Negative Earth Conversion

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bucksfizz said:
pantah_good said:
the gauge of the wires to the battery terminals jumped out to me as looking rather small.
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The front wires are from the regulator/rectifier, and are thin wall construction and compatible with the existing R/R wires - should be sufficient.
The rear wires feed the fuse boxes and ignition switch, and are of a higher grade (3.00mm²/13AWG).
Click to expand...

The wires charging the battery have to carry the same current load as the wires feeding the lights and ignition, plus a few amps to charge the battery.
 
Triton Thrasher said:
The wires charging the battery have to carry the same current load as the wires feeding the lights and ignition, plus a few amps to charge the battery.
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Let me get this right - if I lengthen the moulded-in wires from the rectifier/regulator (those that supply the rectified DC voltage), then I should use larger wire.
Or should I, as I did, use a wire that can carry at least the same load as those moulded-in wires?
Or perhaps I could break open the R/R, and rewire using a larger gauge wire.
Or just leave it as is is, as it is obviously working just fine, and the wires are not distressed (i.e. getting hot).
 
Triton Thrasher said:
Why are the "rear wires" thicker?
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So that I can upgrade my charging system at a later without having to change the feed to the rest of the system.
I have only a single phase alternator at the moment, but may switch to a three phase system with a better R/R.
I have a Shindengen FH020AA regulator/rectifier in my spares box.
This R/R has connectors to which I can attach wires of my choice; the wires are not moulded into it.
 
bucksfizz said:
Triton Thrasher said:
Why are the "rear wires" thicker?
Click to expand...

So that I can upgrade my charging system at a later without having to change the feed to the rest of the system.
I have only a single phase alternator at the moment, but may switch to a three phase system with a better R/R.
I have a Shindengen FH020AA regulator/rectifier in my spares box.
This R/R has connectors to which I can attach wires of my choice; the wires are not moulded into it.
Click to expand...


That's quite logical.
 
cyclegeezer said:
Much easier to use than crimp, and easy on, easy off reuseable.
Click to expand...

Yes, and I buy them from eBay.

To ensure that they grip the cable properly, I use terminating bootlace ferrules:


Negative Earth Conversion
 
Stephen Hill said:
I appreciate the original post didn't pose this question, but I am wondering what is the point of converting to negative ground? Specifically, what problem does it solve?

Stephen Hill
Victoria, BC
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Back in the dark ages (earlier than 1960 or so), electrical wires were typically covered with cloth type insulation. If this insulation became wet, or was used in damp climates, it would "leak" electricity and form corrosion at connections. It was found that positive ground systems formed less corrosion.

With modern wire insulation, it does not matter if the ground is pos. or neg. As far as our vintage bikes are concerned, there is no advantage to converting to neg ground , unless one wants to install ultra modern electronics which all use neg ground. Even with such devices, they still can be used in a pos ground system as long as the case, if metal, is not internally connected to the earth wire.

Slick
 
texasSlick said:
Back in the dark ages (earlier than 1960 or so), electrical wires were typically covered with cloth type insulation. If this insulation became wet, or was used in damp climates, it would "leak" electricity and form corrosion at connections. It was found that positive ground systems formed less corrosion.


Slick
Click to expand...

I'm somwhat incredulous.

There was plastic insulation on the wires, under the cloth. Before that, there was rubber insulation.
 
'75 MK3 original + to earth. I start the bike, bike runs great, lights all work fine.
I have better things to do than to convert - to earth so that when I start bike, bike runs great, lights all work fine.
 
bucksfizz said:
I've done this conversion by rewiring the whole bike from scratch.
IMO it's a piece of cake, and I'm no electrician.
I bought a cheap and cheerful regulator/rectifier (R/R), and I keep the charging system on a separate circuit with its own fuse - the R/R goes straight to the battery.
The bike came with Boyer electronic ignition, and it is a simple job to connect it up for -ve earth.
I have a total of eight fuses to protect the various circuits, so that I can tell where the problem is, unlike the single "something's gone wrong" OEM fuse setup.
Head lamps and horn are driven directly from the battery for minimal voltage loss (with fuses, of course).
I can buy inexpensive LED lamps, as +ve earth LEDs are expensive and difficult to find.
Fuses are blade ATM type, and easily bought at any car accessory shop or garage.
I dislike bullet connectors, and I found some cheap mains latch type connectors that work very well (see pics).
For in-line connectors I prefer to use the modern waterproof variety - bulky, but reliable.
Battery is by Motobatt - I like the four terminals and leak-free construct


Negative Earth Conversion


i was looking at your pics about rewiring and could not help noticing the sleeves around your wiring
I do the same as you by keeping separate wires for lightning and ignition but use heatshrink to isolate them
Your solution is much neater , with those braided hoses over the separate bundles of wires
Could you let me know where you get them from , i would be most gratefull as i am about to rewire a 750
Many thanks in advance
yours in sport
gerry
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