ELECTRICAL FIRE MAX POWER

[101driver]

So the first thing to explain is my DL650 had a major electrical fire on new years day. If I had not switched the ignition off and disconnected the battery the bike would have burnt out. As it was, my quick action and the last of my coffee put the resultant petrol fire out just as it got started.
Reason for the post is to hopefully save someone else the pain. I was running heated grips and heated jacket both heavy load which I have used before. The bike has been laid up for a couple of years due to personal circumstances and then done 2K miles in a few weeks. I have used the heated auxiliaries in the past and over the past few weeks but this was the first time on full electrical power since putting bike back on road.
The power load total is bellow the 400W maximum and the battery afterwards was fully charged so proving that the system had not been overloaded otherwise the battery would have been dragged down during the all day ride.
What appears to have happened is:  one of the two red and black main power leads from the regulator to the main fuse block (twin block) has become overloaded, presumably because of a bad connection on the other line. Under normal running conditions the one line would be sufficient but with the auxiliary load using up a significant amount of the spare capacity the one line could not cope. The standard runaway reaction took place with this line overheating damaging the 3 phase generator lines which then set fire to insulation then the breather system, pair system and these set fire to the main fuel hose.
The connector in question is the 4 pin block one from regulator to main loom with two black and red wires and two black and white wires. just behind frame by your right leg.
To labour the point with one pin failed but the other good no fault will be seen on the bike until the load exceeds the capacity of that line, the pin is the weakest link. It doesn't matter whether it is the power or the earth in which failure occurs  (red and black x2 power, black and white x2 earth).
Because I use high auxiliary load close to the maximum at times due to riding in winter I am going to modify the system as follows:

• Cut out the plug in the new firing loom and hard solder in 32A cables on earth and power lines.
  
• Fit auxiliary fuse box at front of bike under right hand cowling.
• Run the new new 32A lines to the regulator and then past up to the auxiliary fuse fuse box.
• Hard solder the regulator wires (all 7) into the new 32A lines and the generator 3 phase loom.
• Fit above in flex conduit.

The auxiliary fuse box is the spare one from my old loom. I have welded a bracket on the headlamp frame for it and welded a common 8mm earth screw at this point also.
The full load of the generator and regulator output can now go forward or rearwards on the bike, the only plug in connectors are the fuses in the respective fuse box's both tucked up high and dry and in a good place, the power is split at each fuse box so any one connection to an individual fuse is low current and the correct fuses will be installed of course.
In normal running the power will on max load now be split with roughly half going to each fuse box. but each fuse box is capable of now taking the full load. The pins used in the multi connectors are very close to the maximum current rating so if like me you use a lot of auxiliary power I would suggest that you check that they are  in good condition especially the ones down in the dirt, otherwise you may have the same fate as me.

[Gert]

I think that you need to perhaps re-think the mods that you are suggesting.
The connector pins, no matter where they are located, may be the weak link but it does not end there. It is not wise to subject the connector pins or the wiring harness to high current draw.

The Suzuki wiring harmess comprises of various wire thickness and wire stand type (gauge wire) to handle a designed current carrying capacity for a specific electrical funtion that wire can safely handle.  Google automotive electrical wire gauge vs ampere.   Over-load the wire by drawing higher than designed amps for that wire, the wire will heat up enough to melt the insulation covering around the wire and any other wire insulating close to the heated wire.  This is where the correct rated fuse is supposed to come into play, to help protect that specific wiring circuit from amperage overloading and possibly causing an electrical fire.

As far as the common earth up front, NEVER use the frame as part of the earth return.  It is believed that this will cause an electrolytic reaction in the frame and lead to premature corrosion.   Rather run a seperate earth cable to your proposed earth common pick up strip.

[101driver]

Gert thank you for the reply. The points you make are completely valid and I agree with them. They are precisely why I am doing what I am doing. The problem as you rightly point out is the complexity of the wiring harness and the rating of individual wires. The key point is that by moving the electricity flow for the auxiliary loads on to the new additional wiring the load back into the loom and down it from the regulator cannot be higher than the bare bike load. Essentially the mod is to protect the loom.
The only other consideration is the load when the engine is not running, the power from the battery coming back down the loom past regulator to auxiliary load could in theory be approaching but not exceed maximum. To prevent this and to avoid battery drain I am installing a relay triggered from ignition.
Regarding earth bolt it's a common terminal which happens to be welded on a metal bracket, main wiring loom earth comming up to regulator will be extended to it and it will serve as common earth post for all auxiliaries, the earth route being just as important as the power circuit of course.

[Robotstar5]

With 40 odd years experience of automotive wiring I would advise against soldering any joints as it produces a weak spot prone to fracturing due to vibration. You would be better off crimping any joints used decent quality crimps AND the correct crimping tool.

[101driver]

Very valid points Robertstar5. I have a professional crimp tool and do know how to use it. As a side note I use the heat seal crimps on bikes, very expensive relatively but still pence and really good, prevents any moisture and corrosion in cable. The fracture problem is one I agonised over and probably more so the need for connectors so that I have a break point in the wiring for test purposes. The generator output 3 phase being a critical one. The ability to swap out a blow regulator at the side of the road by just plugging in when on long multi day trips is also desirable. And yes I do carry a spare reg and ECU on long trips. The problem with crimps is even good quality ones well fitted have a maximum rating of 15 amp on the 6.3mm blade and bullet which means I will have to replicate what Suzuki did and run twin wires, this is why they did this. As this was the failure mode, I want to engineer it out because I can.
So back to the solder fracture problem, I have a love hate relationship with these, what I have seen over the years has been awfull and led to the failures Robertstar5 correctly points out. However I have made professional solder joints in original looms as indeed Suzuki do in mutiple places in this very loom. Key points are, the location is important for vibration as Robertstar5 points out. the joint needs to be well made to industry standard but without half a mile of solder tacking up the wires making them hard as nails. Proper insulation is also key, I will use heat shrink and then further protect from chafing if needed.
Good concerns thank you Robertstar5 any one else please shout up in case I have missed something.

[mr_diver]

Running any additional load through the Suzuki loom is generally a bad idea as has been said.

Use a switched live to trigger a relay, thus inflicting minimal extra load on the vehicle loom and power your accessories through the relay to the battery.

if more than one accessory is required use a separate fuse box after the relay, before the accessories.

[101driver]

Very important point mr_diver my solution use spare fuse box from old loom cut out flasher relay and fit normal B type 40amp relay to switch whole auxiliary fuse box on off with ignition, exactly as you correctly suggest.

[purplebikeunicorn]

Where were your heated accessories plugged into? The Suzuki heated accessory socket at the front of the bike? Or direct to the battery?

[101driver]

They were on a fused and ignition switched supply (added relay) taken from the battery. The primary failure was the supply from the regulator to the battery. There are two wires each will take aprox 17amps but with my load being in the twenties and one line failed the other could not cope.

[Ianmc]

    An extra observation from my own experience with a previous bike (K9) is this :There is a wire coming from the regulator going to the negative battery terminal which is the -12v.output from the regulator to the battery, that has a plug in connector roughly in line with the middle of the “V” of the engine.I was having problems with the charging that took me weeks to find which included buying a new regulator and stripping the bike to examine the alternator, neither of which worked.The fault was that the wire to the connector had lost the “tension” where it gripped the cable and allowed the terminals to move away internally from each other, the bike charged normally when cold and then virtually stopped charging when hot.It is a pig to get to but I eventually managed to remove the old plug and permanently join the ends of the wires together.If you look at the battery negative terminal there are two wires on it,my problem was with the smaller of the two.

[101driver]

Thanks Iammc, found it! by rear cylinder head on my bike. Checked it slight discolouration and as you describe the "tension" wasn't very confident inspiring. Electrically OK no resistance but cleaned up with switch cleaner and squeezed up to increase tension.
Glad to have found it, thanks for post Ianmc.

[101driver]

just in case anyone is interested these are the heat seal crimps. Shown before heating. You crimp them as normal then heat them and the insulation shrinks down on to the wire insulation. I really like them but still use self amalgamating rubber tape on top. In the end I used 6.3mm blade crimps on 3 phase circuit so I can break in the future for test and can plug this back into standard plug on a replacement regulator. I hard soldered the new +ve and -ve 32 amp lines though and secured to prevent vibration (see robotstar5 comment). I kept the cut out plug from loom so I can connect a fly lead to it. This plus standard reg can now be quickly fitted if needed during any future roadside repair.

[Mr Nick]

With 40 odd years experience of automotive wiring I would advise against soldering any joints as it produces a weak spot prone to fracturing due to vibration. You would be better off crimping any joints used decent quality crimps AND the correct crimping tool.

Yup, make sure they're decent: unlike the cowboy who did this...

[Robotstar5]

I've seen all sorts over the years, the usual DIY bodge is wires twisted together with sellotape wrapped round the joint.
Another tip, never use Scothlok type connectors.

[101driver]

Great picture and exactly what I wanted to avoid!!! That is what my loom would have looked like if I had repaired it and with that and even using the best crimps and techniques a load of hassle in the future. I fitted an unmodified loom and made one break into it at a twin plug and spent time making that a really good soldered well insulated pair of connections. The 3 phase circuit will eventually go back to standard which is another reason I used the 6.3 blade crimps, it means I can fit a standard reg later on and when I am next in the generator fit a new cable there also so all that goes back to original eventually. My mods with split power to auxiliary fuse box are all on my wiring and it can all be reversed and put back to standard by soldering the one 4 pin plug +ve and -ve connector back into the loom or crimping new pins into it as standard.
Again great picture which says more than words

[101driver]

I will second that robotstar5. My first job on any bike or vehicle is de-scotch locking. Awful things.

[101driver]

As the subject of solder joints quite rightly raises concerns, and well it should as I have witnessed many awful joints over the years which can be a right pain if a dry joint and intermittently failing or dangerous if overheating. I thought I would post a picture of how I was trained as an electrical apprentice to make multi strand cable T joints. This was for heavy power cables as thick as my arm and before heavy crimp connections were universally available. The joint is soldered upon completion. I adopt this method with vehicle wires for T joints as it is electrically sound. The apprentice or indeed craftsman would "fail" if any of the following were evident on inspection.
Loose unsoldered strands
Dry joint (incomplete melt and coating of solder)
Insufficient solder to fully coat and fill voids between strands
Poor penetration of solder
Excess solder on joint
Excess solder tacking down cables
Burnt insulation

[101driver]

Theory and practice note the solder does not penetrate the cable past the joint for the reason Robotstar5 pointed out.

[101driver]

IT RUNS!!!!!!
Second hand loom, throttle bodies air box etc all new rubber hoses on breather system had to make them up my self as breakers didn't have them??? Fitted new silicon hoses while in there and a bit of extra wiring.
Just two faults both school boy ones:
I put the tip over sensor on upside down........ Why does it say UP on the side you can't see? it should say bottom or down, so you know you have it on upside down.
Code C14 because I had not plugged in throttle position lead.

Just need to balance up the throttle bodies and then start putting a ton of plastic and stuff back on. Should be out on it next week.

[purplebikeunicorn]

Congrats on the successful revival!

I guess that breakers probably don't bother with bog standard rubber hoses, since they can perish (and can just be replaced by new rubber hose that's freely available?).