Motogadget

Where to begin? A few months back I was riding my 78 1000 ltd which was slated to be the next in line project bike. I was finally happy with motor responsiveness and convinced it was worthy of a frame up resto mod I  think it's now called. It needn't be stock, in fact, I enjoy a bit of custom for myself and whereas I had not sorted all the electrical issues at the time I still found excuses to takes the bike out for whatever reason. I was having fun. 

I started to prefer taking the LTD instead of the Geep especially if I was just going up the road, the dirt road as it is likely to be here in VT. Got really adept at tight turns until the bike died with the bars cocked full and I made the mistake of braking (in retrospect) on a hill no less and so the bike fell over at about .5 mph. Now the bike is on the dirt road with the high side on the downside of the hill and I go to pick it up and about midway up it felt like I got cracked in the lower back with a 2x4 edgewise and I fell to my knees. I apparently hurt myself. I reached around to see if anything was poking out around that area. I was stunned and in pain.

My neighbor drove up a few minutes later and I asked him to help, um, yeah, help an old invalid pickup his motorcycle. Which he kindly did.

I proceeded to get some ice and quite a few Advil.

Anyway, after my confession, anyone install any of the Motogadget sheeit, because whereas I love low tech I really don't care for the rats nest of wiring harness that comes with most bikes.  

Oh and I'm not worried still, just planning my riding future. Being older and smarter has its perks.

I looked into them and they seem really straightforward to install, so long as you're comfortable with reading/drawing wiring diagrams and understand the basics of how a motorcycle electrical system works.

That being said,  a reproduction stock harness is also a good option when you factor in price and speed of installation.

Take a look at webike.japan as well to see if they have any fancy aftermarket wiring harnesses.  That's what I wound up doing and I'm super happy with it.

Do you know why the bike died? A possible upgrade is to install blade fuses.
Here's a blade fuse box that's a close match to a stock fuse box found on many KZ models. cwswiring.com - Fusebox - FH-01

When doing wiring repairs, I use open barrel terminals & install them w an open barrel crimper. the crimps are very strong.
If you already happen to have a Harbor Freight ratcheting crimper, you can get replacement open barrel dies for making the proper crimps.

Another handy tool to have is a terminal pin extractor. CycleTerminal has a nice white handled set. cycleterminal
note: the guy is on summer vacation, so you'd have to check back around Aug 12. or try Z1Enterprises.com
..

I do know why it failed. The six pin connector from the ignition was distorted likely because of heat so it didn't make the the positive friction fit that is normally associated with that connector. I had electrical taped it but took that off because earlier that day I had tried something to tighten that up.

Admittedly it was stupid and I have a newfound realization for the electrical systems on these bikes.

Whereas these looms look complicated they aren't really compared to the new bikes and automobiles. Taken as a whole they are off-putting but then again so are some of the plans I receive from architects or engineers. Break them down into pieces and then you can make sense of them.

Judging by the condition of many (most) of the bikes I see electrical wise this is a common occurrence. I'm not adverse to technological advances at all but as with anything there should be a balance that each person needs to arrive at.

I think I'm going to go for it for either the 78' or the 76 kz900.

Haha, yes I saw that he was on vacay. I'll do a simple wiring routine for my 78 650 Custom since I for some reason threw the old harness out along with many of the old original parts that came with it. It's the only bike I still have that was purchased new.

As for the failed connector. I haven't checked exactly what Z1Enterprises has, but CycleTerminal has stock type connectors in either locking or non-locking oem style. So for the one that gave you trouble & for something like a voltage regulator, you'd probably want to get locking connectors so you can eschew the electrical tape fix.

I guess the Motogadget is a neato upgrade, but the blade fuse box would be a cheaper alternative.

...

I do think that I'll go the replacement terminal route from that company when they get back. The harness is in fairly good shape otherwise and nothing there that can't be fixed. There are more important items to spend the money on right now. It's close to being a rider although not a pretty one and that's fine. At least I won't be worried someone will steal it.

The 900 is all apart so I'll bring that frame and swingarm in for powder coating tomorrow.

Do you have an open barrel crimper? As you already know from first hand experience, on a motorcycle you'll want good connections.
Z1Enterprises sells K&L connectors & terminal pins, which should be good quality, and they seem to have a good selection.
The downside is that Z1Ent doesn't provide any wire gauge info & their customer service isn't what it used to be since they merged with another cycle parts company. I forget who. I went ahead & added some terminal pins to an order when I didn't get an answer from them, but they were too tiny. doh.

Colored wire. Z1Ent has colored wire so that's a good thing. I don't think CycleTerminal sells wire. maybe I just didn't look hard enough.
....

I don't but it looks like I'll be getting one. I have a long list of items for ordering so I'll just add those as well.

One item that I can take off The list is a Kerker pipe. I found one on CL NOS for $400 never was installed and like new. I drove 100 miles to go get it. The guy was over in N H and had a barn full of motorcycles. I'm having a great day!

Thanks for all the help Martin

all of the top builders use them,if that matters :huh:
i have bought two but haven't installed them yet.

you'll have to do a write up if you use one.


leon

Yeah, I'm addicted to the porn over at bikeexif and its used extensively there. The older ones are no longer available, only now with with the Bluetooth feature. I've decided to keep these 2 bikes fairly stock for the time being for a few reasons. I really like being free of all the technological advances when it comes to vehicles. Gimme a 65 pickup truck with no rust and I'm happy.

That said, a good part of me is a total geek so I'll put one on the bike I'll never sell. My 650 has been detabbed and shortened and its the perfect candidate for this.

I'm leery tho because with the Bluetooth ignition feature, what happens if your cell battery dies? I'm averse to bikes dying on the road and I dont think my herniated disc and newfound sciatica care to be picking up too many more motorcycles.

I've been known to say one thing and do nothing of the sort so who knows. I'll do a write up tho because I like to write.