw attention. Just person opinion based on nothing more than trying it and not liking the way it looked (from an attention-grabbing standpoint).
Using the Motorcycle Larry flasher I have mine set to do 3 quick flashes, then hold steady on. If I've been stopped at a light and see a car coming up behind me I release the brake and reapply so the lights will flash again. This way I don't continue to annoy someone stuck behind me at a light with a constant flashing light.
For my opinion, I would suggest leaving the OEM brake light alone. I played with mine both ways (the beauty of my terminal strop...5 minutes and I can change what goes through the flasher) and found that the flashing rates needed to make the LEDs the most visible are too fast for what the regular bulb can handle, so doesn't look right. Even if it did, I like having one brake light that comes on steady, with the upper lights flashing to draw attention. Just person opinion based on nothing more than trying it and not liking the way it looked (from an attention-grabbing standpoint).
Using the Motorcycle Larry flasher I have mine set to do 3 quick flashes, then hold steady on. If I've been stopped at a light and see a car coming up behind me I release the brake and reapply so the lights will flash again. This way I don't continue to annoy someone stuck behind me at a light with a constant flashing light.
Thank you for thinking of other. I so detest see those that I won't put others through it.. even if it does help my safety.
Thanks. I just had it in my mind that the by the time the brake light circuit approached the rear of the bike, it would be down to one wire before hooking up with the tail lights.
The more I think about this, the more the suggestions to not compromise the OEM circuit make sense. Wires to the Kissan are secured by screw down terminals. I can just see these screws loosening at some point allowing the wire to slip out. I'd be running around with no brake lights and not know it for a while. Again as suggested, I think I'll hook the flasher up to my Givi tail box lights.
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If all you want is to have the Kisan unit flash additional brake lamps (Givi trunk), then the electrical installation is less involved, no need to interrupt the existing brake lamp circuit as was necessary when the Kisan was going to flash all brake lamps.
You will need to tap into the existing brake lamp circuit for the Kisan unit. Note that when either brake switch is 'closed' the entire brake lamp circuit is energized, therefore it doesn't matter which of the four Green/Yellow wires (brake lamp circuit) you choose to enable the Kisan unit. I suggest using the Green/Yellow wire that is most convenient to gain access to; makes life easier.
You have a number of options as to how to tap into the brake lamp circuit. Soldering, crimping, and mechanical devices such as Posi-tap, are probably the most popular methods of adding a wire to an existing circuit.
All that remains is to connect the Kisan unit to the additional brake lamps, and install a chassis ground wire. I imagine that 18-gauge (or 16-gauge) wire will be sufficient for installing the Kisan unit, using a wire larger than 16-gauge is unnecessary in this situation, the OEM wires that you are tapping into are very close in size to 18-gauge wire.
Connecting up the ground wire to chassis ground is another area where you have a few options. Running a wire directly to the battery terminal, using a convenient mounting bolt to the chassis, or tapping into an existing ground wire (hint: there's one in the same location you found the brake lamp circuit). Choose the method that works best for your situation.
Have fun installing the Kisan unit, and enjoy your new found visibility.