Subtopic	Posts		Last Post
	Archive through February 07, 2003	20		03/04 03:04am
	Archive through March 08, 2003	20		03/10 02:08pm
	Archive through March 12, 2003	20		03/12 12:00pm
	Archive through March 15, 2003	20		03/24 08:04am
	Archive through March 31, 2003	20		03/31 11:07pm

By Twistyroad on Monday, March 31, 2003 - 09:18 pm:

I went a very different route on the throttle linkage. First, I investigated just how much room I had to work with, using a flashlight, inspection mirror, and a few pinched fingers.... I determined that there was more room for the cable than I expected, and decided to use some of that room to get a better “approach angle.”



I bent one of the attachment pieces from the Audiovox kit about 45 degrees, and attached it to the “cable clamp” piece that most of you have used, clamped on the bottom throttle cable housing.



Notice that the threaded portion of the cable fitting is shorter than usual... During this installation, I tried to “tweak” the angle of the bent mounting piece, but put too much pressure on it, and it broke... shades of Boggs’ heartache.
But I learned from Boggs. Looking closer, I realized that it’s brittle because it’s cast aluminum (!). Because cast aluminum is brittle, I figured I could simply break it without damaging the steel cable inside. Instead of breaking out the Dremel, I put it on an anvil, gave it a couple of moderate hits with a hammer, turned it 90 degrees, hit it again, and it crumbled apart. Yes! And using my method for getting a good approach angle, breaking off the ½” or so of this piece actually worked in my favor.
I don’t have a picture of it, but I didn’t use the cotter pin trick. I bent the tang very slightly, then drilled it and used a small bolt and nut with Locktite, similar to Amain’s installation.



I also wanted to pull vacuum power from more than one (preferably all) of the “carb sync” vacuum ports. I had concerns about adding an “air draw” from only one cylinder, yet wasn’t sure whether I should be exposing all the cylinders’ vacuum signals to each other. This concern was alleviated when I discovered that the factory vacuum lines already connect all the cylinders’ bodies together. So..... I used two T fittings and one Y fitting to connect the actuator’s vacuum line to all four throttle bodies. You can see the actuator’s vacuum hose emerging from the right side of the #4 throttle body and connecting to my plumbing.



Here’s a picture with the fuel tank raised about 2”. The cable sits within the notch of the tank bottom.

 

By Twistyroad on Monday, March 31, 2003 - 09:24 pm:

My other significant departure from the crowd was in the wiring. I don’t like having wires running all over the bike, so I minimized my wire runs. First, I ran the actuator harness directly across the airbox to the area of the ECU connector. The harness is inside the black tubing (actually shrink-wrap, though I didn’t heat and shrink it) that’s visible just below the ECU.



Those four exposed wires in the upper right corner are part of the bike’s harness running to the stop/tail lights (I didn’t have to remove cover/insulation; those wires are already exposed. However, I did loosen the bundle clamps to the tallight and move the harness slightly forward for a bit of extra slack.). That’s where I spliced into the brake light’s power and switched ground.
I spliced into the switched #1&4 coil lead at the ECU end. It’s the orange wire at the left end of the ECU connector. All connections use solder, electrical tape, and liquid tape. I left just enough slack in the harness to that I could disconnect the actuator and pull it out far enough to get to the connector and DIP switches (more on that later).
I ran the ground wire to one of the chassis bolts that secures the seat latch. You can see that this leaves me only three wires to run forward, and that I routed them along the main wire harness that runs to the steering crown.



My search for a solution to carrying the control panel ended up in the wire shelving aisle at Lowe’s.



Before.



After.

 

By Twistyroad on Monday, March 31, 2003 - 09:28 pm:

It’s nylon, and surprisingly strong (hey, it’s a closet-shelf support). I simply used an indelible Sharpie marker (intended for marking CD-ROM disks) to “dye” the white nylon black. Doesn’t look too bad from the front, though I still need to find a black hold-down bolt.



It’s not as attractive from the back, but it’s not the worst, either. BTW, I sealed and mounted it with Black Goop, with is very adhesive, and dries to a “hard rubber” consistency.



I ran the fused power wire to a switched terminal strip to the left of the headlight (almost identical to Wayne’s set-up). The connectors for the actuator and the control panel meet in the space behind the steering head, which the factory already uses as a “storage space” for a few other connectors. You can see the area and some of those connectors at the bottom of this pic.



Finally, here’s a picture of my completed (for now) cockpit. You even get a free glimpse of where and how I mounted my Datel voltmeter!

 

By Twistyroad on Monday, March 31, 2003 - 09:31 pm:

Sunday was “test flight” day. I spent about two hours of riding time in 5~10-minutes pieces.... ride and test, change a DIP switch, ride and test, change a DIP switch, etc., etc. Yes, I was riding with the right side cover removed....

The results:

Stick with the “Low” sensitivity setting (light vehicles w/high horsepower). The “Medium” setting is MUCH too sensitive, resulting in a lot of snatch-and-jerk throttle commands (hey, I just had to try it....).

The 8000ppm setting does indeed get the “tap-up/down” to about 1mph increments, but it has three serious drawbacks: 1) the cruise won’t engage below about 50mph, 2) it’s extremely slow to engage (15~20 seconds), and it’s very sluggish (throttle inputs seem to lag demand by almost the same amount).
The 2000ppm setting works, and will engage well below the point where the engine starts bucking and spitting, but the tap-up/down control will take several taps to have any noticeable effect.
At the 4000ppm setting, tap-up/down works in about 0.5mph increments (just like the instructions say), and is smooth both in engagement and operation.

Bottom line: If you’re wondering whether changing from your nominal setting, don’t bother.

Hope all this helps the next cruise control guinea pig!
Rock 

By Boggs on Monday, March 31, 2003 - 11:07 pm:

Twistyroad - very, very nicely done. I especially like your approach to the cabling and the wiring setup. My install took about twice as long in total hours (not counting my head banging and profanity time), so it sounds like you did great! Also appreciate the dip switch testing, sounds like I'll leave mine alone. Kudos my friend! 

By Sharp on Tuesday, April 01, 2003 - 05:10 am:

I gotta try this. You guys are great. Applause  

By Fjrtexas on Tuesday, April 01, 2003 - 06:08 am:

Well done, Rock!

Lots of ways emerging to skin this cat and they all work. Pretty interesting about that coil tie-in near the ECU. Sure glad to see someone go through the dip switch settings. Been meaning to do that on two different installs over the last 30K and finally waited long enough to get someone else to flip the switches.;o] Actually, your results are more dramatic than I suspected. Now, we know. Good on ya, Rock.

Wayne on one of the cruisers in Texas 

By Amain on Tuesday, April 01, 2003 - 09:37 am:

Nice work!! I turned that same bracket over in my hand for about 5 minutes trying to figure out how to make it work for me, never thought to bend it! Using the wires at the ECU keeps it a lot cleaner, too. Bound to be some changes when I do this again on my 2004. (There will be some fancy brainwork there by us ABSers to find a place for the servo.)

I especially like the fact that everyone doesn't blindly follow the guy in front. Every new install has another good idea. Who's next? It is undoubtedly the best $100 aftermarket mod you will ever buy! 

By Amain on Tuesday, April 01, 2003 - 09:40 am:

Oops! I forgot to ask... How did you connect the servo cable end to the tang on the throttle? Did you use any beadchain, or maybe use the bead connector with the ring on it to bolt right to the tang? 

By Sharp on Tuesday, April 01, 2003 - 12:41 pm:

Someone was going to investigate a new control pad. anyone work out any alternatives? 

By Twistyroad on Tuesday, April 01, 2003 - 05:46 pm:

@Amain
Yes, I bolted the bead chain connector with the ring on it to the tang. I noticed your connection lets the attaching nut rest on the idle-adjustment screw... on mine, the tang still rests on it. I used 5 (I think) chain "balls."
I bolted the ring securely to the tang, rather than letting it rotate on the bolt. It's aimed so that it's about level with the bike when the throttle is "off," but bent slightly toward the left saddlebag. This keeps the chain clear through all chain or throttle movement. I used a 1/2" piece of clear tubing to "lock" the chain onto the ring, but didn't use any on the chain-to-cable end. This set-up means that at full actuator pull, the throttle is still about 15 degrees from WFO, but I figure if I'm going fast enough to need WFO on this bike to maintain speed, even up a long hill, I probably shouldn't be using the cruise anyway.
If this description isn't clear, tell me, and I'll take a couple of pictures the next time I have the tank up/off (I've got a throttle-body sync coming up soon).
Rock 

By Amain on Wednesday, April 02, 2003 - 08:55 am:

My pictures may be a bit misleading; I think the tang still hits the throttle stop, but I had to bend it a bit. I tried to use the plastic tube to lock the chain connections, but it caused binding problems so I just squeezed the connectors closed with pliers. Thanks for the explanation, just thought maybe you were able to eliminate the chain altogether --- but then you would be fighting the servo cable tension when twisting the throttle manually.
Again, nice work! Audiovox owes us all big-time. In a couple years there will be more of their cruises on bikes than in cars! 

By Twistyroad on Monday, April 07, 2003 - 03:24 am:

Amain,
Well, I had the tank off to do my throttle body sync yesterday. Here's what my linkage looks like at rest (throttle off).





This is at WFO without cruise... the cable simply "bows" to the side. You can also see I used 4 "balls" of chain.
 

By Amain on Monday, April 07, 2003 - 06:12 am:

Looks good to me! Cruise on, dude.