Honda 12v accessory socket made of cheese??

Fishman

Fishman

Joined
Jul 28, 2007
Messages
4
Location
London, UK
Took the right hand side fairing off recently (for first time) to install Stebel horn. Big thanks to Dano for fantastic photos that really helped show how best to mount it. In the process, found that the 12v accessory socket in the right hand pocket installed by previous owner had been hard wired / soldered in. Why would you do that??:confused:

Rather than cut the wires and loose some length, I heated up my iron and melted the solder on the connection. Obviously over did it as the plastic around the pin also melted, leaving the connection and the +ive button inside the socket loose :mad:

I now have a busted 12v socket - not end of the world as I also installed another weatherproof socket on the panel next to the tank, easier to get to than the one inside the pocket but will have to pay out for replacement at some point.

Doh!
 
Believe it or not, the 12-v socket comes direct from Honda with that wire soldered in place! I quickly converted both wires on mine into detachable options so it's easy to take the right side plastic off.
 
That Honda socket is a real PITA. I have worked and worked to keep mine working correctly. It's got plenty of juice....just bad connectivity in the socket.

Forest
 
P.S. Fishman, good signature. The young members of my church are trying to buy a bike for Riders for Health. Have you seen the video of the motorbike ambulance?
 
I'm wondering if a 12v DC Socket from Wal*Mart would be OK?...what would be the pros and cons?...I am looking to add Satilite radio and some heated gloves to my ST1300...don't know if I'll ever do anything more..but would like to have the option and dont really want to pay $100 for the Honda version and their adapter harness.
 
A cheap 12v socket could be used but has it's drawbacks. I've used them but wouldn't actually recommend them. They are wide open to the elements in the back. The cheap ones never seem to have effective covers (caps) on the front, at least, I've had problems with them not staying closed when not in use. Most of them have no drain hole for when rain gets in. All these drawbacks can be overcome. Drill a small hole in the bottom for drainage, wrap the entire backside in good electrical tape (don't ever use a real cigarette lighter in there 'cause that would melt the tape), and test all the caps because their closeability varies greatly, even with the same brand unit.

Many will jump in and tell you to get the BMW style power outlets but I don't like them because nothing I have uses a BMW style plug; they're all standard cig lighter plugs.

The marine quality plugs are a good choice and cost much less than Honda's unit which is actually pretty low quality.
 
I purchased a farkle harness from Turbo Tom. It includes the 12v accessory plug (with weather cap) as part of the unit. I mounted mine in the right faring pocket. I also crimped a powerlet outlet onto the harness and mounted that plug in the pocket as well. I won't use both at the same time, so I didn't worry about the power draw. I drilled a hole in the side of the pocket to run the wires out and up to the GPS mount. This keeps the pocket closed and maintains a clean look.
 
i installed a cig lighter receptical from a marine supply store. it's construction seemed to be, "just a hair" above the std. grade you'd expect to find at any wally world. one thing i did do is to polish the internal sleeve with scotch brite and then coat with die-electric grease. only about once a year. but it never gave me any problems. my suspicions are that they come into their own only at low power useages. cell phone, and gps are fine. for something like heated clothing, i'd probably look to a coax type receptical.
 
If all you want to do is charge your cell phone, then go with the Honda and hope it holds up. If you want to use it for heated gear, air pump, ect. get a Powerlet. Rated at 15 amp. With this type of socket, you get what you pay for. Easy to unplug when you have to take off the side plastic. Works for me!
 
Back from the dead.
The honda outlet has a 2 amp inline blade fuse. What limits it to 2 amp? The new wiring or the factory wiring to the red connector?
Mine was previously installed so I am not getting a good look at it. It was fun to trace down the fuse location to the left side fairing and replace it. I may extend it out thru the mirror wirie hole so that it will be easier to replace.
 
Fuses are selected to blow before the weakest link in the circuit, which is usually the wiring. They serve the same purpose as the circuit breakers in your house: preventing melt-downs and fires.

--Mark
 
Heck, its easy... pull out that honda plug and put in a Marinco. It's rated for 15+ amps and they have a matching plug that locks in place if needed.

Also, since the stebel horn is already fused, tap into the horn line and you can pull enough current to run a compressor ( very little chance you'll be running a high current device and the horn at same time )
 
I do know about wiring. The same extension wire is used for the factory heated grips is it not? The accesory fuse in the factory block is 15 amp I believe. Either the add on plug is only 2 amp rated, the wires are small guage somewhere on that circuit, or Honda thought you may be running more than one accessory at the same time on that circuit.

I can't find the any instructions for the factory add on so I don't know their reasoning.
 
RJWWL said:
I'm wondering if a 12v DC Socket from Wal*Mart would be OK?...what would be the pros and cons?...I am looking to add Satilite radio and some heated gloves to my ST1300...don't know if I'll ever do anything more..but would like to have the option and dont really want to pay $100 for the Honda version and their adapter harness.
Click to expand...

Try this harness from Eastern Beaver...good folks to deal with...

http://www.easternbeaver.com/Main/Bike_Specific/Honda_ST/honda_st.html

Brian
 
Thanks for the warnings guys. :bow1::bow1: I had already purchased the OEM 12v accessory socket to power my new GPS but after reading this was able to put a disconnect on the right side to prevent the umbilical cord.......that would have been a major PIA later on. It was nice to be able to solder the connections on the workbench.
 
I vote no for the Powerlet stuff. I bought their 2-outlet power outlet setup, and while finding out why it was blowing my fuses on a ride last season, I opened it up and found it was VERY cheaply made inside. Just a flat plate connecting the ground terminals together, and the positive wire routed right around the edge of it. Over time (like 3 months) the wire wore through and shorted. The other end of the cable was also starting to pull out of the plug, and I never even had any tension pulling on it.

For the location of the accessory plug...my bike came with one on the rear of the right panel (by my right knee). I have no idea why someone would locate an outlet there. What would you run to it? Maybe heated gear, I guess. But anything like a GPS, audio equipment, etc. would make more sense to have an outlet further forward, toward the dash area. I used this outlet to power stuff last summer until I had time to install a fuse block, I had to run the cord up around the upper gas tank to the dash area.

My next outlet is going to be in a better location.
 
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