78 GS1000E Wiring Questions

[dluszcz]

Well, decided to switch the low beam relay 85 and 86 wires to see if that makes a difference.

No difference. Wire is still warm, but not hot like before. Maybe this is just normal.

I figured that since there was no change in the temp on the wire, I didn't do the same thing to the high beam relay.

Should I leave well enough alone or should I do the same thing to the high beam relay?

[koolaid_kid]

Electrically it won't make a difference. However, it is a good rule of thumb to always follow convention. That way, if you need to troubleshoot in the future you know how it should be connected.

[Steve]

Ummm, it is interesting that the diagram shows 86 as ground and 85 as the switch. Standard Bosch relay wiring shows the opposite, 85 as ground, 86 as switch. It will work either way, but following standard useage helps prevent confusion. ...

I believe the only time it will really make a difference is if you have a protection diode across the switched and ground terminals.

Some pre-wired harnesses are available with a diode, but most of us don't bother to install one when wiring a relay directly.

.

[Flyboy]

When installing the relay mod, did you go up in wire thickness from battery to relay, and from relay to headlamp to handle the extra draw?
If you are still using 14 gauge wire, that there is your problem, even with the relay in place, the wires from battery to relay, and from relay to headlamp still have to carry enough juice to power the bulbs.

[Steve]

14 gauge wire is rated for about 15 amps. With two headlights drawing from the relay, the draw will only be about 10 amps, max.

Actually, according to this table, if you keep the length under 10 feet, 14 gauge wire is good for 30 amps.

.

[dluszcz]

I think I'm just paranoid.

I just had the lights on for about 5 minutes, and the fuse is about the same temp as yesterday. This is about the same amount of time that they were on yesterday when I realized they were warm.

The wire within an inch or 2 of the fuse holder is also a little warm. However, when I move further away from the fuse, the wires are just like the rest. Not warm at all.

Since I have a 10amp fuse in there, I'm hoping that if the draw is too much, it will blow the fuse before melting the wire. At least that's what I'm hoping.

Just left the brights on for 5 minutes and the exact same thing happened.

Touching the fuse, fuse holder and wire close to the holder, it feels a little warm. Other than that, no where else.

The wires coming from the headlights are NOT warm and that is definitely a good sign. They were really hot before I did the relay mod.

I think it'll be fine, I hope anyway, and I'm going to finish taping it up and re-zip tie everything to the frame so I can remount the gas tank when I'm done rattle can painting it.

Thanks to all for your input.