Heated Grips and Auxiliary Fuse Block

[jao]

So I after reading lots of reviews of how great heated grips are I decided that I wanted to get some. I ended up deciding to try the oxford brand, and after measuring my handlebar diameter and the length of my current grips I went with the Touring version.

I watched the revzilla video on installation, and agreed with them that even though it comes with an intelligent controller that shuts them off automatically if the engine is off it would be better to have it wired to a relay instead of directly to the battery.

So after much research into wiring a relay switch, I thought it would be better to wire the relay to an auxiliary fuse block so that if I wanted to hook up future electronics I could just hook them up to the switched fuse block and use the one relay.

 

[jao]

So after doing some research I found an automotive relay that was rated above the max available surplus voltage I had available for my motorcycle, and it had a tab on the top for mounting that I liked.

I found a fuse block that would fit, along with a bus terminal.

All were found on Amazon.

 

[jao]

While researching attaching wiring I studied up on soldering, and discovered shrink tubing. Although I have done some soldering in the past I had never heard of these, and thought they were super cool, so had to buy some.

Since I was in it this far, I figured I might as well buy a heat gun to do it right (my wife was so supportive of my project).

 

[jao]

The next step was figuring out where and how to mount the various bits. I decided on using some aluminum bar stock (picked up from ace), along with some stainless steel fasteners.

The first part was for the relay, and after trying out several different spots I settled on this one just below the gas tank (it is covered by the plastics normally)

I then made a bracket to attach the fuse block to the top of the air filter box.

And although I forgot to take a picture before, here is the bus mounted to a piece of the aluminum bar stock mounted to the battery holder.

 

[jao]

Fortunately my motorcycle has a keyed on power source in the fuse block (verified using a digital multi-meter) for ABS (which my bike does not have), that I could tap into.

So I used some online wire gauge calculators to find the optimal wire size for the amperage and voltage and came up with 12 awg. So stopped by ace for some wire, ordered an inline fuse holder rated to handle up to 30 amps, and some micro-fuse connectors (I ordered through a company called digi-key).

(Micro-fuse connector)

Here is my completed relay with the attached wires and connectors.

 

[jao]

The next step was to remove the old grips. I used an air compressor and the left hand one slid off very easily. The right one had a very generous amount of glue applied, but once I was finally able to separate all the glue, it blew of fairly easily too. This left me with a bare bar on one side, and a throttle body on the other side with a lip on the end whose diameter was a little too large for the heated grip to slide over.

 

[jao]

After about a half hour, and lots of encouragement from my daughter, the lip had been sanded down to the same diameter as the rest of the throttle body, and the grip slid on fairly easily. The left side grip slid on very easily. I used the provided mount for the controller with the longer screws and spacers to mount it to the left side of the handlebar.

 

[jao]

Connected all the wiring together for the heated grips as well as connected to the auxiliary fuse block and negative bus. Tested them out and they got a wonderfully toasty warm.

It was a great learning experience for me.

 

[Tally Whacker]

I did something almost exactly the same for my old 955 Speed Triple. I used a Blue Sea fuse block to power my heated grips and socket for electric vest, with the relay upstream of the fuse block. It worked flawlessly for years.

 

[KittenMeat]

This is legitimately how I started and by the end I rebuilt an entire bike from scratch. Now I do harnesses for people.

There’s many different types/grades of heat shrink it seems. If you have the relay get a phone charger on there for starters it’s a nice easy addition and helps just in case you get stranded to have a full Battery. Wiring is my favorite.

 

[doc4216]

Congratulations on a successful project! Heated grips were one of my first upgrades when I first doing mods. They are a game changer. Well done!

 

[bikeama]

Very nice first wiring job. '93 ST1100 was my first install of heated grips. I have had heated grips on every bike since then. You will like them.

 

[Frame Maker]

Nice little project. Wiring work can be very rewarding once you get comfortable with it. One tool I'd highly suggest getting is a proper crimping tool. Then you can make professional looking crimps. This connector you've shown requires this type of crimping tool...

This is the tool you'll want for these style of connectors...

http://vintageconnections.com/Products/Detail/94

Once you have the proper tool, then you can buy OEM style terminals and connectors. Then make all sorts of wiring changes and it will all look professionally done.

http://vintageconnections.com/Products/Terminals

http://vintageconnections.com/Products/Connectors

I like having the pro style crimp tool because I can make changes to the wiring harness, or make my own harnesses and adapters that look just like factory OEM...

20210319_233126 by andbike, on Flickr

20210503_102650 by andbike, on Flickr

Anyway, its been a good investment.

 

[norcalAF]

nicely done, I thoroughly enjoy the heated grips on my Vmax. I went with Koso grips as they are very clean once installed (you wouldn't know they were heated unless I told you), I wired them into the fuel pump wire so they will never be left on and will only work when the bike is actually running.