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B y S t u O l t m a n • S e n i o r T e c h n i c a l E d i t o rFor years, the title of this article has been a part of my internet signature.The full signature is “If you think educationis expensive, wait till you see the price of ignorance!” I adopted it after seeing it posted on a wall in the engineeringbuilding at the University of Arizona while a student there. What has this to do with motorcycling?Well, it could apply in several differentareas. But this article is aboutmotorcycle maintenance andrepair.The lack of education referred to in thiscase is that of some professional technicians,though it could apply as well to some ridersperforming their own repairs. A healthy doseof common sense on the part of both thebike’s owner and dealership personnel wouldhave also been helpful.The price? For a glaringexample, read on.The ProblemA GL1800 owner contacted me recentlyregarding what he felt should have been a warranty-coveredrepair. And as is often the case,his request for assistance came well after I hadthe ability to prevent his suffering. It seems his2005 GL1800 had been exhibiting some verystrange symptoms.The turn signals and hazard flashers didn’twork, and the engine and all lights kept functioningafter the key switch was turned off.Turning the engine stop switch off killed theengine and most of the lights, though the turnsignals glowed faintly. It seemed that theElectrical Connection brand aftermarket foglamps were the only lighting equipment thatwas functioning normally at that point. So theowner took his bike to the local HondaPowerhouse Dealer for diagnosis and repair.Good idea, right?Yes, that’s ostensibly the best idea, especiallyif the machine is still eligible for warrantyrepair.After all, we have good reason to believethat the technicians and service managersemployed by authorized dealerships have beenthoroughly trained to repair the company’sproducts. And we might assume that a large,impressive dealership carrying the entire productline would be an especially safe bet.Assumptions are often unwarranted.The DiagnosisDiagnosing and repairing electrical problemsrequires knowledge of electrical principlesand training in diagnostic methods. Fieldexperience seasoned with a dash of commonsense then reinforces that knowledge andtraining. Experience as a technician, by itself,has often proven to be a necessary but insufficientcondition when it comes to diagnosingand repairing the root cause of a problem,especially one involving volts and amps.To his credit, the technician in this particularcase stayed the course until he found theroot cause of the strange symptoms describedearlier—a damaged pair of mated wire terminalson a major ground wire inside a wiringharness multi-pin connector (see photo 1).Unfortunately, he apparently thought that thisdamage was actually a symptom of some otherproblem—a problem he chose to attribute tothe installation of aftermarket fog lamps andoff-color headlamp bulbs of the same wattageas the originals.And that was what that technicianreported to the manufacturer as thecause of the heat damaged wire terminals ashe was requesting warranty authorization.Why would anyone request warrantyauthorization for a problem he felt wasn’trelated to a defect in OEM parts or workmanship?Your guess is as good as mine.Could the diagnosis have been correct?Not on your life. The fog lamps in questiondraw power directly from and are groundeddirectly to the battery terminals.The power isswitched on via a relay that draws only 80thousandths of one amp through the bike’sOEM fog lamp switch and is grounded directlyto the battery. So this fog lamp kit, regardlessof its power consumption, places absolutely noadditional demand on any ground wire in thebike’s original wiring system.1 2Single damaged terminal in otherwise unmolested coupler.Damaged terminals removed from coupler halves. Note the undamaged crimps andinsulation. Extremely isolated heat damage most likely caused by poor contact.46 Wing World
Sierra Electronics“ The Motorcycle Audio Store”Check Out Closeout/Discontinued Specials on www.sierra-mc.comARAI CLASSIC C & SZ/CJ&M Integrated Headset Available.NEW 2008 Gold Wing Colors.SHOEI MULTITECMODULAR HELMETJ&M Integrated Headset Available.NOLAN N42, N102& NEW N103J&M Integrated Headset Available.HJC SY-MAX IIMODULAR HELMETOne-Touch integrated smoke-tintedSunshield that deploys quickly & easily.Call for latest price!Call for latest price!Call for latest price!Call for latest price!J&M PASSENGER CONTROLMXL UNIVERSAL 3SNAP FLIP SHIELDSNEW CB/INTERCOMfor STALLIONHeadset volume & mic on-offswitch and PTT all in one controlthat is plug and playGL1500 ....................$127.50GL1800 ....................$110.50Available in: clear, smoke, high def.Anti fog coated .............$20.00Non Anti fog.................$15.00Shield Bag ......................$8.00Stallion CB/Intercom System usingJMCB-2003, with a NGP antenna kit,and an adapter harness to connectthe Stallion's factory stereo into theJMCB-2003 audio systems Aux input.Includes all necessary hardware andinstructions. Requires J&M Dual Modeheadset using the 6 pin lower cord.$535.00FREE Ground Shipping in Continental US for orders over $199.00NEW J&M HEADSETS AVAILABLEHS-ECD584 (Open--Full--Modular) ...............$189.00HS-BCD279 (Open--Full--Modular) ...............$144.50Enhanced-Fidelity DynaPort speakersHS-BCD279-UN (Open--Full--Modular) .........$119.00This has the new thin line speakersThese headsets require optional lower cordsHS-8154B Includes 5 Pin hook up cord .........$85.00J&M CB 2003JMCB-2003 Kit for Solo (Driver Only)Headset Operation ................$255.00JMCB-2003 Kit forDriver/PassengerHeadset Operation ..............$306.00JMCB-2003 Handlebar MountingBracket Kit Please specify bike ......$34.00JMCB-GL1500 Integrated into the ExistingAudio System for GL1500..........$535.00SIRIUS & XM SATEL-LITE RECEIVER KITPMK-1 SIRIUS SATELLITEINSTALLATION KITIMC HALF HELMETHEADSETIMC-CAMOS STEREOBLUETOOTH HEADSETSIncludes: Rain Cover,Noise Filter, Plug & PlayWiring Harness.From $220.00Toll Free Orders 800-338-6938 • 937-335-9950 • Internet Orders www.sierra-mc.comCODIncludes cradle, mount,power supply, short leadantenna, rain cover, necessaryhardware.$59.00Behind the head band withConnection Cord$75.00GL1500 Audio Units for Auxiliary Input Modification - $99.00 Plus Shipping2080 Experiment Farm Road Troy, OH 45373BTS 200 series two channel for 10M range foropen, full, or modular helmets $220.00BTS 300 series two channel 100M range foropen, full, or modular helmets $270.00BTA Dongle, B/T transceiver adapterwith PTT $120.00COD
Page 1: Ways toPack Light& TrailerOptionsMa
Page 4: In the ZoneSharon Stanley • Edito
Page 7 and 8: A WORD FROMYOUR EXECUTIVEDIRECTOR20
Page 10: More on Squiggly RoadsAlittle bemus
Page 14 and 15: In Memory of Lesley Kennedy, Intern
Page 16: A selection of Member-written lette
Page 19 and 20: KURYAKYNGL1800 BACKRESTKURYAKYNGL18
Page 21 and 22: Big Bike Parts says the unique desi
Page 23 and 24: Jesse Schroader
Page 25 and 26: Howard Halasz works to repair the b
Page 27 and 28: WORLDS FAVORITEGOLD WINGSHOPPING DE
Page 29 and 30: “Spring is just aroundthe corner.
Page 32 and 33: Technical Questions and Answers abo
Page 34 and 35: GL1800 4 FUNCTION SPOILER LIGHTPlug
Page 36 and 37: 941-723-9817Disabled Motorcycle Rid
Page 38 and 39: CB Problem on GL1500Stu, I just hap
Page 40 and 41: ikes are in very close proximity. B
Page 42 and 43: EXTRA!We have great news!On Decembe
Page 44 and 45: EXPERIENCE THE DIFFERENCE1-800-90-T
Page 48 and 49: 34New terminals attached to correct
Page 50 and 51: worth of repair parts fertilizes th
Page 52 and 53: B y R a n d y P o w e l l • C o n
Page 54 and 55: Photos of your bike trip—likethes
Page 56 and 57: zoom feature in Phanfare because I
Page 58 and 59: B y T i n a V a s q u e z a n d S h
Page 60 and 61: Tag A LongTag A Long Trailers, a di
Page 62 and 63: Me, putting a Tail of the Dragonsti
Page 64 and 65: Wing Ding 31, July 2-5, 2009 • Tu
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Page 68 and 69: MOTORCYCLE GOODIESFor information o
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Page 80 and 81: eaders’ ridesDo you have a good,
Page 82: A Special Valentine’s Day Tribute

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