Cloth vs Vinyl Wire Harness?

Vintage Vinny

Vintage Vinny

Joined
May 15, 2022
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Replacing wire harness on 74 Commando. Any advantage to cloth, or is it just looks?
Keeping stock points ignition system. Also, any recommendations on a supplier?
I am in North Carolina, USA
 
Vintage Vinny said:
Replacing wire harness on 74 Commando. Any advantage to cloth, or is it just looks?
Keeping stock points ignition system. Also, any recommendations on a supplier?
I am in North Carolina, USA
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I prefer PVC wrapped (not plastic tape!). Proper PCV harness wrap has no adhesive, it impervious to water, oil and gas, is easily repaired/replaced, and is flexible. I hand wire all bikes I work on and only use PCV sleeves and PVC harness wrap.

You can get the three harnesses from AN in PVC wrapped for about $167+shipping. You can get cloth from BritishWiring.com for $205 plus shipping and you normally could get cloth from me at about $100 plus shipping, but the headlight harness is out of stock at my supplier.
 
I do all my own wiring heat shrink, PVC coil wire cover for places that are hard to get to and electrical tape all have their place when doing wiring, I use crimp connectors but I also have the right locking crimping tools for the job and wire splicing tools, I find wiring jobs to be rewarding and getting rid of wiring that is not needed.

Ashley
 
Did you know that a Jumbo jet electrical system is all crimp connected ?
If it had soldered connections it would be the equivalent of 2 passengers their luggage and the two aircraft seats for weight reduction
 
ashman said:
I do all my own wiring heat shrink, PVC coil wire cover for places that are hard to get to and electrical tape all have their place when doing wiring, I use crimp connectors but I also have the right locking crimping tools for the job and wire splicing tools, I find wiring jobs to be rewarding and getting rid of wiring that is not needed.

Ashley
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Thank you for the response. In the past, I have made wire harnesses, but buying one for this restoration will save me some time.
 
ashman said:
I think you spend too much time on the internet Shane lol, you need to get out more on your bike ;)
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No Ashley my mate done his time as a aircraft technician at Heathrow Airport who now lives in Australia..I recall the what I learnt from him from a actual conversation ...I can guarantee you this i ride my Norton far more than you ride yours..:)
 
KiwiShane said:
No Ashley my mate done his time as a aircraft technician at Heathrow Airport who now lives in Australia..I recall the what I learnt from him from a actual conversation ...I can guarantee you this i ride my Norton far more than you ride yours..:)
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Maybe now but after 47 years and well over 160k miles my Norton is now semi retired since 2013 I still ride it regularly but my 2016 Thruxton has taken over everyday use, so there stick that in your pipe and smoke it lol, no only joking😋
 
KiwiShane said:
Did you know that a Jumbo jet electrical system is all crimp connected ?
If it had soldered connections it would be the equivalent of 2 passengers their luggage and the two aircraft seats for weight reduction
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I did some wiring on an Audi and the official workshop manual recommends crimps and heat-shrink, and explicitly states never use solder to connect wires. Apparently soldered connections are likely to break when subjected to vibrations. Don't know how Norton vibration compares with Jumbo jets, but if I sat in a plane that vibrated as much as my bike, I'd be very worried.
 
MichaelD said:
I did some wiring on an Audi and the official workshop manual recommends crimps and heat-shrink, and explicitly states never use solder to connect wires. Apparently soldered connections are likely to break when subjected to vibrations. Don't know how Norton vibration compares with Jumbo jets, but if I sat in a plane that vibrated as much as my bike, I'd be very worried.
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Deffiently... soldiered connections create a brittle spot that will break under vibration....i sometimes use resin infused crimps which are great especially for marine use..or anything exposed to water
I should have added that vibration was another reason why they don't use solder on aircraft or marine
 
Wonder where Boeing gets their crimp connectors? Most I find in local stores is crap.
Many years ago worked soldering connections on military radar equipment, Had a course on soldering first. Not easy to make a good joint.
Also learned how to make a harness. Board with nails. Main reason for them is that they makes assemble easy. Some disadvantages too.
I never use wiring harnesses on my bikes. Some parts need extra insulation though.
Worked many years designing multiprocessor computers and CNC machinery systems. Compared to that, I find motorcycle wiring easy to get reliable but more time consuming than using a prefabricated harness.
Prefer a reliable bike more than originality.
 
Trains only use crimps too. Solder makes the wire brittle so that the big inflexible blob of solder then stresses that weakened brittle wire under vibration.

A longer bit of good heat shrink does help provide support. Putting a piece of cable tie inside the heat shrink also helps, it acts as a splint.

But the most important thing, whether crimped or soldered, is correct stress free routing and correct support. It’s worth taking a lot of time over routing, trying different ways, moving the bars around, etc, until you’re happy you‘ve found the best stress free option.
 
Paging JimC.....

Wiring connectors

Is it true helicopters don't have soldered wiring? Thought I read that somewhere. Nor planes, autos and MOTORCYCLES!
www.accessnorton.com www.accessnorton.com
 
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