TIP For Those Using DFOs and TFIs
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Road Master
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TIP For Those Using DFOs and TFIs
Do yourself a favor, heat shrink or electrical tape a nice layer around the length of your ground wire going to the battery. Mine developed pinched or worn areas TWICE and was shorting out my bike and blowing fuses. If you own one and your ECM fuse blows, this should be the first thing you check.
Whiff
Whiff
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From: the 50s & the 60s
RE: TIP For Those Using DFOs and TFIs
ORIGINAL: Whiffleboy
Do yourself a favor, heat shrink or electrical tape a nice layer around the length of your ground wire going to the battery.
Mine developed pinched or worn areas TWICE and was shorting out my bike and blowing fuses.
If you own one and your ECM fuse blows, this should be the first thing you check.
Whiff
Do yourself a favor, heat shrink or electrical tape a nice layer around the length of your ground wire going to the battery.
Mine developed pinched or worn areas TWICE and was shorting out my bike and blowing fuses.
If you own one and your ECM fuse blows, this should be the first thing you check.
Whiff
mud
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Road Master
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RE: TIP For Those Using DFOs and TFIs
Hmmm...alright. I believe you. I'm just perplexed now. For a while I had dead bike issues revolving around my ECM fuse blowing. After checking lots of stuff, I found that the ground from my DFO going to the negative terminal had a bare spot that had a bit of wire exposed. In fact, I had a witness see the spark/flash from the battery box the last time it blew (during this first period of problems). I taped up the spot, got a little more slack in the wire to get that worn spot away from where it was before and, viola!, problem solved.
A month or so later, same thing began to happen. This time, however, I could see the tell-tale signs of an eventual fuse blow. Hitting the ignition would momentarily (and I mean for like a split second) bring the bike dark before eventually turning over. The readout on the speedo would look weird during the "dark" miliseconds. I would take the battery box off and futz with the DFO ground wire and that would take care of it...for a few days. Then it blew again.
I took a good look at the DFO ground again and found another spot where the casing had been worn away - probably from vibrations rubbing it along the area through which I had it routed. I taped the whole damn thing up and haven't had any problems since.
Whaddya think?
Whiff
A month or so later, same thing began to happen. This time, however, I could see the tell-tale signs of an eventual fuse blow. Hitting the ignition would momentarily (and I mean for like a split second) bring the bike dark before eventually turning over. The readout on the speedo would look weird during the "dark" miliseconds. I would take the battery box off and futz with the DFO ground wire and that would take care of it...for a few days. Then it blew again.
I took a good look at the DFO ground again and found another spot where the casing had been worn away - probably from vibrations rubbing it along the area through which I had it routed. I taped the whole damn thing up and haven't had any problems since.
Whaddya think?
Whiff
Club Member
Joined: May 2006
Posts: 14,564
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From: the 50s & the 60s
RE: TIP For Those Using DFOs and TFIs
ORIGINAL: Whiffleboy
.................................................. ...........................
Whaddya think?
Whiff
.................................................. ...........................
Whaddya think?
Whiff
Whiff, a ground wire.......grounds. Period.
A bare spot on a ground wire.................just grounds more.
If that bare spot (on the ground wire) touches an energized, "hot", wire,
then you will have a short, resulting in a blown fuse.
A bare spot on an energized, "hot", wire,
can "ground", then you will have a short, resulting in a blown fuse.
mud
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Road Master
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RE: TIP For Those Using DFOs and TFIs
Stupid question before I end up checking everything again (which won't happen until/unless I short out again)...
Any chance that wire from the DFO going to the negative terminal is anything other than a ground????
Whiff
Any chance that wire from the DFO going to the negative terminal is anything other than a ground????
Whiff
Club Member
Joined: May 2006
Posts: 14,564
Likes: 9,225
From: the 50s & the 60s
RE: TIP For Those Using DFOs and TFIs
ORIGINAL: Whiffleboy
Stupid question before I end up checking everything again (which won't happen until/unless I short out again)...
Any chance that wire from the DFO going to the negative terminal is anything other than a ground????
Whiff
Stupid question before I end up checking everything again (which won't happen until/unless I short out again)...
Any chance that wire from the DFO going to the negative terminal is anything other than a ground????
Whiff
Any wire to the frame or motor is a ground.
The negative battery, grounds to the frame. Frame to motor, etc and on and on.
And Yeah, don't check anything till it breaks.
Like they say -
"If it ain't broke don't fixit".
On the other hand, if you get bored,
"Work on it till it does break, then fixit".
mud
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Grand HDF Member
Joined: May 2006
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From: SE NC
RE: TIP For Those Using DFOs and TFIs
ORIGINAL: mudpuddle
No, any wire to the negative battery is a ground.
Any wire to the frame or motor is a ground.
The negative battery, grounds to the frame. Frame to motor, etc and on and on.
And Yeah, don't check anything till it breaks.
Like they say -
"If it ain't broke don't fixit".
On the other hand, if you get bored,
"Work on it till it does break, then fixit".
mud
ORIGINAL: Whiffleboy
Stupid question before I end up checking everything again (which won't happen until/unless I short out again)...
Any chance that wire from the DFO going to the negative terminal is anything other than a ground????
Whiff
Stupid question before I end up checking everything again (which won't happen until/unless I short out again)...
Any chance that wire from the DFO going to the negative terminal is anything other than a ground????
Whiff
Any wire to the frame or motor is a ground.
The negative battery, grounds to the frame. Frame to motor, etc and on and on.
And Yeah, don't check anything till it breaks.
Like they say -
"If it ain't broke don't fixit".
On the other hand, if you get bored,
"Work on it till it does break, then fixit".
mud
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Cruiser
Joined: Nov 2005
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From: Bossier City, LA
RE: TIP For Those Using DFOs and TFIs
I took my ground wire to where the battery grounds on the frame. It just seemed kinda close quarters at the battery. Besides it was easier to get to the point of ground on the frame.
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