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Eliminating compnants

Discussion in 'XJ Modifications' started by MPL, Nov 4, 2020.

  1. MPL

    MPL New Member

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    I tore my 1983 xj1100 apart this week. All the wiring is out. Is it possible to remove any compnants to make the bike less complicated? Also when I re wire it, is it possible to eliminate the harnesses and just hard wire the whole system.
    Thanks in advance
     

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  2. JPaganel

    JPaganel Well-Known Member

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    What components do you want to eliminate? It really isn't all that complex. Why did you pull out the wiring? Was it damaged?

    I am not sure what you mean. Like... Get rid of connectors and just solder everything together? Sure, I suppose. But why? You plan on never fixing anything on the bike ever again? Connectors exist to enable removing things to get to other things.
     
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  3. k-moe

    k-moe Pie, Bacon, Bourbon. Moderator Premium Member

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    SO.....did you decide that Yamaha did a poor job of enginering the machine?

    While some things can be "simplified" to meet modern standards, it's not always worth the effort.
    The XJ1100 is not that complicated.
     
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  4. MPL

    MPL New Member

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    There have been wiring mods. Heres a pic of a phone charger that was added. If I remove the phone charger, there’s an empty loom. When I’m done I’d rather not have stuff there if it’s useless. I’m stripping it down for paint polish and whatever I can do to make it look and run better. The battery code comes up and always has. The battery is fine so I’m trying to address these issues. The mechanic who did the safety said he ran a redundant wire from the signal switch to the flasher relay. I cut this off as it was ran through the frame. There’s a picture. I think somebody’s hacked it up and I just want to get it back to original.
     

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  5. ManBot13

    ManBot13 Well-Known Member

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    Well that's not "removing components" that's cleaning up the PO's mess. Battery sensor is best bypassed using a resistor connected directly to the "+" terminal of the battery, since you want to make the computer happy. Phone chargers are handy, but I'm not sure if they are factory. You may want to find out what they tapped into, which will involve removing a lot of tape (be careful not to damage anything). When I added USB connectors, I ran it from switched power at the fuse block. Or you can add a voltmeter to watch the health of the charging system (with USB plugs as well)...hint hint.

    Not sure about the flasher relay mod, but if its a self cancelling flasher stock, there may be some extra wiring that you can delete if you don't need that feature and use a modern 2 pin flasher. That's not an egregious mod.

    You do mention "hard wiring the whole system." Although many connectors will fail of 30-40 years, the BEST option is to simply re-pin the connectors with open barrel crimp Faston style connectors like it got from the factory. This will require some special tools and parts, but is WELL worth it, especially on the charging system.
     
  6. XJ550H

    XJ550H Well-Known Member Premium Member

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    minimum wiring
     

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  7. XJ550H

    XJ550H Well-Known Member Premium Member

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    the xj1100 runs well as designed keep the airbox.
     
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  8. 50gary

    50gary Active Member

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    I had a 1979 XS1100 it was without a doubt the best running motorcycle I've ever owned pulled like a train bottom to top, no airbox just two K&N filters. I changed the rear disc brake entirely and had to weld a new stay for the new. caliper. I gently (with padding) laid the bike down did the welding job and stood the bike upright. Nothing, nada wouldn't run. I soon found out there is (was) a sort of dead man's switch if the bike was laid down in a crash there a device wired in to kill the motor. I didn't know it at the time there's a magnet If I recall. If there's one on the XJ find it and throw it away. That was the advice from the guys back when I had the bike. I will also get rid of the sidestand kill on my Maxim.
    Cheers, 50gary
     
  9. chacal

    chacal Moderator Moderator Supporting Vendor Premium Member

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    Emergency Stop Switch:

    This switch is is activated whenever the tilt angle of the bike is more than about 60-degrees from vertical (so don't lean it too far over in the corners!). If the allowable tilt angle is exceeded....like when you dump the bike....this switch cuts power to the ignition system and, on the XJ650 Turbo model, to the fuel pump.

    Location:
    - on all XJ650 Turbo models: on the main fairing mounting bracket.
    - on all XJ1100 models: under the gas tank, in-between the frame tubes.

    Identification:
    - small, rectangular switch with two short wires coming off of it and going into a white plastic 2-position connector shell.

    Harness connector wire colors:
    * Solid black wire
    * Black wire with white tracer stripe
     
  10. Yammaat

    Yammaat Active Member

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    I'm pretty sure my seca hasn't such device otherwise I would have found out by now..:D
     
  11. Mezzmo

    Mezzmo Active Member

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    Depending what you want, you could replace the entire loom with a much better and simpler system by installing a Motogadget M unit. It gets rid of all relays/fuses and adds an alarm and some other smarts. Not cheap though but very good IMO.
     
  12. Minimutly

    Minimutly Well-Known Member

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    I hope I'm not stating the obvious here - the tilt switch will not activate while cornering, simply because the forces remain down the centreline of the machine - unless it's a trike.....
     
  13. JPaganel

    JPaganel Well-Known Member

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    I don't understand what is so much simplified here.

    It replaces the fusebox. You still have to have wires to all the lights, to the ignition box, to the ignition switch. You still have wiring harnesses, just different ones. An electrical component still needs a + and a ground, and that still requires wires.

    It's a shiny toy, with blinking lights and Bluetooth. That's fun, but I really don't see what is functionally better about it enough to justify the $400 investment and the work.
     
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  14. Mezzmo

    Mezzmo Active Member

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    Hi Mate,
    Thats not quite right. The M Unit has built in fuses and relays so there are a lot less wires. Also if you add the M Button there is only one wire from the handle bars going to the M Unit and that one wire controls both blinkers, horn and start button via a common earth. Definitely simpler and easier to fault find with and a lot less cabling that a stock bike.

    At the end of the day, everyone needs to make there choice as there are other options. A simple tidy up is also easy and much less costly. For me I went with the M Unit and am very happy with it. Having said that, I'm not saying its for everyone.
     
  15. JPaganel

    JPaganel Well-Known Member

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    Ok, so you lose like three relays.


    That's not a "common earth". That's a data bus. The handlebar controls are a small network node. They say it's proprietary, but I am guessing it's some flavor of CAN bus.

    You are installing a small computer network into your bike. This is the same thing that BMW uses in their new bikes, and what a lot of modern cars use. And it's what makes them a headache.

    You can't troubleshoot a data bus with a continuity probe. Faults other than an obvious break will be very hard to find without special tools. The wires aren't on/off, they carry a high and a low signal, and the nodes use the differential between high and low to encode bits.

    Oh, I'm all about nifty toys and das blinkenlights. I get the appeal.

    I kinda think it's weird to bolt computer networks onto carbureted bikes, tho. Like driving a steam locomotive over Bluetooth. :D
     
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  16. k-moe

    k-moe Pie, Bacon, Bourbon. Moderator Premium Member

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    Hmmm....... There's an idea......
    A model steam engine that you run a just like it were a drone.
     
  17. Yammaat

    Yammaat Active Member

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    I wasn't talking about cornering to find out my seca doesn't have that device..:rolleyes:
     
  18. k-moe

    k-moe Pie, Bacon, Bourbon. Moderator Premium Member

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    The only XJ that had it was the 1100.
     
  19. Mezzmo

    Mezzmo Active Member

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    Going back to the question the MPL asked, the M unit is one option, I’m not here to convince anyone anything, just sharing my view.

    One of the things I like about bike builds is that everyone has there own approach. Each to their own, personally I like old school looks but with modern controls, it would be pretty boring if everyone did the same thing....
     
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  20. JPaganel

    JPaganel Well-Known Member

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    Eh. We're just a bunch of opinionated c... Well, you know. :D
     

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