Magnecor KV85 HT leads – Review

The modified HAAS coils have been on now for just over six months and 12,000 miles and everything is ticking along just fine. Even so, the Capo needs a few treats every now and again, so I thought a nice new set of HT leads might complement the new(ish!) coils. Besides, the old OEM HT leads have been on the bike for 14 years!

So a couple of weeks ago I placed an order with Race Spec Performance (UK) for a set of Magnecor KV85 (Part No: 2530) HT leads. These are made on an order-by-order basis and this means a bit of a wait if lots of orders are flooding in as the riding season gets underway. They make it very clear that the wait could be three to four weeks. I wasn’t in a rush, the wait would be fine. So I was pleasantly surprised when they rocked up on the doorstep in just over two weeks – excellent stuff!

Now these leads are designed to fit on the OEM Sagem/JCI coils but also fitted my modified HAAS coils with no issues at all. Well maybe one ……. the rubber boot is such a damn good fit it doesn’t allow the air out as the lead is pushed into place – so the trapped air just builds up pressure as the volume decreases. Then when you let go it oh-so gently pushes the lead back off again! The trick is to get it seated properly then slide something blunt up under the boot until hearing a ‘psstttt’ as the trapped air escapes …… NOW the lead is on securely!

Overall the caps are shorter than the OEM angled ones and even with 8.5mm diameter cables the fit and bend of the supple cables is perfect in all four mounting locations. Overall length is fine allowing cables to be routed comfortably without trying to lose excess cable or bend cables in an unreasonably tight radius. And of course, now the engine looks way more powerful with these bright red babies in place!

Would I buy them again? Yes. I’ll definitely pop a set on the other Raid, with one proviso – I’ll skip the international shipping as it’s a bit steep (£16 versus £4.99 shipped within the UK). Otherwise at £50.99 I’m happy enough given the quality of the product, excellent fit and 10 year limited warranty. So lets start clocking up the mileage and how well they last!

10/06/201703/05/2019

Running a relay race ……

So what is this new-fangled modification to the starter circuit I alluded to in the last post? Well in a nutshell it’s a new loom (plug’n play) that goes between the starter solenoid and the main loom and also goes to the battery. Why?

As mentioned previously, the starter solenoid draws about 2.9A when energised and that power goes from the battery via 2x 30A fuses, through the ignition switch on the headstock, then up to the fuse box in the cockpit and back to the starter solenoid. From here it goes via the diode block down to the engine (neutral switch) or side-stand switch (and back up into the loom) and all the way back to the handlebars (clutch switch) before finally making its way back to the battery via the main earth (Ground) cable – phew!!!! That’s a lot of cable and switches, never mind the diodes. OK the fact is, this circuit has worked trouble-free for 14 years, why mess with it? Because my gut instinct is that restricted power to the solenoid over time makes for low-speed actuation and eventually, burnt contacts …. that’s my theory anyway!

I figured an easy way to make sure the solenoid gets lashings of fresh volts/amps is to make the circuit between battery and starter solenoid shorter and simpler – so in goes a small loom with another relay, a 20A unit exactly the same as used for the headlights. This relay is now activated by the starter circuit and its contacts switch fused-battery power direct to/from the starter solenoid – short and sweet!

This relay has a coil resistance of 70Ω and so only draws 170ma @ 12V so no problem with starter buttons or switches getting a little resistive over time as (for example) a mere 0.5Ω difference when set against the 70Ω coil is only 0.7% difference compared against the 4.4Ω of the starter solenoid coil where a 0.5Ω difference equates to over 11% difference. Bottom line – the whole circuit has an easier time!

The wiring is soldered direct to the relay spade connections and then slides into a 3D printed case and the case/contacts are encapsulated to keep the whole thing neat and tidy. Now the relay sits on top of the ECU held in place by a double-sided adhesive pad and the connectors tuck away neatly behind the battery.

If somewhere down the line it all turns belly-up, I only need to unplug the two connectors and reconnect the solenoid back to the main loom and it’s business as usual. So I figure I’ve got nothing to lose by giving it a whirl …… I’ll find out soon enough if it’s a thumbs-up or thumbs-down job!

01/06/201728/04/2019

John Walker (UK) – Power / Ground cable kit

Aprilia Caponord ETV1000 Rally-Raid John Walker power ground earth cable kit Ok, so with the old starter solenoid removed and a little starter-circuit modification simmering in the old mental stewing-pot, it was time to remove the OEM solenoid-starter cable, along with the Earth(Ground) cable and the battery-solenoid-30A-fuses cable and fit the new upgraded items from John Walker (UK).

Removing the ground and starter cable required the removal of the crash bars and side panels along with lowering the sump guard (remove front bolts and pivot on rear) to allow extra room to lower the oil tank and move the oil cooler – both to illicit a little more room to remove nuts/bolts more easily with the tools at hand. With the respective ends disconnected it was just a matter of a few tie-wraps to be removed and the old cables slid out of the frame. The battery-starter cable requires a bit more work (care?) as the two wires to the 30A fuses need to be cut. These will be spliced with the new ones on John’s loom, so I carefully pulled the black sleeving back as far as possible, matched the old/new looms together then cut the cables at what seemed the sensible place!

Now with all three cables clear of the bike I could lay them out and compare them to John’s replacements. Not only am I impressed by the workmanship of the new cables, but also that they are approximately 15mm longer than the old ones – not over the top and certainly not too short, just nice – a little extra flexibility when fitting. One thing I really like about John’s cables is the extra mounting point on the Positive and Negative lugs – very useful indeed.

After lunch, in they went with no drama at all. I spliced the 30A cables together with crimp/solder joints that are then sheathed with heatshrink. John doesn’t provide the splices, but he does supply the heatshrink! With that done, the old black sleeve can be wiggled back up into place and the whole thing then looks very ‘OME’! Running the cables down the frame is easy enough as they’re quite flexible – surprising as they’re almost (if not more!) than twice the diameter of the old cables …… this does make things a little tight getting the cables in place either side of the battery, but a bit of patience and a wiggle here and there gets them seated comfortably.

Before tie-wrapping everything and refitting panels and guards it just left the little matter of trying it out! So ignition on …. no pop, bang or fire (good start!) then thumb the starter button and ………….wow! What a difference, the engine spins like a hyperactive puppy spotting its tail for the first time – fantastic! Putting the multimeter on the battery (fully charged), then cranking the motor over showed a minimum voltage (momentary as the starter takes the in-rush current) of about 10.8V. That’s way better than it used to be. Steady cranking voltage rises back up to about 11.8V…….. and as mentioned cranking speed is very impressive now!

With that done, it was time to button the rest of the bike back together and try it all out on the road. What a difference a week makes eh? From ‘Dear dog please start, please start …. oh and starter please disengage, pppplease disengage’ to ‘Oi you, call that a starter? …… Listen in awe my wayward friend because THIS is a starter!’

In the end did I really need them? Well truthfully, no the originals are fine, no corrosion and the insulation is intact, but at the time of ordering I really didn’t know one way or the other. Yes I could have made my own, but sometimes like having a meal served to you rather than cooking yourself, it’s nice to buy in the finished item ready to fit. Besides, I just wanted upgraded replacements not some fancy parts made from gold wire finer than badger bum-fluff with diamond encrusted unobtanium connections! In the end I’m glad I did buy them ….. the starting is much more energetic now and that’s worth its weight in gold right there!

So if you are in any doubt at all about your wiring, then drop John a line and I’m sure you will also be as pleased as I am with the results. Price including postage in the UK (May 2017) is £70.00GBP

24/05/201728/04/2019

Clutch micro-switch …… daylight robbery at its best!

Aprilia Caponord ETV1000 Rally-Raid clutch switch AP8113998 Burgess V4NS Just found out that the the Capo didn’t want to start in gear with the clutch pulled in …. so suspected a bad clutch switch. In the end it wasn’t, but I’d pulled the old one and did some homework anyway. The switch is a Saia Burgess V4NCS with an actuator kit on top (QA4). Now a direct replacement seems hard to find, however the V4NS as sold by RS-Components is almost the same and comes with 500mm wires already attached, it even has the same 2.5N operating force.

So for a miserly sum of £7.80 (plus VAT & shipping) a new switch can be clipped into the existing actuator shell and spliced into the old loom – simply cut off the yellow wire (not needed) and Aprilia Caponord ETV1000 Rally-Raid Burgess clutch switch actuator QA4 sheath/splice the other two. A darn sight less than the £70 plus that I’ve seen on the web for an Aprilia item! The only down-side appears to be that the cables exit from the side not the rear ….. no biggie really.

On the other hand if your switch has a bad actuator, then just buy that alone for a whopping £3.24 (plus VAT and shipping). In fact I’m sure that a bit more digging would throw up these items for considerably less …… I just got bored!

29/04/201703/05/2019

INNOVV Power Hub 1 – Review

The INNOVV Power Hub 1 is a 40A rated relay unit with five outputs each fused at 5A out of the box. The battery wiring is 12 AWG so good to 41A and the output wiring is 16 AWG and good to 22A each, however INNOVV specify 15A max per line to a total of 40A. Lastly there is a yellow sensing wire that needs to be connected to a switched 12V source. All cables are of a decent length, especially the yellow wire which is 1.45m long. At key-on this line will trigger a 10 second delay timer in the unit, after which it turns on. At key-off, there is another 10 second delay before it powers down.

Aprilia Caponord ETV1000 Rally-Raid Power Hub 1 mounting bracket In the box is the Power Hub, a couple of brass crimp/solder tags to connect positive/negative to the battery and a bag of ‘posi-lock’ connectors and a ‘posi-tap’ connector to join the sensing wire to a switched line on the bike.

Installation was easy if a little thought-provoking due to the very limited space on the Capo. In the end I decided to put it above/behind the battery and made a 1.5mm aluminium plate to mount it onto and that worked out just fine. I used the ‘Posi-Locks’ to attach the circuits with a sleeve of adhesive shrink-wrap over the top to add a little weather resistance to the connection. I hooked the yellow sense wire into the injection relay, so the Power Hub would detect key on/off, this was a soldered joint so I didn’t use the ‘Posi-Tap’ connector.

Next up I swapped out fuses where necessary for higher or lower values to best suit the attached accessory ….. then key-on! The blue LED flashes and 10 seconds later the relay activates and all the attached circuits power-up including the INNOVV K1 camera system. Thank goodness I hadn’t got any wires crossed! 😀 Key-off and the same happens in reverse – blue LED flashes for 10 seconds then the relay drops out.

Five months later …..

Sometimes its old age, wear and tear, faulty parts or manufacturing, but in the end technology fails. Of course we’d much prefer the former rather than the latter option, because that is when we have to invoke a warranty claim or get it repaired by the manufacturer. And that my friends can be unbelievably frustrating and seriously tarnish how you feel about the company in general.

So when the INNOVV Power Hub 1 developed a fault shortly after fitting it, I was intrigued to see how INNOVV would react. A quick email, no fuss, no argument, just another unit in the post straight away – good customer service, that’s what I like! Now the eagle-eyed among you will know that a few months ago I fitted the ‘Beasthonda’ fuse box to the Capo …… that was because of the Power Hub 1 issue. So when the new one arrived I wasn’t about to undo/redo all the work again, so this time the Power hub was installed behind the windshield for a few months testing, then removed and installed in my old Range Rover engine bay.

To be fair the Power Hub didn’t stop working or fail to do its job, it just forgot how to count to 10! In the end it was switching on/off almost immediately or definitely within 10 seconds. To date the replacement has worked faultlessly enduring sub-zero winter temperatures and the heat of a V8 engine bay, throw in a good dose of rain and snow and I think it’s fair to say it is an all-weather unit!

Conclusion

It is a well packaged device that does the job required – no fuss. The wiring is good quality and ample for the rated current although I personally wouldn’t push it beyond 20A total just to allow a safety factor and extend the working life of the relay.

In operation I measured a current draw (at 13.8V) of 190ma ON and 6ma OFF. Now 6ma may not be much but it is worth bearing in mind if your bike sits off a battery tender for long periods of time.

So – final thoughts ….. firstly, it would be nice if a mount was provided. Secondly, looking at a nest of new red wires and fuse holders and thinking back to the nest of black wires and fuse holders I had before, I realised tha cable-markers t one fundamental flaw remained. In a day, a week or next month, I’m not going to remember which red wire feeds which circuit. To this end I think INNOVV could make a couple of simple changes which would help immensely. First, add a numbered/coloured sleeve marker on each line, either side of the fuse holder to identify each circuit 1,2,3,4,5. Second, pop a sticker in the box, so that the owner can write down the details of what’s connected to each of the numbered cables and stick it somewhere near to the Power Hub. That way you can look up the appropriate circuit/cable number on the sticker, then rummage around for the matching numbered fuse holder – easy!

INNOVV Power Hub 1

23/04/201703/05/2019

A bit more INNOVV-ation!

All I can say is – WOW! Since the link was added to the INNOVV website about the K1 review, I don’t think I’ve ever had so much traffic or comments in one day. Absolutely fantastic and wonderful to swap emails with so many other riders!!

So as a follow on, today I’ll answer a couple of questions that folks have raised. Firstly, ferrite cores, what are they and what do they do. In a nutshell wires can act as aerials, bringing unwanted high-frequency signals into (or out of) an electrical circuit, such that this interference causes problems. By fitting a clip-on ferrite core you prevent these unwanted signals from entering or leaving – in this case the DV recording unit. In my case for example, when I tapped the horn button (Stebel Nautilus Compact Tuning – 18A!) the DV recorder would always reboot itself. Since fitting the ferrites – no problems at all when using the horn! The ferrites I bought are for 3.5mm cable and fit all the INNOVV wiring just fine.

Secondly, the button/LED replacement I made. Here’s a breakdown of the existing button – just a momentary push-to-make switch and a red LED, nothing more. As mentioned in the previous post, the voltage to the switch is 3.8v and to the LED 1.8v pulling approx. 11ma. The switch could easily be replaced by any momentary switch you like, that’s easy, unfortunately though the LED is drawing very little current and so this line cannot be relied on (without frying something!) to power a brighter LED that would typically draw around 20-30ma, so a new circuit is required. Now this could be as simple as using this line to drive a transistor such as in the diagram below. Here a fused switched 12v line provides the required voltage/current to drive an LED via a transistor. In this case the INNOVV provides the 1.8v (at 0.5ma) to switch the transistor. This circuit could all be assembled inline with the LED to save space …… however it would have to be meticulously assembled, if the 12v line touches the 1.8v line, then goodnight DV recorder!! Much better to buy a small box and a piece of strip-board from Maplin (UK) or RadioShack (USA) and build the circuit into the cable run.

Remember that if you want to use a green or blue LED instead of the red one, then the 560Ω resistor will need to be replaced with a 510Ω one to compensate for the different voltage requirement.

Now this where I admit I didn’t do it this way! That’s because I wanted to add a couple of other functions that I thought were useful, so I went and added a microcontroller into the melting pot. On the standard setup, when the button is pushed (long) the recorder starts or stops and the LED changes state – in other words, I have feedback from the unit while I’m riding along. However when the button is pushed (momentary) the LED does nothing …. the DV unit will say “Video file protected” and the red dot on the recorder screen will change to a yellow triangle with an exclamation mark in it, but I can neither hear or see any of this from the saddle. So for file protect/unprotect I don’t have any usable feedback and I wanted to change that.

Now the microcontroller runs a combined red/green LED – this lights green when recording and off when not recording, if file protect is enabled then it toggles red/green for 0.5 seconds at 10Hz then turns red denoting that the file currently recording is now protected. Another push of the button reverses the process – red/green toggle and then solid green for unprotected file recording.

There is also one other feature ……. when file protection is enabled, it is ONLY for the current file. So if for example you activate file protection with a 10 minute file at 9 minutes 58 seconds elapsed, then 2 seconds later a new file will begin to record and it is UNPROTECTED, see the issue? So now, if I have activated file protection, the microcontroller waits until the new file begins recording and triggers file protection itself in the background and will continue to do so until I deactivate it. All the time I know I’m recording a sequence of protected files because the LED is red not green.

17/04/201703/05/2019

INNOVV K1 Dual Camera system – Review at 6 months

I joined the HD camera bandwagon back in January 2014 and since then have enjoyed (or not!) the delights and foibles of the GoPro Hero 3+ Black camera. Constantly charging a bucket load of batteries, taking it on and off the bike then getting frustrated when the current battery needs replacing/recharging in oh-so short a time.

In the end of course the penny dropped. The GoPro is simply overkill for day-to-day riding where (hopefully) nothing of any note happens. But if it did, I’d still like to capture it if possible, just in case it could help with an insurance claim or legal dispute. Aprilia Caponord ETV1000 INNOVV K1 DVR & GoPro 3+ Black

I realised that what I wanted wasn’t an ‘Action camera’, but a ‘dashcam‘ …. a subtle difference it seems! So here’s what I’d like it to do:-

Bike AND battery powered – turn on/off and record video with just the turn of the ignition key
2 cameras – forward and rear both recorded by a single unit
Full HD – 1920 x 1080 (30fps minimum) progressive with good low-light capability
Protect files – Either on demand or on collision detection
Be designed for motorcycles – waterproof and ruggedised.

And so courtesy of Jim at Abbey Motorcycle Instructors in Oxfordshire, an INNOVV K1 dual-camera kit found its way to the Capo. While the INNOVV didn’t tick all of my ‘wish-list’ it ticked more than most. The full specification of the K1 can be viewed here.

I’ll skip ‘what’s in the box’ and unpacking waffle because all this is available on the INNOVV website, along with quick-install instructions and owners manual. What I ended up with is the motorcycle kit (including the 12v/5v voltage regulator*) and a 128Gb memory card. The owner’s manual specifies 64Gb max but INNOVV sell the 128Gb, so I can only assume the manual hasn’t been updated yet following firmware updates.

To fit the kit to the Capo required a bit of sacrifice. The long serving and ultra-reliable Autocom Pro-7 unit had to come off the bike and has now been streamlined and put into the tank bag along with the ICOM PMR446 radio. You really can’t keep a good, but very old bit of kit down for long!

Installation

The INNOVV 12v/5v voltage regulator is wired into the tail-light loom and installed on top of the ECU with a (provided) double-sided sticky pad. I have to be honest here and admit that I already have an extra loom in place ready for the Active Brake Light System which is still being built. So in the meantime I pinched its Molex connector to power the K1. Next the GPS unit was installed in the Capo’s luggage bay just behind the ECU on a 3D printed bracket so it fits nicely next to the MCCruise electric servo.

With that done it was time to install the cameras. I decided I wanted them on the center-line of the bike rather than bias them one side or the other. I wanted them EU/UK road friendly! The rear is mounted just above the tail-light and the front on the headlight guard. Both are angled down about 7º to reduce glare, each has an excellent view of the road with only the edge of the top-box getting in the rear camera frame. The cameras are each physically identical (just different cable length) and have machined aluminium bodies that are waterproof and heavy-duty, however the lens (especially front) is vulnerable and would benefit from some protection. They each have three 1/4-20 UNC thread mounting points (normal camera thread) and come with basic steel L-brackets. However I decided to make my own to best suit the mounting points – the rear from a piece of steel plate, while the front is 3D printed and bolts to the headlight guard (AP8791235). The final two items in the box are the push-button and a small loom that plugs into the DV recoreder, joining both button and GPS USB’s to one connector, however I left this off for the initial trials – more about this later.

Setup

With the kit fitted it was time to set-up the unit in the two recorder menu’s. Time, date and vehicle name are straight forward as was selecting camera orientation – one of mine had to be rotated. Initially I set both cameras to 1920×1080, then had a play with 1280×720 on the rear, but ultimately went back to full HD on both. Again all the settings (bar one) are covered in the manual. The one that is missing is ‘EDOG beep’ …….. INNOVV tell me this is to do with warning of being over-speed but requires the speed camera data to be installed. Besides, the ‘beep’ is under the saddle and inaudible for riders, so I leave it switched off.

The system also incorporates accelerometers in the front camera and they can be used to lock video files or start the cameras (Park Mode) when they detect an impact above a certain value. Setting this value is trial and error and at first I found it locked files when riding along our dirt/stone road. It’s something you can tweak over a few rides until it suits your roads/riding style I guess.

Operation and observations

With the Capo buttoned up, it was time to give it a whirl and see if it really is as fit-and-forget as I wanted. In short yes it is! We all have our little routines and mine is key-on, wait for the dashboard to finish its self-test, hit the starter and when the motor settles, turn on the lights. At that point the K1 turns on and immediately begins recording. I set mine for 10 minute segments, the selection is 1, 2, 5 and 10 minutes. At the end of the ride simply shut off the lights or ignition and the K1 reverts to its internal 3.7v 1100mAH battery** to finish the current file and store it, then it shuts down. It couldn’t be any more turn-key if it tried! The K1 also has voice (and beep/bong!) confirmations that tells you what it’s doing, but you look mighty odd jumping off your bike and sticking your ear to the pillion saddle, so I turned it off once confident it was working reliably.

With a 128Gb card installed it records for about 14∼15 hours before overwriting the first files it recorded. All video files can be viewed directly on the recording unit, with basic fast forward/reverse functions or remove the SD card and pop it into your computer. When you format the memory card in the recorder it adds a useful viewing program (Registrator Viewer 5.8 for Windows) that allows you to not only view the files but it can also show you location/speed/heading from the GPS data and data from the accelerometers. However, if you want to save your video as picture-in-picture format like you see dotted around the internet, you’ll need a video editing package such as Adobe Premiere Elements.

What about picture quality? I left the menu settings at default, however there are a few items specifically for tweaking the image quality – resolution, quality (Normal, Fine & Super Fine) as well as WRD (Wide Dynamic Range). This improves the cameras night-time images or images with strong back-lighting where objects appear more in silhouette. Personally I find the images pretty good but a little over sharpened such that there is some noticeable image ringing. Also the data rates differ front to rear, the front camera has a data rate of 12Mbs while the rear is reduced to 8Mbs and I found definite compression artifacts on the rear footage especially (for example) when riding along a tree-lined road where the image has lots of fast changing areas (overhanging trees) instead of a relatively constant sky. Maybe I’m being a little harsh here. After all it is a budget dual camera system not a high-end Sony/Nikon/Cannon! But having said that, and looking at the specification of the Ambarella OV2710 sensor and A7LA70 chipset I can’t help but think that image quality can be improved by tweaking the firmware. Maybe an update will be released in 2017?

Here’s a short video put together from K1 and GoPro (top left & audio) footage. The Capo popping on the overun has stopped since the new camchain tensioner was fitted and the slight front camera movement has gone since the new mount has been fitted ….. oh and some of the quality has been lost sending it over to YouTube. 🙁 I think I better do a new video!!

Parts not used

As mentioned previously, there is a push-button provided as well. This is used to lock/unlock (momentary push) the currently recording video file and (2-3 second push) to start or stop the recording. When recording an LED is lit in the button. Now here is quite possibly my biggest gripe of the K1 system. The button isn’t waterproof and the LED is so weak as to be almost impossible to see except in a dimly lit room (or car interior?). I decided to strip it to find out what makes it tick, then set about replacing it with something more useful.

The button has two functions – first it grounds a 3.8v signal line (the button push), second the LED is fed by a 1.8v 11mA signal from the DV recorder – both ground through a third wire. So I knocked up an interface box to improve the LED power and feed both signals forward to the old Autocom PTT (Push to Talk) button I still had on the handlebars. Now I have a waterproof, heavy-duty push-button and a much brighter LED that I can see in daylight.

Conclusion after 6 months use

Overall I’m pretty happy with the kit and enjoy letting it do its thing …. nowadays I don’t think about it and only check the cameras are clean before heading out. In fact I only checked the SD card yesterday after about a month – everything is recording just fine.

The one niggle I had early on was intermmittent locking-up or shut-down of the DV recorder. This was cured by fitting ferrite cores to all the leads. The only other change I’ve made has been the replacement of the bag provided for the DV recorder with a 3D printed frame – similar protection but with better ventilation for cooling – it does get VERY warm over time! Anyway, here are a few more bullet points that come to mind.

Good

Build quality, installation instructions & general performance
Price (pre BREXIT £/$ crash!) of approx £200
Availability of accessories and spares
Communication with INNOVV – quick response to emails.

Could be better

Improve video quality – reduce compression and sharpening
Waterproof heavy duty button with bright LED specifically for motorcycles
Supply a pair of lens protectors in the kit
Susceptible to RF interference – shielded wires or add ferrite cores to cameras/GPS/switch wiring
Waterproof cases for the GPS and DVR unit.

Other things to possibly consider for the future ….

Improved battery capacity and reduced drain when unit is switched off
Wireless or Wi-Fi capability for intercom or Off-Bike video file storage on a smartphone. Maybe the system could notify you via SMS if the Park Mode is activated by impact?
Combine the DVR and GPS units to reduce the overall number of cables and connections.

* The voltage regulator has been updated with a sensing wire to be attached to a switched 12v source while the red/black connect directly to battery supply. The regulator supplied in my kit did not have this upgraded function.

** This is the same battery as used in the old GoPro / GoPro2 – Battery model AHDBT-001 or 002. There are loads of aftermarket versions of these on the Ebay if you need to replace it.

08/04/201703/05/2019

UV and dashboards don’t mix!

Aprilia Caponord ETV1000 Rally-Raid sun damage to dashboard LCD The youngest Capo dashboards are about 10 years old now, maybe a little older, while the majority including the Futura are knocking on 14 to 16 years old. Every board that I see these days has very poor light output on the Blue LED’s and signs of UV damage to some degree in the lens. Most worrying though is the marked increase in the number now showing UV damage to the large LCD panel.

LED’s of course can be replaced, so can the lens if you can stomach the €60 (Wendel Motorräder) or £52 (Fowlers UK) and have plenty of patience while you wait an eternity for it to magically appear. However the LCD panel is a different matter, you’ll need to find a damaged/unserviceable dashboard you can rob or replace the dashboard in its entirety as these parts are unobtainable and were never sold as spares by Aprilia anyway.

For quite a while now I’ve taken to slinging an old t-shirt over the dash when parked up in an effort to offer it some respite from the elements. Not perfect I know! So a while back it got me thinking about knocking something up on the 3D printer – and here they are. Three panels, 4mm thick with the underside recessed 1.5mm to keep it well away from the lens. A groove runs around the edge to take the same 3mm diameter neoprene seal material (AP8120615) as used between upper and lower airbox halves, so only a thin strip of soft seal actually makes contact with the lens.

If these turn out to be half-way useful, I might treat them to a layer of Zircoflex heat shield material and replace the flagging heat shield material on the plastic panels over the silencers at the same time!

11/12/201603/05/2019

Beasthonda (Andy) Fuse Block

Aprilia Caponord ETV1000 Rally-Raid Beasthonda (Andy) fuse block Unfortunately, due to circumstances I won’t elaborate on just yet, I found myself with a bunch of cut accessory cables sorely in need of a home! So step forward front-and-centre the fuse block made by Beasthonda (Andy) from the AF1 forum.

Truth is I’d had this pre-production block sat on my workbench for about three years! Andy kindly sent it to me without the PCB being potted in place so I could have a look at the circuit board. I never got around to potting it and so it sat all forlorn in the corner. Time then to dust it off and put it to good use.

I decided to mount it to the underside of the pillion seat decking – Aprilia call it the luggage rack – so I made up a bracket that bolts in place with two stainless M5 screws and M5 clips. The fuse block is attached to the bracket by good old double-sided 3M adhesive pad. Wiring-up was straight forward and as I knew the overall current load it was going to feed, I used 14AWG and a 20A fuse to the input. The outputs are 2A (GPS), 7.5A (Optimate), 15A (fog lights) and another 2A (Autocom). The output wires connect to a Wago 236 terminal strip – no screws or crimps, just a strong spring to hold the cables in place. And they do hold them believe me! Each connection is rated at 16A and accept cables from 28-12AWG.

Wago 236 terminal connector And that’s it …… one neat block and no more external fuses.

In this location the battery strap retaining screw is obscured, however I only have to disconnect the ground, then the live, remove two screws and lift the fuse block out and drape it over the side of the subframe. Now the battery/screw are more accessible than they’ve been for years! I really wish I’d done this ages ago and I can only apologise to Andy for not putting his fuse block to good use before now. I owe you one matey!!

You can contact him via PM on the AF1 forum or at ‘a’ underscore ‘allott’ at hotmail dot com. Price is £25 UK £30 USA/EU and £35 Oz/Asia inc. P&P

Now if Mr Beast ever decides to do a Mk2 version (R U listening Andy? 😀 ) then I’d love to see a relay in the box and maybe another output …… then we could have some outputs powered continuously (like now) and some that are powered via the relay connected to the lighting circuit or a handlebar switch for example. That way I could bring the INNOVV K1 and cruise control power lines to the fuse block as well. Ahhhh …… what dreams may come true eh! 😀

04/12/201628/04/2019

Charge of the fright brigade

Aprilia Caponord ETV1000 Rally-Raid tachometer voltmeter dashboard I had a bit of a stress-monster moment last night. After finishing off a bit of work on the Capo, I fired it up and stuffed the multimeter probes across the battery terminals – 16.1V with the lights on! My heart skipped a beat and thoughts of a toasted rectifier rumbled across my mind. However the Sparkbright battery monitor LED showed steady green and should have been flashing red/green at this voltage. A prod of the ‘mode’ button activated the tacho/voltmeter in the dashboard and it said just over 14V. What gives? Then another glance of the multimeter channelled my thoughts in a whole new direction – an itsy-bitsy low battery icon was showing. A fresh PP3 and a calming cup of tea later and the Capo was in fact charging at a healthy 14.2V all along ……. So with the stress-monster firmly back its box, I made a note to check/change batteries in all the other tools in the workshop ASAP!