Gear Indicator Install

[Cormanus]

That Popgun! He's a very naughty boy.

[ClassicVW_imp]

Well I finally got back into town and ordered a GIpro gear indicator for the CB. Ordered one for the ST too!! Put me on your naughty list twice Classic

OH the humanity!....

[Lord Popgun]

Cormanus,

I received my GI-pro today. I have a comment. In your picture, you have the red Honda connector and the white GI -pro connector aiming the wrong way. The white indicator connector will plug back on where the original red cap was on the holder plate without need for the spot tie. Then the red Honda connector will then plug in and be positioned like from the factory.

At least that is my experience. What say you?

[Cormanus]

What say I, Popgun?

I was both excited and dejected by your post. Excited because I saw an opportunity to tidy up the installation of the indicator. Dejected because I was obviously such a technical klutz that I couldn't even figure out something so simple. That wasn't a surprise. I rushed outside, ripped the side cover off the CB, cut the cable tie (you call it a spot tie), turned the fitting around and tried to slide the white thingy onto the tab. It wouldn't go. I tried again. It still wouldn't go.

So I went up to my shambles of a shed and rooted around until I found the red OEM thingy I removed to plug in the white thingy on the gear indicator and took it to the bike to compare it. They are not the same. Observe the following pictures.

Red thingy


White thingy

See how the top is different? The red OEM fitting has a slot to slide the tab into. The white GI-pro fitting does not. There's no way it's going on the tab. GI-pro has obviously updated the fitting just for you, Popgun. Not for me. I WAS RIGHT TO TIE THE BAST*RD ON WITH A CABLE TIE!!!

Back to the shed, mate. Plenty of cursing 'cause I couldn't find a cable tie. I thought, "I know what I'll say: 'that bloo*y Popgun: persuading me to cut the last cable tie in Australia so he could show me I was right.'"

Then I found a cable tie, put the whole thing back together and calmed down.

What say I, Popgun? I say your fitting must be different to mine. And thank god for cable ties.

[Lord Popgun]

Cormanus,

Oh man, sorry about that. Maybe I did it wrong.

You are right about the cable tie. We, meaning us at work, work on aircraft equipment and a flat braided nylon line called spot tie is used on a lot of cables. So we tend to call cable ties spot tie. Its real name is cable lacing I think.

Cable ties are also know as zip ties, at least in the US.

[Lord Popgun]

Cormanus,

Ok, I'm home after work. My red 'cap' is exactly the same as the white connector on the GI pro, except, said Capt. Obvious, it is red.

Note that the red 'cap' is actually a connector with no pins, just plugs in the end. You could if you wanted, de-pin your white connector and re-pin the pins into the red 'cap' and everything would fit back on the bike like factory.

These type connectors (Hitachi, I THINK) are very easy to de-pin and re-pin. No special tools required. Well, you do need something like a very very small flat head screwdriver or better, a scribe. Something small with a point.

[Cormanus]

Popgun,

Don't stress. I was having a bit of a laugh. When you reported on your installation I was confident I'd made a mistake—I'm not very good at these mechanical and technical things so that was more than likely. I was pleasantly surprised in a perverse kinda way that I'd got it right!

Thanks for the advice about de-pinning and re-pinning the plug. One of these days, when I'm feeling extra courageous, I might see if I can do it. I take it they're easy to buy?

[Lord Popgun]

Cormanus,

You don't have to buy anything, just de-pin (i.e. remove) the pins from the old white connector, and put them in the old red one and plug it back in to the bike plug.

If you ever decide to do this, we can take it to PM or email and I'll tell you how. Its easy. You just release the pin and pull it out. Details if needed. No special pin extractors needed.

As far as buying connectors, I guess you could order the 'cap' from Honda, but getting the connectors on the harness would require you to find a source. AFAIK, Honda does not sell harness parts separately. Someone on here did post a link to a Hitachi source once for pins and connectors, but I don't remember who or where. Search would be our friend on that. But you don't need anything new.

[Cormanus]

Sorry, Popgun, I should have been clearer. I realize I could swap the pins but I wanted some backup just in case.

Thanks for the offer of help, I may well take you up on it sometime when I have a bit less on.

Meanwhile, enjoy the indicator. I find it strangely helpful in an innumerate kinda way.

[Lord Popgun]

Cormanus,

Did you lift the tank to run the cable? I don't see a good way to run it neatly otherwise along the existing cable harness.

I'm not going to remove it though, don't want to fight the fuel connection again...

Edit to add: just for info, I got the green LED display.