Oil Pressure and Charge Warning Light Install

Graham B said:
Hi I'm Graham from Improving Classic Motorcycles

Swooshdave - you wrote "I'm having trouble with it occasionally not showing I'm charging at higher RPMs". If you are using 5000 ohm suppressed plug caps then it is very unlikely to be an RFI problem. Please do this test - run the engine at tickover and measure the voltage across the battery. Under the same conditions, measure the voltage across the CWL's ring terminal and piggyback flag terminal. Do not probe what the terminals are attached to, probe the terminals themselves. Please report back the two readings.

Do you only ever see low oil warning at low rpm? Or do you see it at higher rpm?

Tornado - I strongly recommend using 5000 ohm suppressed plug caps. Unsuppressed will almost certainly affect the accuracy of the CWL's readings and at worst will make it deliver nonsense readings. Unsuppressed can also break up TV pictures using reception by aerial.

If anyone has concerns about what the CWL is displaying, all customers are welcome to email me about it at any time. I've helped many find and fix problems on their bikes revealed by the CWLs.
Click to expand...

I have been using the CWL (with suppressed ignition leads) for some time now and have had no problems at all.
 
I have been using the CWL (with suppressed ignition leads) for some time now and have had no problems at all.

So have I, rather nicer than the blue aluminium thingy.
 
Graham B said:
Hi I'm Graham from Improving Classic Motorcycles

Swooshdave - you wrote "I'm having trouble with it occasionally not showing I'm charging at higher RPMs". If you are using 5000 ohm suppressed plug caps then it is very unlikely to be an RFI problem. Please do this test - run the engine at tickover and measure the voltage across the battery. Under the same conditions, measure the voltage across the CWL's ring terminal and piggyback flag terminal. Do not probe what the terminals are attached to, probe the terminals themselves. Please report back the two readings.

Do you only ever see low oil warning at low rpm? Or do you see it at higher rpm?

Tornado - I strongly recommend using 5000 ohm suppressed plug caps. Unsuppressed will almost certainly affect the accuracy of the CWL's readings and at worst will make it deliver nonsense readings. Unsuppressed can also break up TV pictures using reception by aerial.

If anyone has concerns about what the CWL is displaying, all customers are welcome to email me about it at any time. I've helped many find and fix problems on their bikes revealed by the CWLs.
Click to expand...
I will say that I have communicated with Graham in the past and he's been extremely helpful. I don't think my issues are specifically because of his parts, but rather because of my installation and configuration. I'm sure if I spent more time on it I could get it better but for me it might come down to a time/benefit analysis.
 
swooshdave said:
I'm kind of torn on the benefits of this solution. Having one light do two things sounds nice in theory but in practice it's not ideal. On top of that we know these bikes have very low oil pressure at idle. And very low charging at idle.

I'm having trouble with it occasionally not showing I'm charging at higher RPMs, so much so that I put a gauge on. Was that EM causing the reading? Don't know.

I'd also get the low oil pressure warning at time. Not constantly.

We'll see if I have time to continue to troubleshoot. I bought the same setup for my brother and he just ripped it off after a while and said it's in the Lord's Hands. Not sure what he meant by that...
Click to expand...
I utilized an oil pressure sender with a red light where the charge indicator used to be and the Sparkbright voltage level indicating LED located between the turn indicator warning light and the headlight switch. Easy peasy..

Eclipse Battery Voltage Monitor | SparkBright

The Eclipse is a waterproof, auto-dimming voltage indicator with a bright three colour (green/amber/red) LED.
www.sparkbright.co.uk www.sparkbright.co.uk

Oil Pressure and Charge Warning Light Install
 
Dan1950 said:
I utilized an oil pressure sender with a red light where the charge indicator used to be and the Sparkbright voltage level indicating LED located between the turn indicator warning light and the headlight switch. Easy peasy..

Eclipse Battery Voltage Monitor | SparkBright

The Eclipse is a waterproof, auto-dimming voltage indicator with a bright three colour (green/amber/red) LED.
www.sparkbright.co.uk www.sparkbright.co.uk

Oil Pressure and Charge Warning Light Install
Click to expand...
You cut an extra hole! How cheeky!
 
I also have a CWL that works fine, I also put an extra hole in the head lamp shell. I have an oil pressure gauge and the light come on at Idle when hot at 5 psi. I purchased a USB phone charger that has a digital volt meter which I check when I get off the bike. It reads 14.2 with my lithium battery which I know it’s not supposed to work with the CWL.
 
Does anyone have a photo of Don's pressure switch installed?
Can't quite picture how it fits.
Cheers
 
Another very good alternative for monitoring voltage is https://www.signaldynamics.com/01050
The tricolor LED is easily visible behind an amber jewel, have had one on my Commando for years and it has given me early warning of electrical trouble a few times.

 
swooshdave said:
Go look at the first post in this thread.
Click to expand...
Sorry - didn't watch all the video. 👍
I note that the supplier states CWLs are not suitable for Lithium batteries - I wonder why that is?
(rules me out!)
 
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robs ss said:
Sorry - didn't watch all the video. 👍
I note that the supplier states CWLs are not suitable for Lithium batteries - I wonder why that is?
(rules me out!)
Click to expand...
Rob,
Mine has always been run with a Lithium battery with no problems. I must have missed that part of the instructions 😁
Mike
 
robs ss said:
Sorry - didn't watch all the video. 👍
I note that the supplier states CWLs are not suitable for Lithium batteries - I wonder why that is?
(rules me out!)
Click to expand...
Just tjat the voltage range for low, good, overcharge is different for LeadAcid vs Lithium. It will function but the warning ranges will not be correct on Lithium.
 
Tornado said:
Just tjat the voltage range for low, good, overcharge is different for LeadAcid vs Lithium. It will function but the warning ranges will not be correct on Lithium.
Click to expand...
If I fitted one it would only be for the dynamic oil pressure function, but maybe a simple LED with a flasher in circuit may be simpler.
I already have a volt meter.
 
I have just ordered one of Don's switches.
I looked in my "box of bits" and have a spare M-Stop (Motogadget) which gives a variety of flashing options. It also gives a resistor to put in parallel with the LED "load".
Now just have to find a suitably bright, and small(ish) LED pilot light - probably red - and a place to install it.
Cheers (you persuasive bastards! ;))
 
robs ss said:
I have just ordered one of Don's switches.
I looked in my "box of bits" and have a spare M-Stop (Motogadget) which gives a variety of flashing options. It also gives a resistor to put in parallel with the LED "load".
Now just have to find a suitably bright, and small(ish) LED pilot light - probably red - and a place to install it.
Cheers (you persuasive bastards! ;))
Click to expand...
Rob,
I sent a note to Graham at ICM and he has a unit for LI batteries.He also sent me the test for checking that I am not overcharging the battery.Nice guy to deal with as he always answers any of the questions I might have.
Mike
 
YING said:
Rob,
Mine has always been run with a Lithium battery with no problems. I must have missed that part of the instructions 😁
Mike
Click to expand...
They certainly work with Li batteries, but the threshold levels are wrong. The 12.6 spot on lead acid batteries is 13.1 volts on lithium. I raised the thresholds on my CWL by putting a small signal diode (1N914) in series with the sense wire. That raises the thresholds by about 0.6 volts. Downside to that is the 15 volt overcharge level is now dangerously high for Li. Some day I'll build a supplemental circuit for that condition. Meanwhile, I have a voltmeter on the handlebars.
 
I am assembling the parts but still have reservations.
Specifically, how good is an idiot light (even a flashing one) at effectively alerting you to an imminent disaster. Maybe a noise alarm as well?

I fitted self-cancelling indicators because I don't notice the idiot lights - maybe the sphere of what I can watch is small such that I have to only concentrate on what's happening on the road.

Has anyone who has fitted a low pressure oil light effectively averted an oil pressure related catastrophe, while riding, because they noticed the light (flashing or otherwise)? Watching it at start-up doesn't count.
Cheers
 
swooshdave said:
Only as good as the idiot watching the light.
Click to expand...
Does that mean you and/or anyone you know has never saved an engine because of one of these lights?

It's a genuine question. I'm wondering if these are "good in principle" but not actually very effective.
Cheers
 
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