- Mon Jul 30, 2018 1:17 pm
#78264
Sticking my oar in here but these needle probes sound like a very bad idea on motorcycle wiring. I have had more intermittent faults that I'd care to think of over the years caused by moisture ingress and corrosion working its way along the inside of the insulation on a wire.
A well made loom will have each end of the wire insulation trapped in a properly applied crimp, effectively sealing it to moisture ingress. Poking holes in the insulation wont cause an immediate problem but I can guarantee in the UK climate and with the salt that gets thrown on our roads, it would an intermittent and very difficult to trace electrical fault after a few years riding.
I had a very similar fault on a more modern bike a few years back. It started intermittently cutting out for a few seconds in the wet. Then one day, it just died. Nothing. After 2 days looking, I traced the fault to a CDI wire that the dealer (who I bought it from new) had fitted a scotchlock connector to with the intention of using it as part of the immobaliser system. He then changed his mind and removed it, wrapping the damaged insulation in a piece of PVC tape. It took 3 years for tape to lose integrity causing a short to the frame when wet and 4 years for it to fail altogether.
All three Kawasaki 500 twins I've had dealings with have had a poorly fitted connector on the main 30A fuse holder, they used too thick a wire for the terminal so the insulation isn't crimped properly. This takes about 10-15 years to finally corrode to the point it causes a fault and being the main feed to the ignition switch, it leaves the bike dead in the water. On all three, I had to cut that wire back at least 6" into the loom before I got to a bit that wasn't green and furry then splice a new piece in.
In my experience, there are no wires on a motorcycle loom you can't get at both ends of with enough perseverance.
The wires are thin because the largest load the DC wiring on a bullet will be carrying is if you have the flashers, side lights and brake light on simultaneously. Or the headlamp and taillight on the AC side. In either case, it's less than than 6A. 0.5 sq.mm thinwall cable is rated to 11A.
