GPS 12v connector and accessory plugs

[KtmRy]

What type of plugs/connectors do you use on your bikes?

SAE



would be my preference but i can only find 1 supplier in the uk and its a 3m lead for £7ish although bearing in mind i need at least 6 it turns out a bit on the pricey side which i would consider but nowhere other than America do the blanks/grommets to plug off when not in use

Tamiya



Easy to get but when plugged together not as weatherproof as the SAE and no grommets to plug off when not in use

Trail tech



Cant find any and cant find any pics off grommets

i can get these but cant get blank off "cover"



So im all out of ideas and have been for a while now so can someone please enlighten me.

Cheers

[Zenarchy]

I used the AMP superseal style in a couple of places I wanted power points, and for a blank off cover, I cut off some of the bulk from the back of the male connector to make it smaller (like the last one pictured in your post) and filled the wire entry holes with expoxy putty to finish off where I cut (though anything waterproof would do).

Then I plug that in to use it as a cover when I'm not using the socket. Seems waterproof and is clipped in place and works well so far. Though it means sticking the cover in my pocket or top box when it's not in use (shouldn't be hard to make a loop to connect it to the female side if you wanted it attached permanently though).

Its a bit wasteful, but they're cheap on ebay and the little metal prongs and seals they come with are handy to have as spares so you can reuse them.

Depending what you're plugging in best to check the power ratings though. For most things they're fine but they can melt if there's too much power going over them (I don't think they'll be as highly rated as those SAE connectors but they should be enough for most small accessories you'd tend to attach to a bike I think).

I guess you could make your own blanking covers for the other connector types too doing something similar (though I've never tried).

For connecting my gps I use these too, but it's still a 12v cig socket I plug a USB adapter into. I've cut the USB connector off the end and put one of these on, then there's another wire going into the wateproof box my gps lives in that it connects to.


If you wanted to wire in the gps without using an adapter, unless its designed to run off 12v natively and deal with power fluctuations, you'll need some sort of regulator/converter. Some people have taken a cig socket adapter to bits to wire directly to a connector of their choice, or you can get these little 12v to 5v heatsinked direct wire step down converters on ebay that would probably do the job a bit better I think (assuming your gps runs on 5v - I think most of them are USB powered nowadays so tend to be about 5v but best to check to be sure).

[Zenarchy]

P.S. If you need grommets and can't find the exact size you want, if you do a search for "oogoo" you might find that some help. It's a formula for very easily making cheap quick setting silicone rubber putty from cheap silicone sealant. You can buy premade "sugru" which is something similar (probably a bit better but more expensive).

Not sure how well it'd stand the test of time compared to the usual rubber grommets but it's cheap and easy to work with and replace if it starts to fail.

[Tour Monkey]

Held in place with a smearing of gripfill



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[RoadTrekker]

What you have to look for is_
It is not reversible +/-
Waterproof
Designed to handle the required power load = Amps
Easy to install
Try to get a connecter with an attached cover to protect the connector when not using it.
Also try to get a connector with a click lock so that it cannot vibrate loose which the Trailtech type do.
The wiring is the correct size for the loading = Thickness of the each wire
Try visiting Maplins as they have a good selection of cables and connectors or any good Radio Control model shop, last resort is Halfords.

[DanielS]

What are you connecting up and where will the connectors be?

The previous owner of my 800 has a Tamiya plug for the Optimate and even though it has a nice rubber cover, I had to replace the pins as they corroded/vanished. I'm always soaking in WD40 now bit it's not ideal. SAE would be better with the cover.

If it's out of the weather such as under the seat or behind the dash then the Tamiya ones may be fine (You get rubber covers for them)

[Zenarchy]

What you have to look for is_
It is not reversible +/-
Waterproof
Designed to handle the required power load = Amps
Easy to install
Try to get a connecter with an attached cover to protect the connector when not using it.
Also try to get a connector with a click lock so that it cannot vibrate loose which the Trailtech type do.
The wiring is the correct size for the loading = Thickness of the each wire
Try visiting Maplins as they have a good selection of cables and connectors or any good Radio Control model shop, last resort is Halfords.

Those are the factors above that drew me to the AMP/Superseal style connectors. They come in three different colours to support a range of wire sizes while still sharing the same connection size (though for very high loads like regulators etc they're likely to melt - but there's a physically larger and higher rated version in a similar style like those used by eastern beaver available for that sort of thing - just a bit hard to get hold of in the UK but ebay sellers sometimes have them).

If it's just for connecting accessories then the amp connectors should be fine for most things ime. and satnav and phone style things will be no problem.

A quick phone photo of the little blanking cover I made for mine in case my description wasn't very clear:



It means sacrificing a male connector to make one but they're only a quid or so on ebay, and the pins and seals left over are handy as spares.

After connecting the wires, I usually wrap a bit of self amalgamating tape around the connector and wire to add some additional waterproofing and strain relief. Not sure if that's necessary but I haven't had one fail on me yet.

I haven't had much luck sourcing things from maplins in the past myself though. Some of the connection stuff they sell doesn't seem great quality, the range is limited, and is quite overpriced.

There's a better selection of better quality cheaper stuff available online imho.