SAT Motorsports Rigid.

[SteveJ]

Thanks. I did not think the signal would be compromised.

I installed the manifold discovering that I did not have the insulator block to put between the carb and manifold. So a full stop there, I was just doing the usual check everything 3 times routine required on a choppa build.
I ran the wires to the MAP sensor and this brought about the wiring in of the plug Clarisse...

All the blather and drivel/whining about wiring on this forum and the previous posts got me thinking there are a few bits of info that can be passed on. There is already a lot of wiring info on this thread , but it seems peeeps arent really interested in actually reading the stuff.

For those that do and are capable of understanding , here is some more info.
These are the tools I use regularly to custom wire bikes , and their description:


From left to right:

Side cutters and scissors for cutting loom , wires and other fucking obvious cutting operations.

Soldering iron for connections.

Auto strippers , not for everyone but sure make stripping wires fun and easy . lol

Ancient crimping tool for the butt connectors , bonetop,

There is a small , tiny flat blade screw driver in the pic , this is for the removal of pins and sockets from plugs.Figure out how to do this , its really easy to do.

And the really crucial crimping tool with the blue handles. A $400 tool. The most essential tool for the double crimp used on Harley wiring pins and sockets from the '70's. Custom bike wire simply cannot be done properly without this tool. Any one shows up claiming Harley wiring experience needs to produce this tool in order to be credible.

Lighter for the essential doobies needed to retain sanity during the custom wire process. oh and for heat shrink too.

Another pair of scissors cuz I just smoked a doobie.

Needle nose pliers for tight work , essential for dooosh plug assy and disassy.

And a heat gun for the heat shrink.

Some more tips:

Grab every scrap wiriing harness , parts , plugs etc that you see and keep it. I get black loom from air conditioners and other electrical items.

Smoke one and stare at wiring schematics in the HArley manuals , there is a lot of info on them that will need to be recognized and understood.

All the parts on HArleys have numbers, the loom can be bought from HArley as well as every single terminal , cover , plug etc , etc. I regularly would buy items like the neutral terminal , all the diff looms and a few other things that were not available previously.

Familiarize your self with the dooosh plugs used on HArleys , their use , configuration , how they assemble and disassemble , etc. They all have numbers for each wire terminal to identify , get familiar with the numbers and locate them on the schematics.

The Robinson /Easyriders cartoon wiring schematics are cool and helpful to a degree. They do not show proper routing or connections and a lot of other important info. They are a good reference but need to be used in conjunction with a factory schematic.

Dont ever cut wires , ever you fucking dolt , never , never , never until its absolutely necessary. Instead learn how to remove the pins and sockets from the plugs , it s so simple to do that cutting is the sign of an inexperienced tech.

For full custom builds include the wiring needs as you build, this is the toughest and really only comes from 5 plus years of experience. There is very little that is 'new' out there , all of it was and has been going on for years , this is your biggest advantage as well as supply , as everything is really available nowadays.

This is the toughest: Learn how to layout and plan the wiring , the routing , the covering , the connections etc , etc really tough to get sorted as experience and fucking common sense if you fucking have any.

If you are not detail oriented then skip the whole wiring thing , you are not capable of the wiring process and work.

Here is a pic of wiring in process on The Big Rigid , if it looks like chaos then dont worry about it , it only has to make sense to you .


++++++WARNING DO NOT ASK ME ANY DUMB WIRING QUESTIONS , PART OF MY LEARNING EXPERIENCE WAS RIDICULE AND HUMILIATION++++

lol

Good luck with your wiring!

[SteveJ]

Rolling on The Big Rigid gets a Thunderjet:

[SteveJ]

Carb work stalled out when I realized my 10-32 tap was on a job site. Jap bike buddy did drop off a metric tap for the air bleed install . So when work resumes the Tjet install can be finished.

So a little wiring was called for , the MAP sensor followed by the CP sensor I had alla the dooosh pins and sockets .These are not the usual p&s the ones for the sensors are soldered in rather than crimping , they are also smaller. I imagine this is so the parts can be changed easier. I have one laast connection to make ( 3 mins tops ) , the oil pressure switch , that and the charging circuit feed ( maybe an hour ) to the main breaker and the wiring is complete.
Complete but not finished. As this pic will show , among a ton of other info , that the looms are not yet secured , you can also see the clips migged onto the downtube to secure the looms after proving:

And like this:

As I said earlier the yellow tie wraps are for layout , they will be cut off and replaced with black ones.

Ill generally run tests at this point , checking for heat or , lol , smoke , tests have been ongoing and proving has gone well but we are into the final lap of the wiring.
And as you can see a full on custom wire which will serve the rider well and be a safe bike to ride does take on a busy look:


The CP sensor plug is on the middle right , easily fitting into the numerous small cavity's and the final addition to the under seat wiring. I can point out the use of smaller loom pieces to gather and separate the diff wire groups. The stainless plate was first fabbed and mounted , then the components added , largest first ( ignition ) then on down - breaker , relay and the plugs that allow the subharness to be removed easily from the main harness.
When I started out in wiring I knew so little about all of this and feasted on as many sources on the subject as I could find. So you can see its pretty tough to put down wiring info on a forum , shit , I lose guys in conversations pretty quick about their wiring issues.

[SteveJ]

...and continuation is good , the oil pressure switch got sorted and a stock rubber cover installed:


I always make the mistake of thinking Ill just see if this fits ...lol
So the front brake got sorted , a decent kit ordered from the dreaded internet , specifically for the 9 million springers that were built by a number of manufacturers. A full selection of spacers and washers etc , one set for narrow and one set for wide springers. Took some time to work out the order of the parts and they fit ok , the rotor passes through the middle of the caliper , the wheel is centered and turns nicely. Parts finish is ok too with only a small blemish on the caliper.
I set it all up and then acorned the shit out of it:



Thanks for lookin...

[SteveJ]

Spring is the time I start to get calls for windshield work.
Specifically for FXRT's , I make the black decal too.
Hers my 20 year old mould for 'RT shields:

Any FART riders here?

[SteveJ]

went to my worksite and grabbed the 10/32 tap .
I finished the operations on the carb body for the Tjet install. This included the air bleed plug in the upper float chamber , the metric tapping for the new air bleed jet , and the main body install in the venturi.
New air bleed jet:

Previous plugged air bleed:

And the float bowl usually has a fitting supplied with the Tjet , I am making this Tjet up from leftover parts so I tapped the float drain plug 1/8" NPT and installed a fitting to feed the Tjet:


Then I was looking at the rubber gaitor that covers the accelerator pump actuation rod. This is an area for concern in wet climates , or even possibly humid climates too , the gaitor tends to collect water inside and this water then finds its way into the pump and diaphragm area inside the float body. This is why your accel pump fails, the water causes oxidation and plugs up the works and wrecks the diaphragm. However when I poked the rubber with a small screw driver it was hard , so I poked harder and the fuckin' thing pretty much blew up! lol It was so old the rubber just disintegrated into 14 pieces. I may come up with a modded rubber cover to deal on this , I dont need to buy a rebuild kit for 1 part. There is a trick using never sieze that will help to keep the water out. I'll figure out a way to do it.

[SteveJ]

Dayam.
Went to check parts inventory for the Tjet and found I had forgotten about the collar that mates the Tjet body to the carb. I had a collar from Tjet for a CV carb , slightly diff contour , but alla the other dimensions were useable.
So I turned one up:

Pretty easy , less than an hours lathe work. The hole in the side is an air bleed too to allow the fuel to easily enter the main tube into the venturi.
CV on the right , my new one left:

Checking the assy on the carb:

There just needs to be an o ring between the 2 Tjet parts and if I can figure out how to get the stained dirt and crap off the carb body final assy can begin.
Thanks for lookin' !

[SteveJ]

Grounds.
One word with a ton of implications .
I'm not referring to coffee grounds , cricket grounds , or the surface if the earth , grounds for an argument , or stopping a pilot from taking off.

Specifically referring to the grounding for the return of electrical circuits.

Burning up components? Melting wires? Generating heat?
Grounds.

During the layout of a full on custom wire this is the first step , the grounding layout.

Without proper grounding your electrical system WILL NOT WORK. Period.

Traditionally choppas will have a tab under the seat with a 1/4" x 20 threaded nut welded to it. , and from the '60's until recently this was enough. However the advent of rubber mounted engines and more complicated wiring components choppas require better grounding.

If I did do a wiring manual this would be Chapter 1.

On The Big Rigid I welded on the frame 2 ground tabs , one under the seat and one under the tank. The seat area tab is standard. The one under the tank is for dedicated grounding of the front end. The greased up bearings and neck tube are not good grounds for grounding . lol
With the springer front end there are no riser bolts to mount the ground wire , so its run to the headlight housing:

All of those are ground wires that give me options. The main ground goes back to the tab welded to the frame under the tank:

That is a 1" x 3/16" flat bar tab with a 1/4" x 20 nut welded to it , no fucking around there. On stock Harleys you will see a small ground from the top triple tree to the riser bolt , do not leave this out. I say quite often that Harley duz stuff for a reason , you can do it too.
So now you have the electrical components of the front end grounded to the rest of the bike.
The next ground will be under the seat:

Same dimensions as the under tank ground tab. This is your main frame ground , and as you can see alla the component grounds end up here:


Connections starting:

See the ground wires gathering for the ground party? See the grey circle where I masked off the ground prior to painting? The grey primer is removed prior to connection.
I cannot stress enough the proper grounding, I collect components , one of which are the internal/external scraping washers for electrical connections. These bite into the metal tab and ensure attachment and grounding.
The last pic of the seat area with grounds all connected:

If you can get this level of grounding on your bike you'll be looking good.
Next is the main battery ground. On The Big Rigid I took a page from HArley again and grounded to the upper starter mount bolt and then ran to the seat ground:

Perfect. The engine and frame are now superbly connected to the battery ground terminal.
That is some pertinent info for grounding your electrical syatem.
You see me write about what HArley does and why they do it. This is from examining Harleys and the grounds , FXR's especially with the rubber mounted engine , a few grounding insights there . Also one of the grounding wires from early FX/FL shovels , there is a small wire from the starter end mount to one of the starter armature bolts. WTF? the starter is mounted , there are bolts and nuts holding it all together , why is this little ground wire needed? Its the first to be shitcanned after any service or starter change. Its an important ground as it ensures alla that primordial starter gear has a good ground. Believe it , dont question it , dont listen to fucktards who dont have a clue , just put the fuckin thing on there and go riding. Dont put it on and you will have alla that starter gear working a lot harder , getting a lot hotter and failing a lot quicker.

Mounting is another area where problems start. DO NOT EVER put your engine onto the brand new powder coat on your frame this is really dumbass , clear it off or make sure the area is masked off prior to paint or powder coat, this goes for the rec/reg box as well , see how they come with a dedicated ground now?

I once watched a custom bike get started for the first time. The bike was quickly enveloped in a cloud of grey smoke , scary as fuck , visually frightening and we were all helpless as to what to do.... Poor grounding had the electrical system looking for ground , it found it through the steel braided lines from the tank to the engine , cooked the rubber and then started frying the oil in the lines. A badly burned hand later and the system was dis-connected.
Dont worry if your grounds are poor , the electrical system will help you sort it by =frying alla your components , or you may be really lucky and watch your choppa go up in flames.

Whether you are dewiring a sporty (super dumbass idea to me) or rebuilding a bike or creating a custom choppa of your own , start the electrical work with proper grounding.
See alla this fuckin typing lol any one gonna read all of it ? lol Prolly not.

[SteveJ]

Another chapter on electrical work would be concerned with fastening the electrical components and looms.

Building a bike means parts will need to be fabbed , even small ones to do important jobs.

Here some 1/16" s/s tig rod is bent into a shape to guide and hold the wire looms from the coil box components and the speedo:


Hand bent and I 'll have to make 3 more to match!
And the pipe wrap showed up:

[ExplodingCoffinEmporium]

Grounds.
One word with a ton of implications .
I'm not referring to coffee grounds , cricket grounds , or the surface if the earth , grounds for an argument , or stopping a pilot from taking off.

Specifically referring to the grounding for the return of electrical circuits.

Burning up components? Melting wires? Generating heat?
Grounds.

During the layout of a full on custom wire this is the first step , the grounding layout.

Without proper grounding your electrical system WILL NOT WORK. Period.

Traditionally choppas will have a tab under the seat with a 1/4" x 20 threaded nut welded to it. , and from the '60's until recently this was enough. However the advent of rubber mounted engines and more complicated wiring components choppas require better grounding.

If I did do a wiring manual this would be Chapter 1.

On The Big Rigid I welded on the frame 2 ground tabs , one under the seat and one under the tank. The seat area tab is standard. The one under the tank is for dedicated grounding of the front end. The greased up bearings and neck tube are not good grounds for grounding . lol
With the springer front end there are no riser bolts to mount the ground wire , so its run to the headlight housing:

All of those are ground wires that give me options. The main ground goes back to the tab welded to the frame under the tank:

That is a 1" x 3/16" flat bar tab with a 1/4" x 20 nut welded to it , no fucking around there. On stock Harleys you will see a small ground from the top triple tree to the riser bolt , do not leave this out. I say quite often that Harley duz stuff for a reason , you can do it too.
So now you have the electrical components of the front end grounded to the rest of the bike.
The next ground will be under the seat:

Same dimensions as the under tank ground tab. This is your main frame ground , and as you can see alla the component grounds end up here:


Connections starting:

See the ground wires gathering for the ground party? See the grey circle where I masked off the ground prior to painting? The grey primer is removed prior to connection.
I cannot stress enough the proper grounding, I collect components , one of which are the internal/external scraping washers for electrical connections. These bite into the metal tab and ensure attachment and grounding.
The last pic of the seat area with grounds all connected:

If you can get this level of grounding on your bike you'll be looking good.
Next is the main battery ground. On The Big Rigid I took a page from HArley again and grounded to the upper starter mount bolt and then ran to the seat ground:

Perfect. The engine and frame are now superbly connected to the battery ground terminal.
That is some pertinent info for grounding your electrical syatem.
You see me write about what HArley does and why they do it. This is from examining Harleys and the grounds , FXR's especially with the rubber mounted engine , a few grounding insights there . Also one of the grounding wires from early FX/FL shovels , there is a small wire from the starter end mount to one of the starter armature bolts. WTF? the starter is mounted , there are bolts and nuts holding it all together , why is this little ground wire needed? Its the first to be shitcanned after any service or starter change. Its an important ground as it ensures alla that primordial starter gear has a good ground. Believe it , dont question it , dont listen to fucktards who dont have a clue , just put the fuckin thing on there and go riding. Dont put it on and you will have alla that starter gear working a lot harder , getting a lot hotter and failing a lot quicker.

Mounting is another area where problems start. DO NOT EVER put your engine onto the brand new powder coat on your frame this is really dumbass , clear it off or make sure the area is masked off prior to paint or powder coat, this goes for the rec/reg box as well , see how they come with a dedicated ground now?

I once watched a custom bike get started for the first time. The bike was quickly enveloped in a cloud of grey smoke , scary as fuck , visually frightening and we were all helpless as to what to do.... Poor grounding had the electrical system looking for ground , it found it through the steel braided lines from the tank to the engine , cooked the rubber and then started frying the oil in the lines. A badly burned hand later and the system was dis-connected.
Dont worry if your grounds are poor , the electrical system will help you sort it by =frying alla your components , or you may be really lucky and watch your choppa go up in flames.

Whether you are dewiring a sporty (super dumbass idea to me) or rebuilding a bike or creating a custom choppa of your own , start the electrical work with proper grounding.
See alla this fuckin typing lol any one gonna read all of it ? lol Prolly not.

Good write up man, I’ll definitely be keeping your grounding techniques in mind during my current build.

[SteveJ]

Thanks.
Understanding the grounding issues is a big help in your wiring.

Bent up the clips and put them on the bike:

And ya I know they look like fucking paper clips , they work so they stay on for now.
This is what it takes when building a custom , time spent on fabbing cool parts only to realize they look like you get your custom parts at fuckin' Office Depot!
lol
Last night before I fell asleep . after the work was done , I thought of a better way to do it that wont look like my secretary came up with the idea.

[SteveJ]

After enough experience you can tell right away if a part is suitable.
In this case the Office Depot wiring clips did not make the cut.
And as usual a titanic struggle comence' to replace them with much more suitable and aesthetically pleasing 'channels':

[SteveJ]

Never mind that fancy ass bullshit.

Here the carb has been reassembled , using limited s/s hardware and a Toonie for the enrichener lift , still need an acorn there...



Thunderjet installed and the following jets:
I - 33
M - 72
AB - 160
TJ - 170

I wanna pull from the Intermed jet for a little longer before the Main kicks in and have the TJet ice the cake.

[SteveJ]

Just waiting on the phenolic block spacer to mount the carb.
So I woke up this morn and went on to the aircleaner cover. The same burl material as the other accents , I may have a small piece for the point cover if I'm lucky.
CNC;d the face flat and drilled the mid hole:

Flipped it and cut a pocket into the back:

You can see some voids emerging these will be filled with clear epoxy.
And a semi assembled shot:

It matches the other accent pieces and is 1" thick like the coil cover:


Center hole will have a metal spacer inside so the wood wont be taking alla the mounting pressure.
No laser work on this , as this bike is being built to be sold , I'll leave that to whoever buys it.

[SteveJ]

And just finishing the cover with an aluminum spacer/liner/whatever to keep the wood from taking alla the load:

Hardware siorted:


Still some filling & finish sanding to do but happy with it over all.