instrument gauge fuse

[BarMatt80]

I added some leds to my guages and i can't keep fuses in the bike with out it blowing. The only one that blows is the one for the insrument lights. I replace it and watch it and it is fine, i don't know if it blows when i turn the key or what. Any ideas what could be the problem. I am on fuse number 4.

oh it is a 10 amp fuse as well, if that helps any.

[md86]

Hmmm , leds draw LESS power , yeah ? Well , you sure you didn't yank something loose so it's shorting out now ?

[BarMatt80]

i might have, it is weird, it works fine with the bike running and not running, but after a couple minutes...pop it burns the fuse. But they all burn when the fuse is good, so nothing messed up there, so that would mean that the sockets are good, and i just pulled the sockets from the gauges. Since it is finally suppose to be nice out tomorrow, i guess i will be chasing a dang on electrical gremlin

[The CyberPoet]

My guess is that one of three things is happening:

(A) one of your wires leading to the dash has some insulation worn away, which is causing the power to ground out on it's way there, OR
(B) One of your LED's connectors is actually touching both sides of the plug socket.

Try this:
Fire it up. Cycle through low-beam, high-beam, left blinker, right blinker, neutral, not neutral, brake light. See if any of these specifically blow the fuse... It could be that something outside the cluster (such as a blinker circuit) which also runs through the cluster is causing the problem.

Cheers,
=-= The CyberPoet

[BarMatt80]

i'll take a look at the wires. MIght have to be something with the vibrations and causing a wire that is worn to ground out. The neutral works as it should, oil light works as it should, high beam light works as it should, blinkers works as it should with the guage lights working or not. weird huh. I guess they are on a different circuit. it is just the three gauges that don't work.

i know when i had the guages out i blew a blinker fuse, replaced it and put the guages back in and now i blow the gauge fuse.

Cyber- if it was one of the leds touching both sides of the socket, would it still light? and if it is wouldn't it blow instantaneous? Because they do work for like 5 minutes.

[BarMatt80]

I SOLVED the problem wahoooo!!!!!! Went out this morning and i pulled my rear break light bulb because the running light didn't work, filiment was busted laying in the bulb, i think becuase i saw a weld on a mount is busted. So got that fixed. But i saw two wires inside the right fairing near the turn signal, one had a plastic cover, the other bare. So i was like i wonder. I put a new fuse in, touched the bare wire to the fork, bam blew the fuse. so i taped it up. Problem Solved. It was a black/white tracer wire, that was the one covered, and the one that was uncovered causing the problem was a brown wire. I checked the schematics, but it doesn't go to any thing, i guess part of a california model. thanks guys.

[The CyberPoet]

Glad you got it resolved... I thought black w/ white trace was a running light or blinker wire -- but that may just be 98+

Cheers,
=-= The CyberPoet

[BarMatt80]

na your right cyber. Those wires i taped up just go to nothing, they are in the vacinity of the blinker wires. Your right because there is a black/white tracer wire running to each blinker, front and rear, rear tail, front head light. I guess it is a general wire.

Funny thing is my roommates 1979 gs750l had a problem with the tail light not lighting when the head light is on(it has a seperate switch to turn it on/off) and come to find out it is a black/white tracer wire.