I'm adding an accessory fuse block this weekend, and I have some questions before I light up myself and the neighborhood and straigten what hair I have left.


My accessory fuse block has six slots, which is probably more than enough for me.

Does every electrical accessory added to the bike have to:

1. Ground directly to the (-) battery post, or can they be grounded just about anywhere on the frame?

2. Have a relay and inline fuse?

What would determine what should and should not require the above two? Erb, you and I briefly discussed this in a PM, but I must've accidentally deleted it.

Thanks!

i have a 8 curcuit fuse block on my roadie. mine does not have grounds only power (but you can ground to the battery or frame just the same). my bow sits where my stock tool pouch is supose to go and there is a short wip tail that goes from the fuse block to the battery with no inline fuse or relay. the only time i would worry about a relay (or switched power) is if its something you only want power to when the key is on. if the items dont pull power untill you turn them on then you will be fine without a relay or switched power.

The ground of the battery is connected to the engine at the point of where the oil dipstick thing is. As long as the engine mounts make contact with the frame, any point on the frame can be considered ground.

Any accessory you add should have it's own fuse, just for protection.
As far as relay, with me it depends on how much current the accessory will be pulling.
High current items should have their own relay. I sure wouldn't waste my time or money on a low current device installing a relay. Why bother with a relay if I am only connecting a gps, or phone or ipod.
If I was running a high wattage stereo or amp, or extra lights, then I might consider putting the amp or lights on a relay.

Thank you smokescreens and greenpus! Very concise and helpful!

I was planning to connect my running lamps (which already have a relay and inline fuse) to the new accessory fuse block and add some LED accent lighting to that same accessory fuse block. The LEDs will be switched on by me after the bike is started.

I only have one question:
greenpus wrote:
Any accessory you add should have it's own fuse, just for protection.

Is this in addition to the fuse that is already designated on the accesory fuse block? I'm still a novice at all of this, so sometimes I still need a spoon instead of knife and fork at the grownup table.

Ricohoc wrote:
I still need a spoon instead of knife and fork at the grownup table.

now your old enough for this

Ricohoc wrote:


Is this in addition to the fuse that is already designated on the accesory fuse block? I'm still a novice at all of this, so sometimes I still need a spoon instead of knife and fork at the grownup table.
as long as the fuse in the accessory fuse block is the correct size for the device you have connected to it. Then you wouldn't have to add another inline fuse for the accessory.

Thanks for the clarification, greenpus!

And Jason, thanks for the upgrade.

I also have an aux fuse block in place of the stock tool location. Positive came off the battery somewhere and is switched (fuses only work when bike is ON) and I have a negative round terminal with about 8 grounding locations. The round negative terminal is connected to the battery ground and is connected to a bolt at the back exhaust side of the tool bag area.

It was all hooked up by a previous owner to run his GPS, CB, heated clothes and accessories. I have made a few mods to it but it works great! Allows for fused power that only works when switched. If I could ever get my pictures to work, I'll take one and post.

I wouldn't worry about lighting yourself up, it's only a small battery. It's more of s tingle then anything else

Good luck!! I'll be out riding today but available for questions!

There should also be some type of total power rating on your fuse block.
With all the accessories you add to the fuse block, you should not go over the total rating on the fuse block.

BigCountry wrote:


I wouldn't worry about lighting yourself up, it's only a small battery. It's more of s tingle then anything else
sorry but a 270 CCA battery is not a small battery. Maybe in size but current kills.