DIY: Proton Flush Mounts

[Momaru]

Noticed no-one's done a DIY for these babys yet so here it is. On a difficulty of 1 to 10, with 1 as 'I did it in my sleep,' I'd give this mod a 3. You want some experience with soldering (not necessary but helps) and some tools, but it's fairly easy to do.

I'm a fan of completely removable mods, so instead of chopping up the stock wiring like the manufacturer suggests I decided to extend the wiring that comes with the protons and attach some stock connectors. The source is mentioned here:
http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=34996

Edit: I apologize for the two different sizes/methods of attaching of pictures; it's the only way it seems to work at the moment. The first 10 are thumbnails you can click on for magnification, the rest aren't.


Parts:
Protons
2 Position 050-HC Connector (http://www.easternbeaver.com/Main/El...onnectors.html)
Stranded wire (~22AWG)
Shrink tubing (3/16" & 3/32")
Solder
Soldering iron
Wire stripper/cutters (I had two pairs, not pictured)
Crimper
Liquid electric tape (optional) (also not pictured)
Gasket sealer (optional)
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First, I suggest test-fitting your protons into their final resting place on your fairings, to identify which one goes on which side. This will make a difference how they fit. I marked them with a permanent marker so I wouldn't forget

As I was waiting on the connectors to arrive from overseas, I applied a small ring of waterproof gasket sealer around the inside of the lip on the protons, where the lenses will contact the paint. I did this to both protect the paint from getting scratched up around the lenses and help keep water away from the backside. The chips are well sealed in a clear resin, but it gave me something to do while waiting. If you do this, make sure you let the gasket/sealant cure before messing with it unless you want to glue the protons to your fairings.

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Once the connectors finally came in, I pulled a stock blinker and measured the wiring to decide how much extension was needed on the proton wires. Turns out there's ~21.5" of stock wiring between the stalk and the plug, while the protons come with ~9", once you account for the wiring that'll still be on the painted side of the fairing.

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For some safety margin, I trimmed four ~15" sections of wiring, one red and one black per side. I also trimmed sections of the 3/32" shrink wrap and slid them onto the proton wiring to make sure I didn't forget.

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Strip about 1/4" off each end of all the extension wires and make sure about the same length was stripped on the proton wiring.

Before you proceed, decide how you'd like your blinkers to work. The proton manufacturers thoughtfully provide some options in this department. There's four wires coming out of the blinker: Black, Red, Orange and Yellow.

Black is ground and connects to the black/yellow on the bike side.
Red is your running light signal.
Orange and Yellow are the control wires for the actual 'blink' when given full voltage by the flasher relay.
By itself, orange is for a 'normal' blink while yellow gives you a strobe effect.
When both orange and yellow are connected to power, you get a fade in/out effect.

During my testing, I discovered the red wire is (apparently) optional for us, since we're not set up for using running lights, unless you want to run some wiring to a switched power source. I don't reccommend using just the red wire for your blinker; it's kinda dim. Having the red powered with the 'blinker' wires doesn't seem to have any negative effect that I've seen yet (ie. connecting red & orange, red & yellow or all three at once to the bike power). I went with orange and red for a normal blinker.

Heat up the soldering iron and get to work, tinning both sides of the connection then just adding a dab of solder while holding them together to join them, as described here:
http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=35703

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It's a little trickier with three wires (red extension connecting to red & orange from proton) but still very doable with three or four hands. I wound up melting the insulation a little, but works fine in the end.

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Rinse and repeat for all the wires you want to extend. Then shrink-wrap them for protection. I'd suggest marine or automotive shrink wrap that waterproofs itself.

No shot of the shrink wrapped connections before I sealed them off with a dab of liquid electrical tape at each end for waterproofing since I had basic shrink-wrap. I also shrink-wrapped the end of the yellow wire to protect it a bit, should I decide to use the strobe or fade options in the future. (Pic is from after crimping)

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Test-fit your female pins on the connector plug and trim wire to fit. Also make sure your extensions are the same length for each set. Any difference of length may make it very difficult to get the pins in the plug and may look funny once done (ask me how I know...)


Proceed to crimping. I had a little trouble with this one but it works.



Now might be a good time to hook up to the bike with the bare pins and make sure you're happy with the results.

I didn't like the look of seperate wires so I got about 2' of 3/16" (pink spool in top pic labelled 20-18AWG) and ran it down the whole length after letting the liquid electrical tape cure. (pink tube in the right side) The extra black stripe off to the left is a little 'normal' electrical tape holding all three wires together to make it easier to get the pink heat-shrink on.



Note there's a long tab on one side of the plug (top left of plug in pic below). This is for the negative side (black/yellow wire on the bike side). The arrow-shaped projection is for the locking tab on the female plug.

Insert the pins into the plug; the metal of the pin should be completely inside. I had to adjust some of the crimps because they were too wide.



To finish up I dabbed some more liquid electrical tape on each end of the long shrink-wrap cover.





Finished product, ready for install



Installed





(Trimmed off that little bit o' gasket sticking out right after the pic)

Haven't managed to get the fairings back on the bike (mechanical issues to be ironed out) so no 'in action' pictures... yet

[Betlog]

Your attachments are coming out as links to "invalid attachment."

[Betlog]

BTW, did you replace your stock relay?

[ninja250]

Very nice write-up man. Right down to the splicing techniques and liquid electric tape.
I will get to this one day.

[Momaru]

Yeah, having issues with pictures. Fixing and finishing the back half of the DIY. It'll be up in a few min
Edit: Fixed post, sorta. Unfortunately I seem to be getting tagged by the picture-spam filters so guess the back half will have to wait until Alex can approve it.
Edit2: Manged to get 'em all on the post/page. Had to mix posting methods to get it to work. I've been fiddling with this for three hours now and I'm done. This didn't work either

Betlog, I did replace my stock relay some months back when I got a Bikemonkey integrated tail light. However I have NOT done the 'diode mod' yet as I'm still using my stock rear flashers as well as the integrated ones, so I don't have a problem with both sides flashing at the same time.

[Alex]

Hopefully the spam filter shouldn't affect anyone with a pile of posts here already; I changed it today to only scan posts of users with a only a handful of posts. I'm seeing only attachment links for a chunk of the pics in the DIY, but the first half or so look fine.

[Alex]

I also linked this to our DIY sticky, thx for taking the time to post it up!

[Zombiphone]

Awesome, just in time! I actually just ordered a set of these last week and they should be arriving any day now. Since I've never really done any sort of wiring before, I wasn't feeling the most confident in my ability to actually install them. sounds like kind of a lot, but I think it looks manageable. For some reason, getting a motorcycle has really made me want to learn to do stuff like this myself.

Although, the only time I ever attempted to solder anything was a while back when I made a set of Splinter Cell goggles for a Halloween costume, so I might try and find a random wire somewhere for a trial run.

Ah, but quick question- How much hassle is it to remove these once they've been installed? I mean, like, do they need to adhere to the fairings a bit? Should they theoretically be able to attach just as firmly if you need to remove them and install them a second time? I'm probably going to take my bike in to get the plastics repaired and painted in not too long, so I was determining whether I should just wait to install them, or if they're easy enough to remove and reattach that I can just take them off whenever I need to.

[Momaru]

Originally Posted by Zombiphone

Ah, but quick question- How much hassle is it to remove these once they've been installed? I mean, like, do they need to adhere to the fairings a bit? Should they theoretically be able to attach just as firmly if you need to remove them and install them a second time?

Tiffani, they're laughably easy to remove once you've got the cowling lowers off. They don't have to adhere to the fairings at all, it's just a nut & washer that attach to the threaded post coming out of the back of the LED assembly. I specifically let the liquid gasket cure (24h for the stuff I used) before putting them on the fairings so it wouldn't stick if I needed to remove them. If you're concerned about it sticking, you can skip the silicone gasket entirely and just have them resting directly on the paint or take a look at another method of sealing that gap (maybe foam tape?).

As for the soldering, it's a wonderful skill to have and it's fairly easy to do effectively. Making it pretty takes a bit more practice. I suggest reading thru the thread I linked and mebbe watching a video or two if you're really unsure. My most common mistake is heating up the wires I'm soldering too much and melting the insulation.

[Betlog]

If I decide to strip and use the wires on the existing signals, I don't have to do most of the steps you did above, right? Meaning, I can re-use the wires I have now, right?

[Momaru]

Correct, most of what I did was to save the original signal wires. You'd want to seal your splices but no crimping etc.

[Betlog]

Originally Posted by Momaru

Correct, most of what I did was to save the original signal wires. You'd want to seal your splices but no crimping etc.

Awesome! I can't wait for mine to get in.

[kevlar250]

Where do you get the Protons?

[Zombiphone]

I got mine here:

http://fatbikez.com/proton-flush-mou...2008-2009.html

They had the best price of everyone I checked, and they shipped pretty quickly. I'm still waiting on the connectors from EasternBeaver.com to give this a try though. Should be here any day now, hopefully.

[Momaru]

I also got mine from fatbikez (or rather my girlfriend ordered them as a gift for me). Best price I've found.

Tiffani, it'll take some patience for the easternbeaver parts to show up because they're shipping direct from Japan. Mine took 9 days order to arrival, still surprisingly fast for half way 'round the planet and shipping under $10. If anyone mangles the provided pins on the new connector, let me know as I've got a few left over. I usually order spares on new projects to support my low-slope learning curve.

[Zombiphone]

Yeah, they ended up showing up just yesterday, which was actually exactly 9 days. Not too bad for an overseas package. I've had action figures take over two weeks to arrive from Japan, back when I was really into importing trinkets, so yeah- not too shabby. It gave me plenty of time to gather up all of the other stuff I needed in the meantime, and the gasket sealer should be very well set by now.

I'll attempt to rig these up tonight, then probably put them on over the weekend. Provided everything goes well, I'll get some in action shots once they're installed ^_^

[Zombiphone]

Well, so I got an unexpected 5 day weekend starting today (For one of the worse reasons possible, unfortunately), so I decided I'd spend the day doing this to calm me down. Amazing how working on my bike can so easily lift my spirits

Anyways, so, as a person who has never even stripped a wire before today, this mod was surprisingly easy. I did have to borrow an extra pair of hands for the soldering, since my wires were all uncooperative and curly, and I suck pretty badly at crimping, but all mishaps aside, they work great and my stock wires are still in tact. Not that I'm ever going to want to go back to the stock signals, since these are absurdly sexy- but still, I feel like I accomplished something doing it this way

Although, I did have to replace my stock relay with an electronic relay, which ended up being a bit more work. But today I wasn't particularly opposed to having more to do, so it's all good.

I didn't have a video camera handy, and these pictures don't even come close to being able to convey how bright these things actually are but for some in action stills:


I probably should have taken a picture from the front with one of the blinkers on, but I really just wanted to show how slick these are


Try to excuse my shaky hands, It's cold outside and I was too excited to grab a coat Thanks a lot Momaru! This was super easy to follow even with my n00b-tastic skills. I never knew wiring was actually manageable

[Snake]

Looks good zombiphone. Great job. Working on the bike and riding can be great therapy.

[ninja250]

Dang those do look good. Definitely on my list one of these years. Nice work Tiff.

[Momaru]

Looks great Tiffany, glad the DIY was helpful. I suppose you decided to go with the 'normal' blink style as well? I hope the therapeutic properties of motorcycle maintenance were as effective for you as they usually are for me.

Trying to figure out something that would work for the rear signals as well without attaching LED strips to my bodywork.

[Zombiphone]

Yeah, I went with the normal blink so they would match the back. I considered the fade effect since it sounded kind of cool, but I don't want to give the drivers around me any more reasons to be distracted Something about laying on the cold concrete, listening to nothing but the ticking of a socket wrench is just so soothing. Good stuff. Therapists should just start lining their offices with motorcycles

I'm also trying to find something cool for the rear now, but I still haven't really decided how I want it. I'm now decently confident I'll be able to figure out the wiring once I decide though, and that's a pretty good feeling

[DarkNinja52]

Very nice, i never realized you posted this haha, I think I installed mine a few days before you put this up...

[want1sobad]

i like these for the rear, cheap and easy.
http://www.newenoughhp.com/parts/par...n_signals.html

[kazam58]

Originally Posted by want1sobad

i like these for the rear, cheap and easy.
http://www.newenoughhp.com/parts/par...n_signals.html

Do these just drop in without any kind of cutting in the back? I've been looking for a pair of signals with shorter stalks to replace the ones in the back, and these just might do the trick...

[want1sobad]

Originally Posted by kazam58

Do these just drop in without any kind of cutting in the back? I've been looking for a pair of signals with shorter stalks to replace the ones in the back, and these just might do the trick...

just got back from vaca - haven't had a chance to install yet. will post pics with additional info later today.

[want1sobad]

ok - here we go. this is what i purchased via newenough.com for 30 bucks (includes shipping). the OEM wire harness with bullet connectors are not plug 'n play with the rear, so i still had to splice into the stock wiring. that being said, they would be optional for the install, but if not utilized, would require removal of bullet connectors on signals as well. install is straightforward. here's some pics to give you guys an idea of how much/little they stick out.

fyi, they are filament bulbs not LEDs, no resistors required. brightness is same as if not slightly brighter than stock.

[nattygirl]

I'm going to be installing some proton flushmounts tomorrow. Has anyone tried wiring up the running light wire? What effect do you get on the bike? Is the light solid yellow and then blinks when the turn is on, or are these like switchbacks, where it's lit up white all the time and then yellow when the turn is on? Debating on whether or not it's worth it to wire it up to a running light.

[Momaru]

I installed the mine in the DIY with the running light wire (red) tied to the standard flasher hot wire (orange). The running lights are the same amber LEDs as the blinker, just two different intensity levels (you can see it in one of the videos in the thread linked below). Only reason I know what happens with the running light is because I was playing with them early on (seeing all the functions) and an error I managed to generate by using a flasher relay not designed to run on an all-LED flasher setup (mentioned here with a 'correct' flsher relay at near the end of the thread). On a side note, if you haven't already, you may want to go ahead and replace the relay to correct the flash rate and in case you switch to all LED flashers.

That said, the stock bike wiring does not support a running light, it's just a simple on/off blinker. The other options on the protons (strobe or fade) do work, but to do running lights, you'll have to tap into another portion of the electrical system, I'd suggest one after the ignition switch (as mentioned above in the OP). Fun part about that will be that you'll likely need another socket so you can disconnect the running light line as well as the blinker lines when removing the fairings.

Frankly, not worth it for the running light, due to both the hassle of further modifying the wiring, and because a different-intensity blinker isn't quite as definitive as an on/off one. Just my though.

[nattygirl]

Thanks for the info. Hopefully everything goes well for me tonight.

[nattygirl]

I didn't have enough time to finish, but i did start doing this mod. One very important thing I found out, is that you can use the stock turn signal harness and connectors, without having to cut/splice any wires whatsoever. One of my turn signals was broken, so I was just going to cut the wires and use it to connect to the stock connector, but after opening up the turn signal, I discovered something pretty important. The stock wires are not permanently attached inside the stock housing. They are merely connected using blade connectors.









So here's what I did for my install. I had some circle connectors lying around, so I just cut them into blade shapes and inserted them into the stock blade connector. Then I used the circle connector to connect to the proton wiring. Afterwards, I just e-taped the heck out of it for more protection.



I have tested out the protons, and they work just fine using this method. So now if I ever want to remove these and go back to the stock turn signals, all I need to do is disconnect the two blade connectors shown above and then connect the stock blade connectors back to the inside of the turn signals. So this mod is 100% reversible to OEM stock without having to mess with any of the stock wiring.

One important warning though while installing the protons. DO NOT OVER TIGHTEN THE LIGHTS. I tightened one of them too much and it crack because of the pressure against the fairing. It did not fit exactly inside the turn signal hole. I was very upset when this happened, especially for the price of these protons. The crack is visible up close, but from far, you cannot tell. I'm just afraid that sooner or later though, that cracked piece will fall off and will leave me with a huge chip. I'm going to try writing to proton manufacturer and see if they'll send me a replacement.

[Momaru]

Props for creativity on finding another way to do the attachment. When I did mine the stock wiring was too short to use it that way (and I don't trust free-floating spade connectors a whole lot) so I just decided to make a new wiring set, hence the majority of the DIY.

One thing to note is the LED bulbs are not symmetrical; they are specifically cut to fit on one side of the bike; did you make sure to get the right light in the right socket? Mine fit pretty freakin' well, other than the lip that sits out of the light socket to start the 'lens'. Hope the guys over at HTS take care of ya though.

[nattygirl]

I read that part of your post, after installing the lights. Maybe I did put them on the wrong sides. I'll have to double check it tonight. From the outside, they look right though.

I ordered mine from fatbikez.com. I wrote them last night and they said they would allow me to ship them back to them and get replacements. So I think that's what I'm going to do. I'll see how bad the damage really is once I take it off.

[nattygirl]

I took out both lights and tried them out on the opposite fairings and they don't seem to fit right, so I'm pretty sure I had them on the right sides the first time. I think the fact that you put that black silicone around yours really helps and would prevent this from happening to anyone else since it does prevent the proton from being against the fairing. Initially, I wired them up to have the strobe effect, but I didn't really care for the look of it. It looked too aftermarket-like. Since I took them off again, I just rewired them to have the standard blink.

Here's a pic of the final results. I'm really happy with the way they look. Way better than the stock turn signals.

Before:



After:







And here is a pic of the crack. Like I said, it's not that noticable, but I'm worried that it will chip off. Luckily though, Fatbikez.com has excellent customer support. They are shipping me a replacement for the cracked light. If you're looking for the proton flushmounts, definitely order them from them. They had the best pricing also.

[Fierce Fiend]

Need help!!

I am trying to install Proton Flush Mounts and i am having a problem with the flashing. When I have the left indicator on the right hand side flashs dully aswell I have changed the original flasher relay as i have a bike monkey intergrated tail light. I don't really know about this stuff and my bike is in pieces and i'm freaking out!

Can someone please help me!!!!

[Momaru]

Originally Posted by Fierce Fiend

Need help!!

I am trying to install Proton Flush Mounts and i am having a problem with the flashing. When I have the left indicator on the right hand side flashs dully aswell I have changed the original flasher relay as i have a bike monkey intergrated tail light. I don't really know about this stuff and my bike is in pieces and i'm freaking out!

Can someone please help me!!!!

Sounds like you need to do "the diode mod." If you've still got questions after reading up, just lemme know, happy to help out.

More info here:
http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showp...6&postcount=76
http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showp...2&postcount=92
http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showp...&postcount=122
http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showp...&postcount=124
(all excerpts from http://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=15282)


There's a lot of info on the forums about this particular issue, but it can be a little hard to track down as it's usually kinda buried in other threads.

I assume you've removed/replaced all of your stock turn signals with LED lights of some kind or another?

Essentially Kawasaki wired the turn signal system such that all of the turn signals, left and right as well as the dash indicator, are on a single circuit. They relied on the cumulative resistance of the filament bulbs to drop the voltage low enough to not light the filament bulbs on the opposite side. Once you start replacing those with LEDs, the resistance drops so you get more power to the opposite turn signals.

The 'diode mod' I mention (DIY at the first link above) essentially prevents this 'voltage overflow' from happening. You can use a pre-made diode kit (mentioned/linked) in the diode install DIY or make your own (mentioned in the first link under "more info here"), as it's really simple if you have any soldering skills.

[CZroe]

Tagged!

[Momaru]

One edit/notice to the DIY:
According to one unfortunate site member (to whom I extend my apologies for misinformation), the red wire on the protons (the running light) can cause some undesired results. As such I'd suggest leaving that wire out if you're not sure.

[romeo127]

I did replace my stock relay some months back when I got a Bikemonkey integrated tail light. However I have NOT done the 'diode mod' yet as I'm still using my stock rear flashers as well as the integrated ones

did you use resistor connectors? if so where did you connect them to the integrated tail light or the flush mount turn signals? i have both but having trouble with the wiring, its a delayed response i get from the turn signals and the on the dash its very dim.

[Momaru]

Originally Posted by romeo127

I did replace my stock relay some months back when I got a Bikemonkey integrated tail light. However I have NOT done the 'diode mod' yet as I'm still using my stock rear flashers as well as the integrated ones

did you use resistor connectors? if so where did you connect them to the integrated tail light or the flush mount turn signals? i have both but having trouble with the wiring, its a delayed response i get from the turn signals and the on the dash its very dim.

Might make sure you're using the right kind of replacement relay; one specifically for LED/low-draw systems. A 'wrong' one can cause some weird stuff with the protons (like this).

In my setup I used no resistors anywhere (outside of the ones used to construct the various lights at the factory) and it works fine. That said I've done the diode mod and have completely switched over to LEDs. In your setup I don't think the diode mod is necessary until/unless you proceed to all LEDs, however if all else fails you might try it.

[romeo127]

i was just reading your forum! so your saying it might be the flash relay? i bought a fl thermal flasher i should exchange that one then, this wiring is a pain! but thanks for the advice i'll try it out and let you know how it goes in acouple of hours