[greg38]

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Hi, my brother is having some electrical problems on his 87 wing, I have a 99 ,we want to add voltmeters to help avoid being stranded ( couple of times now ). Has anyone seen or used or heard anything on the digital voltmeter on the end of a cigarette lighter adapter plug? You just insert it like a lighter and it reads the voltage, this will save cutting holes and wiring if they are reliable, if not we'll start customizing, he has had work done on it and seems fine now but would be nice to see the voltage. thanks for your input greg

 

[drones76]

imported post

They may be off a bit. You need to get the voltage from the battery itself, if you can. Having said that, if you measure at the battery and then see what the voltage is at the meter, you will be in the ballpark regarding the state of power. The main thing is to watch for trends. If you are idling at 12.3v and at speed you are at 14.5 for your norms, you will know when there is a change. If idle voltage drops to 11.5 and revving it is at 12.8, you have to see what is going on.
I bought a cheap ($2.00) one from a Chinese distributor on Ebay for my CB 360. I use it for diags mostly, but it works well enough. I may find a place to mount it on the Wing.

 

[adman]

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Voltage will be the same on any wire on the bike that does not have a load. (Wire to headlight will show lower voltage because of large current draw). I usually use one of the small wires that provide power to the turn signals. They are easy to get to and close to a mounting position.

Here is a plugin style from Amazon - http://www.amazon.com/Vector-VEC008-Digital-Voltmeter-Volt/dp/B0002ISEQW

I use a panel mount Datel - http://www.bikemeters.com/cgi-bin/webshop.cgi?config=ent-datel

 

[4evermetric]

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I have used one with the 3 lights, (red for discharge, yellow for not charging but not discharging either) and green for charging. I use it all the time, and it works well. My cigarette lighter is hot all the time, so when I don't want it on, I have to unplug it, but no big deal. I think the LCD display ones would be better.

 

[Redeye1620]

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http://www.harborfreight.com/automo.../12-volt-battery-alternator-tester-66842.html

I use the above. I like the feature that it tells you the condition of your battery & tells you if the alternator is charging....-Rich

 

[jimsjinx]

imported post

I bought a Battery Bug. It works ok, but I shoulda bought one of Rudy's Smart Lites instead. Simpler and doubles as a faux theft alarm system! jimsjinx

 

[bcassel]

imported post

WallyWorld now has a nice, digital voltmeter that plugs into your lighter socket, just take the plug off and wire it directly to a switched lead, or the Aux on the fuse box. Couple of pieces of double stick tape and it fits wherever you want it. Red digits about 3/4 inch high on a 1 x 1 1/4 inch box that is about 3/8 inch deep. Cost is about $12.00