How Many Wires Does a 70 Have?

[Flyingw]

A CRAP LOAD!!! That's how many..... This is my little Spontaneous Combustion 70 I built in 08. I sold it earlier this year. The new owner brought it back to me to have the frame stretched and some electrical changes. The guy has a two year old who like to push buttons when nobody is looking. I originally built it with no neutral safety switch so the starter was live all the time. No big for an adult. One day his kid hit the start button. It was in gear and it jumped and busted the headlight when it hit the trike in front of it. SO, thanks to Richard for making me a 3 inch extension sleeve, I cut the frame and installed the stretch. I filed a few other holes and sent it to the powder coater along with the tank I picked up. Mechanically the assembly is straight forward but the electrical is another matter. I had bought a little siren a few years ago but never installed it. I wanted to install a key switch in the dash but there simply wasn't enough room in the pad even for the smallest switch so I put a push/pull switch on the tail under the fender. Now he can shut it off electrically. I also hooked up the starter solenoid to the neutral switch and installed a neutral light on the dash. The owner wanted LED lighting under the rear fender so I found these 18" strips with 15 different patterns. I installed those along with a little push button switch so he could change the pattern. I also found these red LED side lights for the sides of the head light. The rear fender always had a red wig wag on it and that will remain. I wired it up so when the light switch is set to low beam, the head light and tail light come on. When the light switch is placed in the high beam position, all the lights come on and the siren is enabled. CODE 3 BABY!!!!!!!!!!

Being an aircraft electrician I'm a bit picky when it comes to wiring. I even drew up a detailed wiring diagram for this one in case I'm not around and somebody else needs to figure out what I've done. Anyway, I finished up the electrical tonight except for the siren. I have to hang the exhaust before I can figure out where the siren will go. It's going to be placed on the right side under the rear fender toward the bottom of the frame. The wires are already there. This is going to look pretty cool at night running code 3. I hope to have it finished up this weekend assuming I can find a longer brake cable and the correct brake pads show up before the weekend. This trike has run flawlessly since I originally built it in 08. All I've done to it over the years is adjust the chain and change the oil so I'm not expecting any problems when I do the initial engine start. Anyway, enjoy the pictures.

[badass350x]

Beautiful job on the wiring!

[coolpool]

Very nice work! Way more patience than me.....and a heck of a lot more knowledge on wiring. I'd love to see this complete.

P.S. It needs a dalmation stuffy perched behind the headlight ;-)

[the great gazoo]

Very tight wiring, it looks like some of the control wiring I've done on dock levelers/truck restraints, and other stuff- it's (to me, anyway) fun pulling all that 14-16 gage wire tight & making it look pretty, even though nobody would ever give a second thought about the time & effort that goes into control wiring! Your posts are always super interesting, and don't get me started about the carbs.....

[Flyingw]

Wiring can make you or break you sometimes especially when the wiring is off the cuff so to speak. I took the basic wiring for a 5 wire Chinese motor with lights and estart and started filling in what I needed to add and working with 9 wire colors, started filling in the details. Wire routing is also a detail most guys don't really give too much thought bit its important. Having the right connectors with the right crimpers is also very critical for a successful wiring job. I bought a couple of the connector kits from Vintage Connections and it was so nice to have a selection of connectors to choose from rather than a whole bunch of butt splices made it so another guy could accurately disassemble the wiring based off the wiring diagram rather than cutting it apart. Lastly after all the wires were routed and the systems checked, I tied up everything nice and neat with aircraft tie string and not a ton of zip ties. Now the wiring is bundled nice and secure for many years of reliable service. You are right, most guys don't go to that level but I have issues!!!!! so the doctors say but I'm getting better...or worse depending on your point of view.

[the great gazoo]

Aircraft wire? Interesting.
Also I'm going to check out Vintage Connections(.com, I'm gonna take a wild stab?), I'm doing some stuff with my Honda Ascot & would like to keep the connections original so I can put it back to stock, if I decide to sell it.

[redsox]

really a very nice job, as usual. the pride you take in your work is evident. awesome build.

[Motorgidd]

Nice work, great detail.

[Frankencelery]

Fantastic work. The terminal block is an interesting touch. It keeps connections exposed in case you need to do any troubleshooting. I don't know if that was your intent or not. I'm adding regulation and 2 LED headlights to my Tecate, and the terminal block just might solve some problems I've been trying to work out.

[Flyingw]

My original intension was to bring more wires to termination at the terminal block and all the grounds to a separate terminal block but you know how it is trying to bring that many wires all together? It usually turns out to be a big mess. The grounds you see is a typical aircraft chassis ground arrangement. Its actually easier than a terminal block arrangement. You are connect in that I used the terminal block for the accessory lights power leads so the harness could be disassembled for troubleshooting in case that was ever needed.

The Vintage Connection kits I bought (2 different kits) have a large assortment of terminal lugs and locking plugs and like I said, the right crimpers for all the pins, sockets, and lugs. The crimpers don't just crush the ends on the wire, they roll the tabs on the connectors over the wire insulation and the wire core for a very secure connection just as they originally were from the OEM.

[Frankencelery]

All that flat surface on the 70 frame gives you room to lay out the wires nicely.

I use lots of crimp connectors too, but I agree...I despise the crimpers that just crush the end. Those connections usually end up being problematic later on. Lately I've been pulling off the plastic covering and then soldering and covering with heat shrink. Then I don't have to worry about what will happen to the connection down the road.

[Flyingw]

That was the entire reason I made a new harness rather than modify the old one. I had several connections pull apart when I disassembled the trike. Now its all nice and neat and I feel confident with all the different connections. I highly recommend the Vintage Connections kits with their crimpers.

[Flyingw]

The only thing not in their kits is splices but I use aircraft environmental spices. I have three different sizes of those and they are mechanically the best method for splicing wire together. There are special crimpers for those.

[jb2wheels]

So... what are you doing with the old tank?

[Flyingw]

I dunno Jon. You need a plastic tank?

[Flyingw]

After a couple of final electrical checks, I will be firing it up for its initial engine start. I installed the exhaust and siren the other night. I also had reworked the stock foot pegs and got those mounted. The first time I built it I had turned the pegs down but not enough. This time I cut the welds loose and turned the pegs down and welded them back up. I'm still waiting for a fresh rear fender and a set of brake shoes before I can button it up completely. The owner wants the matching trailer I built to get refreshed as well so when that is done, he will have a pretty neat little 70 and trailer for cruising around the lake.

[Flyingw]

Well, this little refurbishment project turned out really well. I finished the trike about a week ago. I got the trailer back from the powder coater on Friday and got busy assembling it. Here is the finished pair. Its got headlight and tail light along with the tailer tail lights and side marker lights when the switch is put on low beam. On high beam, there is a red/red wig wag and LED flashing strips under the rear fender and under the trailer that also come on and the siren I installed is enabled in the code 3 position. I'll get it outside tomorrow and get some natural light pics.

[Flyingw]

Some outside shots.

[prometheus]

Fireman and their toys. I'm gonna take a wild stab and say your customer is a hose jockey. Got a fireman that lives out here that drives a turbo beetle. Its red with fire stuff on it. Says "Fire Bug" across the back window. I love it tho. I must say that is a very nice build. Where did you get the little ball hitch? That is awsome. That would look great on my 185s I'm building.

[Flyingw]

Actually neither myself or the current owner have anything to do with firefighting. When I built in in 08, I was undecided as to what to do with it and I asked the Grandson of a friend of mine who was about 4 at the time what I should do and his reply was to make it like a fire truck so I did. Its always been known as Spontaneous Combustion but this time it got a Hazmat kinda theme. The owner is a HAZMAT rated CDL driver plus I liked the graphics. This is what it looked like when I originally built it.

[the great gazoo]

You mentioned Aircraft environmental splices & their crimpers, the crap butt splices I get at work & my personal stash are sub par, like most. Where can I source some of these splices & the crimpers?
Oh, and as always your work is top notch, I love this build. I really like the way you ran the harness back to the trailer & that cute little safety cable for it.
I'm also curious about the siren, I have wired a lot of DC sirens to AC systems utilizing rectifiers- What can you tell me about the siren?

[Flyingw]

See the link. Aircraft splices are commercially available form many sources made by Raychem. The Ebay pic shows the yellow and blues but there is one size smaller that are red for about 22-28 gage. These are the three sizes I use but I don't use the melt sleeve. The heat range to melt and seal the sleeve is above the heat range of most automotive wire so I just crimp the barrel and cover with shrink tubing.

Splices
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Aircraft-wiring-Inline-Splice-connectors-Shrink-sleeves-Cu-Alloy-Ni-plated-/231249436964?pt=Motors_Aviation_Parts_Gear&hash=item35d78a6124&vxp=mtr

http://raychem.te.com/documents/webservice/fetch.ashx?fileid=8460&docId=927

The crimpers are the key to the splices. Mechanically superior to any butt splice out there.

Crimpers, Sargent Wire Crimpers. These are the ones I have.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Sargent-Environmental-Crimpers-Aircraft-Aviation-Avionics-Tools-/201102074240?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2ed29e2180

The siren is a small DC siren. I originally designed the lighting and siren to run directly off the lighting coil but dummy me didn't realize the siren and the flashing LED strips under the trike and trailer are DC. The rest of the lights are AC/DC so I rerouted the wire supplying power from the lighting coil to the light swich over to the wire coming out of the regulator going back to the battery to recharge the battery so basically the lighting and siren are being run off the battery. The biggest power draw of all of it is the headlight ad its only 35W. All together I'm pulling about 3 amps with the siren blaring otherwise a little over 2 amps without the siren so I think it will be ok.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/DC-12V-Wired-114dB-Alarm-Horn-Buzzer-Mini-Motor-Siren-Red-MS-190-/310980127716?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item4867dc2be4&vxp=mtr

[Flyingw]

Daniels also makes splice crimpers. A good heat gun is also essential if you plan on using the melt sleeves, This is the heat gun I have. A small tip is needed for the melt sleeves.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/HG3002kit-heat-gun-Steinel-1500w-34589-new-with-nozzles-/150598111251?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item231058d013

[Flyingw]

Here's the hitch.

[Keith Salyer]

That is way cool Jim. Can't wait to see more out of your shop.

[prometheus]

Actually neither myself or the current owner have anything to do with firefighting. When I built in in 08, I was undecided as to what to do with it and I asked the Grandson of a friend of mine who was about 4 at the time what I should do and his reply was to make it like a fire truck so I did. Its always been known as Spontaneous Combustion but this time it got a Hazmat kinda theme. The owner is a HAZMAT rated CDL driver plus I liked the graphics. This is what it looked like when I originally built it.

Awesome I love it. I also like the Tonka Trike in the background. I love themed trikes. I am thinking about going with a John Deere theme on my 185s. My sons favorite colour is green and I painted his pedal trike John Deere green and yellow. He loved it. Plus we live on a farm so it would match other things around here. I like how you did the load leveler ball for a hitch. It is a great idea.

[the great gazoo]

Hey Jim, thanks for the links & info, the Sargent crimps are right up my alley, as are the splices.

[Flyingw]

Very good. Any site or store that supplies the aviation industry can get the splices and probably the crimpers too but retail they are expensive so I'd suggest used ones off Ebay. Same for the heat gun if you go looking for one of those. Let me know if I can help with the splices.