Wednesday, April 17, 2013

ScootCommute's Believe it, or Not!

It may not look like it, but I really do know what I'm doing.

A careful eagle-eyed observer will notice that I've set up a direct feed (both positive and negative) straight from the battery to a terminal strip. The terminal strip gives me six pairs of positive and negative feeds direct from the battery.

From there, I have a 25 amp fused circuit going to the relay that controls the Stebel air horn, and a 10 amp fused circuit controlled by a relay actuated by the ignition, going to dual 12 V outlets that will soon be installed.  I tested the horn and almost knocked my hearing out.

I've also got LED running lights and turn signals up and running.

And this is how I am spending my evenings. It's also the reason I'm not spending my days riding.

For those of you who are interested in doing some of this stuff yourselves, no worries because I'll be posting detailed project reports for each of the modifications, as has been my habit in the past.

Man, if only I had been riding this morning instead of caging it to work.  I spent an hour-and-a-half snarled in traffic, a scant mile or two from the office.  All because of a bomb scare at a key downtown subway hub station.  I would have filtered out of that mess in minutes, not hours, on my Vespa.

In the wake of the Boston bombings, everyone's extra vigilant.  Can't blame them.

11 comments:

Unknown said...

David:

I was going to install a switchable box too but never got around to it. The hardest part is finding the "trigger" wire.

I would rather not have your horn on a "switchable" circuit. You may not have your key handy when there is a truck backing up . . .

bob
Riding the Wet Coast

Canajun said...

IT'S THE RED WIRE! YOU HAVE TO CUT THE RED WIRE FIRST!.... oops.

Unknown said...

David:

. . . and if it wasn't the RED wire, then It was nice knowing you

bob
Riding the Wet Coast

David Masse said...

Bob, the Vespa GTS has an alarm system socket with both switched and unswitched power, left and right indicators, and other circuits. ModernVespa.com has the pinouts for the connector, so tapping the right wire to control a relay is relatively straightforward.

David Masse said...

Very helpful guys, HALF THE WIRES ARE RED!!! I'm still here though. For the record Dave, I had wired up my outlets and omitted the relay, which I realized when I tested the outlets with the ignition off. With the circuit "hot", I had no choice but to cut the red wire. Not so much as a whimper or spark. No Ka-Boom!

Oh, given Boston, there should be a two week moratorium on bomb jokes.

.... just kidding :)

Dar said...

Wow I am glad I have Motorcycle Man, because honestly there is no way in heaven I could do what you're doing. You are a have soul. Like the led running lights they look great!

David Masse said...

Thanks Dar! I do these modifications primarily for improved safety, to increase the odds I'll be seen and be heard and that's a powerful motivator to figure it out and get it done. Once I'm at it, it makes sense to add the 'nice-to-have' things like power outlets and RAM mounts for phone, GPS, and GoPro devices.

Trobairitz said...

Good on you for doing all your own wiring.

The sum of my knowledge is that electricity runs downhill (so to speak).

If I tried to do my own wiring I'd be zapped so many times I'd probably need a pacemaker when I was done.

David Masse said...

Trobairitz, it's not as difficult as it might seem. I enjoy the 'plumbing' aspect of it. That's probably why I enjoy writing Excel macros too. In both cases you improve the functionality of a machine so that it serves you better.

Steve Williams said...

Glad you have the fortitude to adventure through that mess O wires. There are days I think of doing things like that and then think better of it. Everything mechanical I touch on the Vespa seems to go wrong.

Steve Williams
Scooter in the Sticks

David Masse said...

Steve, I think I have read every single one of your posts. I remember the LX 150 dying of its wounds. I admire you for tackling mechanical chores. I don't have the confidence and I don't have tools that are up to the task.

Messing with wires, and taking body parts off and putting them back on is the limit of my ability.

All the rest I leave to the dealer.

The copyright in all text and photographs, except as noted, belongs to David Masse.