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12 volt outlet

6K views 18 replies 9 participants last post by  Retrofit 
#1 ·
I was thinking of adding a 12 volt outlet on the bike to charge my gps. would the batter have enough power to support that? and do you guys have any recommendations?
 
#2 ·
Not an issue for most low amp loads like cellphones and GPS.



Intermittent use of high-drawing items like air compressors is ok, but may drain the battery in use. Late model bikes prolly should keep the motor running.
 
#3 ·
Check ebay or amazon. I have an emgo outlet that comes with a cigarette lighter. Like lizard said, try not to run an inflator while the bike is not running. Also, be careful not to leave anything plugged in overnight or you will likely be purchasing a new battery. Once they have been drained past a certain point they will not recharge. Don't ask me how I know this
 
#4 ·
yea i have a older tw and so if i put a outlet in i just have to make sure nothing is plugged into the outlet right? the actual outlet mount can stay plugged in? and yea I know what you mean about leaving stuff plugged in
 
#5 ·
You can run a GPS or a phone charger pretty much continuously. Just unplug them at day's end.



I soldered and heatshrinked ours tee'd into our Battery Tender pigtails. Uses the Tender leads' blade-type fuse. Two birds, one fuse, so ta speak.
 
#6 ·
For the lazy lizard...



http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-list...p?ie=UTF8&qid=1318456802&sr=8-1&condition=new



Do a little shopping and you can find these for around five bucks. Or you can just cut, twist and cover like lizard did. I plan on getting a battery tender jr off amazon for $20 and possibly just buying this adapter to plug into my outlet. SUPER EASY! We'll see if I take the lizard approach or the adapter???
 
#7 ·
Here's the basic gist of our outlet wiring. I used the standard Tender plug which mounts to the battery terminals and comes fused. It attaches as normal. The wires going forward go to the outlet, which is permanently mounted to the indicator light housing. The whole thing is heatshrinked, with an added layer of tape.



Excuse the mud. I layed it out on a towel. I don't like you guys well enough to take the whole thing apart right now, but the same fuse covers the Tender when it's hooked up and the outlet when it's not:











There's a downside to having only one outlet. If you fuse it heavily enough for an air compressor you could be overfused for more delicate electronics. Best case would be to have two, or use one of those tender outlets you found, fused for the heavier loads, and reserve the other for GPS and cell use.



This particular brand has held up well. I've left the springs under tension by leaving plugs in there for weeks and it still snaps shut with authority. Think I bought them at a Pilot truck stop a few years ago.
 
#15 ·
Here's the basic gist of our outlet wiring. I used the standard Tender plug which mounts to the battery terminals and comes fused. It attaches as normal. The wires going forward go to the outlet, which is permanently mounted to the indicator light housing. The whole thing is heatshrinked, with an added layer of tape.



Excuse the mud. I layed it out on a towel. I don't like you guys well enough to take the whole thing apart right now, but the same fuse covers the Tender when it's hooked up and the outlet when it's not:



There's a downside to having only one outlet. If you fuse it heavily enough for an air compressor you could be overfused for more delicate electronics. Best case would be to have two, or use one of those tender outlets you found, fused for the heavier loads, and reserve the other for GPS and cell use.



This particular brand has held up well. I've left the springs under tension by leaving plugs in there for weeks and it still snaps shut with authority. Think I bought them at a Pilot truck stop a few years ago.


I saw one of these Casco units at Walmart looking for other stuff but picked it up for $9.xx and plan to install in similar fashion. Any issues running/fishing the wires? I have the same Tender unit to Tee into, but this leaves the outlet hot when the key is off. Maybe a dumb question, but would it be preferable for any reason, or even feasible, to wire the outlet to be turned off with the key? I assume the hot would need to be run to fuse and crimped into its connector or something similar. Or, with the Tender's plug already present, would it make sense to just get an opposing Tender plug end I saw referenced here, cut the ring connectors and splice to the outlet leads. Thanks for any suggestions and help.
 
#9 ·
All I know is that they aren't all created equal. Other brands went "boing" at some point. Usually way early.
 
#10 ·
The emgo outlet I bought has a fuse in the line from the factory. I may just end up doing exactly what you (LB) did with the pigtails, except my outlet is wired directly to the battery instead of tapping into the lighting wires.



This is the one I got. It has held up well except for the lighter flying out while riding down the road. Never to be found...



http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002OPDL46?ie=UTF8&force-full-site=1





On a side note, is the only difference between the battery tender jr. (.75amps) and the battery tender plus (1.25amps) the charge time?



And Lizrdbrth, what are lizrdventz?
 
#11 ·
Lizrdventz is my egocentric werd for my in-the-frame carb vents.



Hadda call them something.
 
#12 ·
I just a bought this. Cut the end that plugs into the car outlet and figured out which was positive and neg and hooked it directly to the battery. after that i attached a radar detector to the bike. but after turning it on the thing makes a noise but there is no bars to tell me its on any thing i did wrong?


I will provide more pic later with what i did with my bike
 
#14 ·
Inspired by you guys, I just bought a three way cig lighter splitter for =$7 at the local hardware. I will have to buy a few fuses but it gives me three covered outlets so can put two outlets on one bike and one on the other. This means that you can charge a phone and have a camoing light on at the same time. Draining a battery shouldn't kill it unless it is on its way out anyhow -- I guess that what Operose is saying. I mean unlike my truck my bikes have kick starters which is why they are great for camping out - besides being cheaper and more fun dates than my truck . . .
 
#16 ·
It will handle heavier loads such as air compressors, etc. fused directly to battery power.



Alternately you could have a keyswitch activated relay to battery power. I've never found the need personally.



For light loads such as cellphones you could probably get by with tapping into a switched power source.
 
#19 ·
Here is my photos from a 20 buck ebay buy it now.



http://tw200forum.com/index.php?/topic/5527-i-got-the-power/



I thought about key switching it, then i wouldnt have to worry about unplugging it, BUT realized the first time I ran my cellphone battery dead, i would have to leave the motor running to recharge... photo below was in parking lot where i was working near by. just plugged in the phone an put under strap so not to fall. (always been wondering what that strap was good for - guess i finely found a reason to keep it)



 
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