• A few people have been scammed on the site, Only use paypal to pay for items for sale by other members. If they will not use paypal, its likely a scam NEVER SEND E-TRANSFERS OF ANY KIND.

Heated gear capacity

Hank

Well-Known Member
Joined
Apr 23, 2016
Messages
1,125
Reaction score
77
Points
48
Location
Oklahoma
Visit site
I am not very smart about electricity.
As I understand it, the NC has about 25 amps of excess power. I am not sure if this is at a certain rpm.

Currently I have Denali D 2 lights, 1.5 amps per pair, and OEM heated grips, 3 amps.

Hot wired Gear is lower powered than some of the Gerbing, First Gear, etc, because it only goes up to 110 (43) rather than 135 (57).

Jacket, pants, gloves, feet total 17 amps.

This should leave some to spare.

But I have the feeling I am overlooking something.
 
Last edited:
Past debates concluded that the grand total electrical output of the 670 engine is 420 Watts at 5000 rpm. That’s around 30-34 amps, depending on what voltage you assume that the spec is derived from. From that you would need to estimate and subtract what power is needed to run the engine and the lighting. And then you will need to assume you will normally be operating at less than 5000 rpm.

I don't have the answer, but I would guess your 25 amp excess power estimate is too high. Perhaps as much as 2 times too high, depending on how fast you normally run the engine. I would figure capacity on the conservative side, since a dead battery would not be a good thing.
 
Thanks. Does anyone know how much power it takes to run the bike and headlight?
 
The rated numbers are all for maximum sustained amperage.

Odds are you won't run everything at full power 100% of the time.

But if you are worried about it, I'd go the voltmeter route, turn down the heated stuff if the voltage drops...
 
[My simple solution was to add a voltage meter; if the voltage drops below 13 volts or so turn off the accessories]

For many years I rode a PC800 that had a terrible reputation for frying the Reg/Rec so I installed a volt meter and watched it closely and "Yes" I had heated gear. It never did fry the original Reg/Rec but I got in the habit of seeing that voltage display so my next two bikes (NT700V & NC700XD) also had them installed.

Much better to know than to guess. :)
 
[My simple solution was to add a voltage meter; if the voltage drops below 13 volts or so turn off the accessories]

For many years I rode a PC800 that had a terrible reputation for frying the Reg/Rec so I installed a volt meter and watched it closely and "Yes" I had heated gear. It never did fry the original Reg/Rec but I got in the habit of seeing that voltage display so my next two bikes (NT700V & NC700XD) also had them installed.

Much better to know than to guess. :)

Is a volt meter hard to install, or does it just run straight off the battery?
 
Past debates concluded that the grand total electrical output of the 670 engine is 420 Watts at 5000 rpm. That’s around 30-34 amps, depending on what voltage you assume that the spec is derived from. From that you would need to estimate and subtract what power is needed to run the engine and the lighting. And then you will need to assume you will normally be operating at less than 5000 rpm.

Let me add this that the bike uses at least 60% (252 Watts) of the total power for normal operation. It would be safe to assume that 20% (84 Watts) is available for accessory use.
 
Is a volt meter hard to install, or does it just run straight off the battery?

They're pretty easy to install, but you want a switched connection (power with the key on only) to avoid continual (slow) drain on the battery.
I used a plug on the accessory harness (I also used for wiring the GPS and a Frunck outlet), but that's the expensive solution.
 
Instead of a volt meter I have installed a voltage monitor on the last few bikes. Connected directly to the battery it does away with possible voltage drops from installation compromises. The system voltage is represented by the color of an LED installed somewhere in view. Flashing green - good. Glowing yellow to steady red - bad to worse. FWIW I've run two 2" LED driving lights, Gerbings heated gloves & heated jacket liner, GPS with no issues. The voltage may drop into the 12.6 to 13.2 range at lower rpms but never below thus the battery is not discharging.

Something like this: Clearwater Voltage Sentry – Clearwater Lights or 12V LED Battery Monitor | eBay
 
Agree similar box and not annoying, too large or too bright ............. I added one of these charge indicator lights:



Head's Up™ Voltage Monitor - Signal Dynamics

Their certificate appears to be over due....

Features
• Single Mult-Color LED visual indicator to mount on dash
• Precision microprocessor monitoring
• Automatic self-testing sequence at motorcycle start up
• Auto-dimming - after 8 seconds, LED intensity is dimmed to 50%
• Easy installation - can be mounted virtually anywhere
• Label Included for referencing voltage colors
• Voltage sampling: 50,000 times per second
• Serious fault detection & notification

VOLTAGE TABLE
• FLASHING GREEN ABOVE - 15.2V
• STEADY GREEN 12.9V - 15.1V
• STEADY AMBER 12.7V - 12.8V
• STEADY RED 12.1V - 12.6V
• FLASHING RED BELOW - 12V
Specifications
Part Number: 01050
Weight: Less than 1lb
System Requirement: 12VDC
Voltage range: 6 to 17 VDC
Accuracy: within 200 millivolts.
Amp draw: 20–85 milli-amps
Attachment Method: Included Double Sided Adhesive Pad
Height (in): 5/8"
Length (in): 2 1/4"
Width (in): 1 5/8"
Wire Length: 18"- 24"
Material: Anodized Aluminum Case with Epoxy Potting
Wire: 16AWG - 20AWG
Package Contents: Heads Up™ Voltage Monitor, Adhesive, Bezel, Color Label
Color / Finish: Black Anodized
Hardware Included: Yes (1 bezel for LED mounting)
Connectors Included: No
Waterproof: No
Water Resistant: Yes
Heat and Vibration Resistant: Yes
Companion Product(s): N/A
 
Last edited:
IMG_2216.jpg
Agree similar box and not annoying, too large or too bright ............. I added one of these charge indicator lights:



Head's Up™ Voltage Monitor - Signal Dynamics

Their certificate appears to be over due....

Features
• Single Mult-Color LED visual indicator to mount on dash
• Precision microprocessor monitoring
• Automatic self-testing sequence at motorcycle start up
• Auto-dimming - after 8 seconds, LED intensity is dimmed to 50%
• Easy installation - can be mounted virtually anywhere
• Label Included for referencing voltage colors
• Voltage sampling: 50,000 times per second
• Serious fault detection & notification

VOLTAGE TABLE
• FLASHING GREEN ABOVE - 15.2V
• STEADY GREEN 12.9V - 15.1V
• STEADY AMBER 12.7V - 12.8V
• STEADY RED 12.1V - 12.6V
• FLASHING RED BELOW - 12V
Specifications
Part Number: 01050
Weight: Less than 1lb
System Requirement: 12VDC
Voltage range: 6 to 17 VDC
Accuracy: within 200 millivolts.
Amp draw: 20–85 milli-amps
Attachment Method: Included Double Sided Adhesive Pad
Height (in): 5/8"
Length (in): 2 1/4"
Width (in): 1 5/8"
Wire Length: 18"- 24"
Material: Anodized Aluminum Case with Epoxy Potting
Wire: 16AWG - 20AWG
Package Contents: Heads Up™ Voltage Monitor, Adhesive, Bezel, Color Label
Color / Finish: Black Anodized
Hardware Included: Yes (1 bezel for LED mounting)
Connectors Included: No
Waterproof: No
Water Resistant: Yes
Heat and Vibration Resistant: Yes
Companion Product(s): N/A
I couldn't find the documentation but I'm pretty sure I installed that exact one in the XD. Here is a pic of the LED down in the right side of the fairing. The green light is about 4 o'clock to the rope of the fork tube cap. In the shade of the fairing I can see it in bright daylight and it's not annoying in darkness.
 
I don't know why my pictures rotate 90 degrees counterclockwise when posted. As the pic is posted the LED is about 2 o'clock.
 
SleepyC, the main choice is battery powered or wired to your bike’s electrical system.
Some bikes can handle lots of stuff, some cannot.
 
SleepyC, the main choice is battery powered or wired to your bike’s electrical system.
Some bikes can handle lots of stuff, some cannot.

Yea I got that, but there are so many brands and the costs are from $20 - $400. It's really hard to figure out what is actually good, what is just a name and what works well for the money...
 
OK, other factors to consider:

What is the heating medium? Thin wires break.
How cold are you? Some units go to 135 (57) but this can fry wires and kill batteries.
Where are you cold? If juice is limited, put it where it counts. Fairings, gear, speed, figure in.
How long are your cold weather rides?

As for money, I think you get what you pay for, unless it has a famous brand name stamped on it.
 
To my mind the advantages of heated gear is you can stay warm without the bulk of insulated jackets, etc. and you can adjust for comfort on the move.
Safe and Warm gets good recommendations, they also make Firstgear stuff. Gerbings was sold a few years back and quality/warranty suffered. The original Gerbing family started a new company 'Gordon's Heated clothing'. Because I'm Canadian I bought a Black Jack heated liner (made in B.C.) Home - Electrowear Manufacturing Ltd.
 
I bought California Heat. Show special and I got jacket, pants, gloves, socks for $400 USD. I have had a chance to use it. It works. They don't put heat throughout the whole jacket. Up front, across upper back and shoulders, down front of arms and around the neck.
I have tried on a lot of heated gear at the Motorcycle Shows and I am 6'3" 270#. A lot of people's products didn't fit me. The owner of CA Heat looked at me said XL and took it off the hanger and it fit. The gloves fit well and are Goretex lined. They are leather and some companies are making textile gloves that are waterproof on the outside. But none of those I tried felt good. I tried on CA Heat and they fit... Like a glove. They tell you on their website how much power each garment uses.
Aerostich is selling a brand that fit but twas expensive but it had an air bladder on the outside of the heated liner underneath the outer layer. Had a small tube you could blow in and the bladder filled and it pressed the heating pads against your body. After using some heated gear in 32F on my CBR 1100XX I think that that idea is a good one and may be worth a bit more for that option. But it is something more to break. How much are you going to use It?
Just some more stuff to ponder!

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk
 
Last edited:
Back
Top