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GL1200, ammeter!

2K views 15 replies 9 participants last post by  anoldefriend 
#1 ·
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I want to install an ammeter on my 86face goldwing any one have a wiring diagram around to help me do this.
 
#4 ·
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Red to a switched source..Black to ground..Should be able to get that off the accessory deal off the fuse block..Make sure you use big enough wire lots of kits come with 18 Gauge wire and that really should be upgraded to at least 12 or even 10.
 
#6 ·
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If you MUST do this ammeter thing instead of a voltmeter , you need to purchase a high quality ammeter and FUSE it at both ends as it must be connected to the battery directly . The ammeter and all wiring etc. is recieving full battery amps.!
I seriously advise that you dont go there as a simple frayed wire before the fusing will result in an electrical fire .
 
#7 ·
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ceasefire49 wrote:
Red to a switched source..Black to ground..Should be able to get that off the accessory deal off the fuse block..Make sure you use big enough wire lots of kits come with 18 Gauge wire and that really should be upgraded to at least 12 or even 10.
An ammeter needs heavy wire as it carries all current going into and out of your battery minus the starter.

A voltmeter on the other hand draws very little current and very light wire is adequate.
Your multimeter after all has fairly light leads and the only reasons they're as heavy as they are is that they need to carry the 10amps of that function and for durability.
 
#8 ·
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anoldefriend wrote:
I want to install an ammeter on my 86face goldwing any one have a wiring diagram around to help me do this.
I fitted a voltmeter on my 1200,quite easy to do,i connected the red/live wire to the radio wire,black to earth...this way it only activates when ignition switched on,works perfect....:smiler:
 
#10 ·
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wingsam41 wrote:
anoldefriend wrote:
I want to install an ammeter on my 86face goldwing any one have a wiring diagram around to help me do this.
Just curious what you are trying to accomplish with the ammeter.
Monitor his charging system I would think.:ROFL:

I remember the ammeters on some of my early cars. The ones that had actual numbers on the meter where good to +/- 60 or 90 amps. When you first started the engine the needle would go up ½ a needles width then go back to centre, when your alternator or at that time generator quit it would go down ½ a needles width. Pretty much useless.

A volt meter on the other hand tells you the general health of you battery before you start the engine and the health of your charging system once the engine is running.
 
#11 ·
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Ken Bergen wrote:
wingsam41 wrote:
anoldefriend wrote:
I want to install an ammeter on my 86face goldwing any one have a wiring diagram around to help me do this.
Just curious what you are trying to accomplish with the ammeter.
Monitor his charging system I would think.:ROFL:

I remember the ammeters on some of my early cars. The ones that had actual numbers on the meter where good to +/- 60 or 90 amps. When you first started the engine the needle would go up ½ a needles width then go back to centre, when your alternator or at that time generator quit it would go down ½ a needles width. Pretty much useless.

A volt meter on the other hand tells you the general health of you battery before you start the engine and the health of your charging system once the engine is running.
Seems as though that's the assumption everyone is making but since anoldefriend has been silent on the subject I was hoping to hear it from him. Perhaps he wants to know how many amps he is drawing total or what each component is drawing- can't do that with a volt meter. Anyway the question was geared towards finding out what his reason was (ie. what is he having trouble with so we could offer some help)I haven't seen one but I wonder if they make an amp guage that comes with an inductive clamp like many handheld meters use-I'm sure somebody does.
 
#12 ·
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anoldefriend wrote:
I want to install an ammeter on my 86face goldwing any one have a wiring diagram around to help me do this.
A volt meter on the other hand tells you the general health of you battery before you start the engine and the health of your charging system once the engine is running.
Thats quite correct and the reason i fitted one,the moment the ignition is switched on the voltmeter needle will move up to 12 volts
 
#14 ·
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Ammeter is wired in line and in series with the load. + and - are important to the direction of the needle and if backwards can destroy the gauge, more expensive gauges are protected. Full current flows through the gauge, so the wire size must handle all expected current with no heating problems. Protection by fuses can be used, the fuses must be able to handle the expected load.

Monitoring is dependent on what the gauge is in line with since it will indicate amps in total, but small amperage may not move the gauge very much. The battery , alternator or consumables will indicate greater or lesser amounts of amps but will depend on that load. A battery can supply 100 A while starting, an alternator can deliver about 40 A and differing consumables will suck up 10-30 A while in use.

The ammeter works both ways when current travels in a positive way and when in a negative way. If you want to know whether the battery is charging or discharging a center zero gauge should be used and must be able to handle the expected load.

Good things about ammeters:
They work and indicate relative amps all the time.
Either left or right needle swing is positive or negative
They are part of the circuit, and part of the load, but offer little resistance.
Good units are accurate, most automotive gauges are indicators, not very accurate
Right or left or center gauges are available to indicate what you need


Bad Things that you should know about ammeters:
Direct reading gauges are dangerous because they are part of the circuit.
Direct reading ammeters carry full flow currents.
Direct reading ammeters must be wired with the proper size wire

There are ammeters that can read exactly what you want but they are not directly attached to the load. They are really milli-volt meters that are set up to read amps through a dedicated bus bar. Every time amps flow there is a voltage drop and the voltage drop is read in milli and or micro amps to indicate flow in amps.

The nice thing is very little amperage goes though the meter but there still are safety issues. In working the bus bar is attached to the load in series and small wires are placed apart on this bar and read in very small units of voltage to the gauge which is calibrated in Amps but really is a volt meter. The cost is higher than a direct reading ammeter. The safety issue is not a great concern because the applied voltage on a bike is around 15 VDC.
 

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#16 ·
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Thank you for the advice extremely helpful...was having a battery issue when I would ride if I stopped the darn thing wouldn't start had to push start it, not easy by yourself. I installed a voltmeter, quicl and simple and replaced my brand new battery...problem solved. Thanks again for the help and remember the painted side goes up and the rubber side goes down!:raspberry:
 
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