Shift Light / Gear Indicator - Custom by ninja250

[jdoucet93]

Everyone loves pics right?!?!

going to wrap the wires and i have a little black case from an old project that i believe i can modify to cover the gauge.

installation has been a breeze so far. Simply tapped the positive and negative wire going into one of the dash lights, then tapped the positive wire going to the neutral light. Going to see about mounting the switches later tonight. The thermometer in my garage is reading 103 right now so i think I'm gonna hang out inside for a little while.

[ninja250]

Originally Posted by jdoucet93

Got my gauge installed. Had to change a little bit with my plan for where i was going to install the light and the gauge. But it works perfectly. Haven't gotten the switches permanently installed just yet, working on attaching connectors so that the sprocket cover can be removed. It's all actually quite simple. Thanks a bunch KC!

That is the best news I have heard all day!
Good luck on mounting the switches. Use a drill against the sprocket cover to clear the nut that I shaved a bit already on the back of the switch assembly.

Originally Posted by key3thermal

thanks for the videos on the valve adjustments, but just wondering does it have anything to do with the gear indicator??

No the valve adjustment videos is for just that, a valve adjustment.
This is for regular service intervals at 7,500 miles of the motorcycle odometer. You have to open the engine head and measure your valve clearance and valve shims and replace with no shims to get specified clearance. Unrelated to the shift gauge here. =)

Originally Posted by wellcraft

Kc, is there any problem with heat if I build a small fiberglass case to cover the whole thing, I know the fg is no problem, I'm referring to your product?

I'm not positive on this.
If you would like, I can build the power regulator remote from the PCB, so you can mount it outside of the case?

Originally Posted by DjDiablo

I would like if it as in cabon fiber... a bit curvd so u culd attatch to te side of the panel... that ould look cool...

I agree, a nice 90* piece of bent carbon fiber with a curve like an L shape would be a good way to mount it while keeping it cool at the same time.
You could put a hole in the L shape for the digit to pop through.

We have lots of custom mounting options.

[ninja250]

Originally Posted by jdoucet93

Everyone loves pics right?!?!

going to wrap the wires and i have a little black case from an old project that i believe i can modify to cover the gauge.

installation has been a breeze so far. Simply tapped the positive and negative wire going into one of the dash lights, then tapped the positive wire going to the neutral light. Going to see about mounting the switches later tonight. The thermometer in my garage is reading 103 right now so i think I'm gonna hang out inside for a little while.

Very cool!
Keep us updated. You are my first customer to actually receive and test one out 100% on your own!
I'm not sure what the unit will do inside of a case. Maybe you can try to protrude some of the voltage regulator from the case to keep it cool.

Once you do try it in a case, if it works ok you can wrap the rest of the wires up with electric tape for a clean/hidden presentation.

[ninja250]

Also,
When connected and you turn on the bike and it shows neutral and the LED comes on solid...

Turn the bike back off.
Shift into first gear.
Turn the bike back on.
The LED should be blinking.
You can adjust if you want the LED to blink or be solid when the bike is turned on in first gear by turning the potentiometer with an allen wrench inside of the socket.

One of the little hidden tricks I have programmed in for now. =)

[jdoucet93]

Originally Posted by ninja250

Also,
When connected and you turn on the bike and it shows neutral and the LED comes on solid...

Turn the bike back off.
Shift into first gear.
Turn the bike back on.
The LED should be blinking.
You can adjust if you want the LED to blink or be solid when the bike is turned on in first gear by turning the potentiometer with an allen wrench inside of the socket.

One of the little hidden tricks I have programmed in for now. =)

lol yeah i figured that one out already. i thought there was something wrong with the gauge because mine was set to be solid from the beginning. Then i remembered the potentiometer, turned it back about 1/2 a turn and flashy flashy!

[ninja250]

That shows I have cnotrol of the potentiometer with the program in the chip.

Now I just need to get the gauge to sense the pings from the input coil and count them to get RPM.

Then we will be in business setting up an adjustable shift light in the program.

After which, I have many many more ideas!
We gonna have robot 250's. Hang in there.
I want to pound out these next three units as soon as the chips come..

[jdoucet93]

I dream of that day! I'll be sure to pay close attention to your posts and I'll definitely be down to test anything you may conceive in the future.

[ninja250]

Processors just came in today! finished one more gauge! This one is Pauls!
He just claimed it.

I have Paul's and adrian's sitting here finished ready to go.

Working on Honey Badger's now and Welcraft how do you want yours done up mang?


Paul you get the bright white 7000mcd version with a pink potentiometer. You might need an extra resistor on this puppy. lol. Good thing is it's only lit up in neutral or while shifting, not while riding.
I'll do the "burn in" tomorrow and make sure it's safe and sound to ride.


Paul and Adrian finished.


Two left for the first round finishing them up now! Woot!


I need to go buy one more set of switches asap.
I think that's all I need before I can get everyone situated 100%.
I will also look for a nice metal case for the heck of it.

[jdoucet93]

Got my limit switches all wired up with connectors and such, the only thing that is "permanently" attached is the main harness. pics for everyone tomorrow. Having a tiny bit of trouble getting the switches adjusted just right. Getting close. I should be able to button that up tomorrow afternoon. Then hopefully ill have all m new parts in by next weekend so i can get her back on the road...

[adri99an]

When we gonna do this? SOCAL tech day?

[ninja250]

Originally Posted by jdoucet93

Got my limit switches all wired up with connectors and such, the only thing that is "permanently" attached is the main harness. pics for everyone tomorrow. Having a tiny bit of trouble getting the switches adjusted just right. Getting close. I should be able to button that up tomorrow afternoon. Then hopefully ill have all m new parts in by next weekend so i can get her back on the road...

Hang in there and be patient with the switches!
It is very possible to get them in the sweet spot, but it does take a bit of time.
Once you get it, they never need to be adjusted again.

You just move the switch arms out of the way when you put the shift collar back on while doing maintenance.

Those two tiny screws on the shift switches are kindof a pain ey?
Take your time and be patient and the gauge will work nicely.
When the switches are set up right, you won't be able to get into second gear unless the bike is running

Mechanically, the bike shifter goes farther into second gear when it is running. (I think).

You'll get it. Be gentle and bend the tabs to fine tune. The limit switches need to trigger close to the end of the shift but not too far that it misses each shift.

It helps if your shift linkage rod is adjusted so that your shift lever is at the height of your big toe at rest. Shifting is easier this way and you can make more complete shifts like this. Then set up the switches. The shift collar will still be in the same position. The only thing you change is the linkage length to make shifting more comfortable, helping the gauge to fire more accurately since your shifts will be more complete.

[ninja250]

OK I got Honey Badger taken care of this weekend.
Maybe Adrian too.
Waiting on paul's addy for shipping.
Jdoucet is good. That's four of the first five.

I will try and get the switches for the last of the first five gauges this weekend but may have to wait until Monday.

I have the fishing thing this Saturday so will be busy most of the weekend because I have another valve job sat night/Sunday.

At the latest check back Sunday night for some updates.

I should have an instal video soon and I just about have the first five gauges done. Honey badgers is done I just need the last set of switches and a case for Wellcraft's gauge to know how I will mount the components for it.

Updates in a few days...

[wellcraft]

I think that would be a good idea if you put the power regulator remote. I'm definitely encasing this somehow and I can put the regulator in a cooler area. I'm still thinking if the shift light is remote or not.
What color led's you have available for the shift light? All displays are red?

[ninja250]

I have blue, green yellow and amber left.
The digit itself is red.

I will set the voltage regulator on a remote mount for you.

I would recommend you leave the shift light onboard in this case I guess. Let me know if you want it onboard or not.

[mvc2demon]

Are you still adding people for the second batch ?

If so, can you please add me.

Thank You

[jdoucet93]

Got everything hooked up and it worked beautifully. It was accurately registering each up shift and down shift. Didn't miss once. So I taped all my wires up and tucked it all back in the bike and now the switch that registers the down shifts won't respond... put the bike in gear and clicked the switch manually, and nothing. =(

[ninja250]

Will need a bit more clarification to see what happened.
Can you use a meter on the switches to see if it was a switch failure?

There should be no reason the gauge would stop responding itself. I made sure to test it plenty.
It has to be a switch.

Either one broke, or it needs further adjustment.
Check for me to see what happened to the switches if possible.

I'm sending one out to Paul to test now also so we can see how things go for him.
He's a fairly competent dude I believe and should give us his honest opinion on the product too.
Installing one on Honey Badger's bike tonight too.
Sorry for the late response, I was in a fishing tourney today.
We will get you sorted out =)

I fully want to know what happened and fix it. It has been working so good on my end.
It has to be one of your switches quit. We can salvage the bracket and get some new switches going no problem.

[ninja250]

Also, I wonder if the plug has anything to do with it.
Still, haven't seen issues with the few plugs I have here yet.
Sniff out the bug for me and I'll set you up with the necessary parts to try it again. =)
If for any reason you need me to test the gauge itself I can do that too no problem.

[Momaru]

Just finally tuning to the official thread here and all I can say is WOW!

KC and I have been talking back & forth about this for a while and I'd thought there'd be lots of interest in this project but yikes. I think you've got your manufacturing work cut out for ya KC.

Definitely eager to see this in person. Looks like a compact piece o' hardware. Just seeing your work quality, I'd expect many (thousand) miles of service out of this once it's dialed in properly.

[jdoucet93]

Ill definitely try to look at it tomorrow. and if not tomorrow, monday. Almost positive its the switch though. I swapped the plugs and it read all the downshifts and no upshifts.

[ninja250]

Cool,
when I go to grab the rest of the switches for Wellcraft's gauge I will pick you up a few more.
Likely as soon as I'm done with Kevin's valves.

I sent you a couple extra bolts and nuts.
When you receive the switches go ahead and bolt them down to the old bracket and install as usual.

Do you have a soldering iron to solder the wires to the switches bro?
We will get you taken care of. Hang in there.

Paul I have yours ready too I will ship when I ship out Jdoucet's switches.

Wait until you guys see how we installed Honey Badger's gauges last night.
We installed it inside his stock fuel gauge! Looks awesome! Like it should have come that way.

[jdoucet93]

Yes, i've got one. Will be looking forward to getting the new hardware. Thanks

[THE BIG SITT]

So do you plan on making these with some sort of a housing? And/or, any updates with the iPhone idea from the development thread?

[jonnyc]

Originally Posted by ninja250

Wait until you guys see how we installed Honey Badger's gauges last night.
We installed it inside his stock fuel gauge! Looks awesome! Like it should have come that way.

can't wait to see that!!!

Can you give us any hints on what else your planning to do? I am very curious what you have in mind other than the shift and gear display.

[ninja250]

Holy crap!
I just made one of the neater things I've made in my engineering career.

I figured out how to modify my shift gauge with a transistor and a relay to fire a huge row of LED's that Kevin wanted to use as his shift light! Just like he asked for and I said I could. Probably would have never tried it without Kevin bringing the relay though, it's his fault too.

every time he shifts the windshield lights up like crazy. Also when the bike is neutral.

I fried one gauge trying to make it work and had to build another one and replace it on the spot and tried a different schematic I came up with and got it working. Just happened to have spme transistors on hand and Kevin brought the relay he found somewhere else. A little tiny one. We glued it behind the stock gauges, then cut holes for my digit and put the gear gauge in with the fuel pod.

I'm flat out amazed I was able to figure this one out.
I have videos. You guys will trip. I was! haha

I could do some amazing things to these little ninjas.
I just spent 36 hours proving it! My fingers hurt and my back is sore and I need sleep but I'll get you guys some cool media soon.

Here's some teasers! We kick ass!
I got it working excellent by the time he left!
All he needs is connectors on his wires by the/for the sprocket cover.
That's his phone mount in the way the big funny thing in the middle messing up the view.
That big row of LED's is his shift light! It's not on while he's driving though only when he shifts!

[ninja250]

I obtained video of half of the gauge install. Namely the sprocket cover switches and related hookup wires. Also videos of the gauge in operation.
I should have a half ass how to on how to install the gauge soon.

Also, I found my stock of heatsinks for you guys so each one will now come with a heatsink and I will send one to Jdoucet also when I send him the switches so everyone has a heatsink on their gauge. =)

The pics above show what is possible with this puppy if you take your time and use your noggin!
Video to follow.

[ninja250]

Wellcraft...
I broke a gauge during modification of Kevin's gauge and had to replace it.
I'm going to have to put you on list two now as I only was able to produce 4 total first run because of this.

As a bunus, I will let you keep list one price.

I will have more time to find you a spiffy case too when I go get more parts.

I have to send Paul a gauge to tackle and install one for Adrian when I can feel my fingers again.

Then it's off to program the shift light upgrade.
We is so doin' this.

[Momaru]

Kevin's gonna be causing siezures in nearby cages at night leaving stoplights...

By the by, that in-gauge install looks fuggin AWESOME!

[ninja250]

lol.
I think he uses the lights for show mostly while wrenching on it etc. I dig them actually, pretty fancy. Accept the one shift light strip, that is active! I recommended a switch for when he wants it on/off. He gave me one 12" strip to play/experiment with.

He also found a loophole in my program, that little slippery honey badger!
I need to update it while writing the shift light code upgrade. more details later and just a fluke little something I need to add. Nothing anyone will notice.

Much improvement around here tonight.
Sacrificed one gauge (+-$60) for the cause and gained a lot of knowledge though in the process.

The videos should make the LED's less daunting somewhat... maybe.

while completing the in dash digit install, we were both giddy with joy on how sexy it came out.

[Kevin2109]

The last picture makes me a little hard.... lol

KC is the man! This thing is so smooth and PERFECT. It takes some time to hook up and get all right but it is do able without breaking anything

I'll have video of her tomorrow. You would never think of how much you would use this gauge until you have it!

Again, KC is a mad genius and knows his ****!!

[ninja250]

Originally Posted by Momaru

that in-gauge install looks fuggin AWESOME!

I'm sending you the all-in-one, so in-dash/remote install might be tricky, but just carefully desolder the parts you want to remove for in-dash install
The LED is on there by two little tiny points. Simple desolder. The digit you can solder the five pins per side at a time and carefully "walk" them out.
The 5-vreg is an easy desolder to relocate.

I think we have video and pics of how we placed the parts on the back of the stock gauges..
not even gonna bother tonight. Tomorrow.. I can't type to save my life ATM.

The only reason I broke something this time was because of the prototype getting the MCU chip to drive something as large of current as that huge strip of LED's using a transistor, resistor and a relay. I had a pull-up resistor on the wrong side of ground. hehe.
We let the magic smoke out of the first transistor and gauge combo. Couldn't get it back in. lol

[Kevin2109]

Link to original page on YouTube.


Here is a quick video! It works so nice!!! From the camera angle 2 and 3 kinda look the same, but there is no mistaking it when on the bike.

ok seriously? I go to imbed the new video and the link is http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGcOt****L0 <--- Notice the *** well because it has f*uck in it, and it wont embed cuz it does this **** in the youtube thing!!!

[ninja250]

Sweet.
Put the neutral bulb back in instead of your LED bulb and see if it fixes the neutral light! I think those LED's will work on mini currents that the gauge was not designed for or something, I don't know. It didn't do that on my bike with regular bulb. We may need a diode.
You know how my thin air whimsical engineering works.

Also, What's up with your fuel gauge? Was it always like that or is that something we did?
you always filling up past the brim?

You guys should hear it each time his shift LED's fire. It sounds like a blinker relay. lol
Video sooner or later I have a lot to get caught up on.

I'd like to note that those wires coming from Kevin's bike are not from me. All my wires are hidden. haha. those are his chargers and his earphones and stuff.

[Kevin2109]

Yeah, no idea what happened to the fuel gauge lol Guess I have to take it all apart again

[ninja250]

Well, we did good for 36 hours. Bring her back and we'll get the stock neutral light and fuel gauge back to normal again.
Rome wasn't built in a day. (or however that saying goes)

[ducducgooseit]

Originally Posted by pilotgeorge747

Ok add me to the list!

1)Key3thermal
2)Swampotter
3)Bob Headshrink
4)EddieNewYork
5)Ytse Frobozz
6)ichibunkid.206
7)pilotgeorge747
8)mvc2demon ?
9)ducducgooseit

I think mvc2demon wants in and said so before me but I stuck my name on this list since it was the most recent I saw in the thread.

For me:

1. 7 Segment dispaly on a remote mount ribbon display (going into the fuel gauge display)
2. RPM Shift LED on a remote mount (going behind redline in RPM gauge)
3. Remote LED in RED
4. I'll research and box the circuit board

Can you mount the Heat Sink you mentioned a while ago that will run cooler?
Can the alternate heat sink be face mounted as the current sink but bent to be a parallel plane to the circuit board? (this would ease the boxing)

Thanks,

[ninja250]

Originally Posted by ducducgooseit

I think mvc2demon wants in and said so before me but I stuck my name on this list since it was the most recent I saw in the thread.

For me:

1. 7 Segment dispaly on a remote mount ribbon display (going into the fuel gauge display)
2. RPM Shift LED on a remote mount (going behind redline in RPM gauge)
3. Remote LED in RED
4. I'll research and box the circuit board

Can you mount the Heat Sink you mentioned a while ago that will run cooler?
Can the alternate heat sink be face mounted as the current sink but bent to be a parallel plane to the circuit board? (this would ease the boxing)

Thanks,

I knew you'd like the digit in the dash!
You got it on all fronts. I can give it to you just as you ask.
It looks like we need one more person to close the list for group two.
Usually a couple people will bail out last minute as well.

I just found extra parts to build Welcraft the gauge I just blew out so I can get it to him on the first run. I'll get working on that soon and go get his and Jdoucet's switches as soon as I can guys. Hang in there. Sorry, this is only a one man operation for now. I still need to upload my instal video.
Pauls' gauge shipped today!

[ninja250]

1)Key3thermal
2)Swampotter
3)Bob Headshrink
4)EddieNewYork
5)Ytse Frobozz
6)ichibunkid.206
7)pilotgeorge747
8)mvc2demon ?
9)ducducgooseit
10)...............
---------------------

One more person for list two!
I hope you guys are very technical. It's a bit tricky to install the switches.
I think I can get a measurement for you on where to install them though.
I also have video describing it.

[headshrink]

Do you have any pics yet of the remote digit? I will probably go with that, but am curious to see how it looks.

[headshrink]

Originally Posted by ducducgooseit

Look in post 105 (1st picture) in this thread and concentrate on the fuel gauge display. Then look at post 112 for a vid showing the digit in action during use.

I did see those.... I was just wondering what the remote LED looked like prior to installation. This is to help visualize mounting options/methods.