Oil Pressure Sender Location?

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A trend, rather than an immediate, catastrophic loss of oil pressure is what I expect from the gage. Even in daylight, I don't check it often, (like I do mirrors)
 
Dan1950 said:
At least it will be closer to my line of sight.
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Dan,
I use the one from Madass and the light is very visible even in the daylight. I use it in conjunction with the ICM unit.
Mike
 
SteveC said:
If you fit an oil pressure switch, a good addition is a charge warning light from improving classic motorcycles. This uses the red voltage warning light for both voltage indication and low oil pressure warning, with the bonus that the light flashes fast if the oil pressure goes low.

ICMotorcycles.com &nbsp Ignition / Alternator / Battery Warning lights, Charge Monitors

Ignition Alternator Battery Warning lights Charge monitors. Combined charge and oil pressure warning lights
www.improvingclassicmotorcycles.com www.improvingclassicmotorcycles.com
P.S. I make the oil pressure switch that Hendo bought. I will PM you.
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Read my 1st post.
 
Tornado said:
Rather than a warning light that can easily be missed for long periods of time or a beeper that could be drowned out by ride noise, try a micro vibrator from a cell phone or similar, placed under seat cover in the foam so it can be felt by the leg.
Here is one type for less than a fiver:
View attachment 82338
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I honestly think a vibration device located sufficiently close to my contact points with the seat would frighten the crap out of me, either physically or metaphorically, and if it continued buzzing away for long enough....well, who knows what? Messy!
 
SteveA said:
I honestly think a vibration device located sufficiently close to my contact points with the seat would frighten the crap out of me, either physically or metaphorically, and if it continued buzzing away for long enough....well, who knows what? Messy!
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Nah, I've had my phone on vibrate mode in my jacket pocket go off loads of times while riding. Nothing dramatic.
 
SteveA said:
I honestly think a vibration device located sufficiently close to my contact points with the seat would frighten the crap out of me, either physically or metaphorically, and if it continued buzzing away for long enough....well, who knows what? Messy!
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Especially since on a hot day at a stop light, the pressure can go low enough to cause the light (or buzzer) to come on - usually just flicker.
 
marshg246 said:
Especially since on a hot day at a stop light, the pressure can go low enough to cause the light (or buzzer) to come on - usually just flicker.
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Remember, the 'pressure' can go low at very high rpm with very hot oil too. You need flow more than pressure.

And honestly this is why I would never fit a gauge, light or a buzzer for regular use.

I have a gauge I fit for testing, usually the first start after a rebuild, to watch pressure build.

Then I take it off.
 
SteveA said:
Remember, the 'pressure' can go low at very high rpm with very hot oil too. You need flow more than pressure.

And honestly this is why I would never fit a gauge, light or a buzzer for regular use.

I have a gauge I fit for testing, usually the first start after a rebuild, to watch pressure build.

Then I take it off.
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Have a friend whose return hose cracked while riding on a nice straight road. Having that light come one while riding told him to stop. In fact, he pulled the clutch and held the kill switch until stopped. On inspection he saw the rear wheel covered with oil. Hate to think what would have happened to him if he went into a corner, and his engine if he had no idea he was out of oil. New hose, add oil, lots of cleaning, and he was back on the road.

I have an oil pressure light on every bike I have and will always. I've never had one come on when there was no trouble. I've had them flicker on a hot day with low RPMs. I've never had them flicker while riding but then I'm not racing.
 
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marshg246 said:
........ I've never had them flicker while riding but then I'm not racing.
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Understood, but what you do colours your preferences. In a race situation the oil over the tyre would have most likely have spat you off before you had seen the light!

It was 'fashionable' in rally cars to have a switch that triggered at a higher pressure than on standard cars, and to put a very big light on the dashboard. These switches fitted direct to the pump output gallery on the block, and most cars also had a wet gauge.

The only time I had one come on in anger, I was driving an Escort Mexico with the owner in the co-driver seat. I already knew we had a big problem because I actually heard the crank break, even if at the time I didn't know the detail of the failure! I hit the clutch in auto reaction mode and the rev counter dropped to 0!

We were on gravel in a forest, since you need your power to steer a rear wheel drive on gravel I was lucky it happened as I was changing in to top gear at 7000, rather than braking for a turn. But to be honest, that big orange light was a distraction I didn't need as I brought it to a standstill in as safe a place as I could find.
 
SteveA said:
Understood, but what you do colours your preferences. In a race situation the oil over the tyre would have most likely have spat you off before you had seen the light!
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No doubt but I'll bet that at least 95% of the visitors here haven't been on a road race track in at least 20 years, and and that at least 98% of those in the US haven't. I'll also bet that the majority US visitors have never been wide open in 4th gear for more than a few seconds.

I'm guessing in a race you care about, a light coming on would be ignored anyway so there's no reason for you to have one. Different story when just out for a fun ride - blown engines are not fun, especially for us old, worn out non-racers :)
 
I don’t think Steve’s point was actually about racing…

Hands up all those who have left their indicators on on a motorcycle even with an indicator warning light fitted.

If your hand isn’t up then you’ve either never ridden such a bike… or you ain’t telling the truth!

My point is, it’s very easy to miss a light when your eyes are on the road, even when it’s flashing at you!

Sure it’s not an argument against fitting one, but it is an argument against being lulled into a false sense of security that it’s a kind of total error proofing.
 
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Many years ago :
coming back from a long trip to Portugal and Spain (7000 +km) I checked the oil pressure with a separate gauge, like I sometimes do.
At 4000 rpm it hardly moved the needle, maybe 15 psi.
Cause: the circlip holding the oil seal in the timing cover had come loose, and the seal was pushed out. (only myself to blame)
Witness marks on the circlip showed that it must have been out for a long time. Maybe the entire trip.
New seal and circlip, and everything back to normal : 60- 70 psi.
No damage to the engine.
Why did the engine survive ?
The timing side filled up with oil, and the crankshaft 'sucked' up the oil by centrifugal force.
A spinning crankshaft is an oil pump by itself.
If I then had a gauge or an idiot light on the bike, it almost certainly would have ruined the trip:
expensive recovery of the bike, hitchhike home, etc..( no travel insurance back then)
Sometimes ignorance is a blessing..
 
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ludwig said:
.....
Why did the engine survive ?
The timing side filled up with oil, and the crankshaft 'sucked' up the oil by centrifugal force.
A spinning crankshaft is an oil pump by itself.
.......
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This gets back to flow versus pressure....the engine did indeed survive on oil flow....

Pressure is measured at the pump outlet, not inlet!

And as Eddie says, my post is not about racing per se, but how your experience colours what you do in the future.

Ludwig's experience will have affected his future choices, I was telling you all about some of the things that affect mine.
 
Found an old picture:

Oil Pressure Sender Location?


2500 km from home, zero oil pressure, and not a worry on my mind.
A pressure gauge sure would have wiped the smile off my face..
 
If that's San Vicente on the North Spain coast I've been there many times , great little sea side town.
 
marshg246 said:
Have a friend whose return hose cracked while riding on a nice straight road. Having that light come one while riding told him to stop. In fact, he pulled the clutch and held the kill switch until stopped. On inspection he saw the rear wheel covered with oil. Hate to think what would have happened to him if he went into a corner, and his engine if he had no idea he was out of oil. New hose, add oil, lots of cleaning, and he was back on the road.

I have an oil pressure light on every bike I have and will always. I've never had one come on when there was no trouble. I've had them flicker on a hot day with low RPMs. I've never had them flicker while riding but then I'm not racing.
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My buddy buzz sawed the cases in half on his Triumph triple whilst caning it across Deer's Leap... 4 quarts on the rear tire at ONCE. I watched from a couple hundred yards back, he got it safely stopped.
Oil Pressure Sender Location?
 
Over on Triumph RAT forum, there is a thread from a modern air cooled Bonneville rider that had a catastrophic oil loss from a failed K&N oil filter with welded on hex nut. He happened to see engine light on at some point, pulled over but engine stopped before he could shut it off. Rear tire covered in oil. Engine was siezed. Leak was confirmed from the weld points of that daft filter design. K&N has a guarantee statement on their website to cover for any problems caused by their parts. They did cover owner for a new engine.
Could have been much worse if he had an accident from oil on tire.
So even with proper warning lights it is still problematic if this is seen in time to prevent damage.
 
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