Honda Savage 212cc

Joshua McQueen

Joshua McQueen

New Member
Hi everyone, I decided to put all my vlog posts in one place instead of creating multiple threads -- I wanted to be respectful to the forum & community.

This is my second Honda Trail restore project and I'm still a total beginner. Learning a little more every day. The end goal is to create a unique bike that'll bring years of fun to my family. I'll continue to post videos / share lessons learned.

Thanks in advance to everyone here on the forum -- I wouldn't be here without ya (y)
 
Joshua McQueen

Joshua McQueen

New Member
Was waiting on a few parts to come in the mail. Decided to tackle all of the electronics & wiring. I'm going to be using modern 12v headlight and tail light with integrated signals.

 
6

69ST

Well-Known Member
Nice presentation, demystifying the electrical system. Wiring & electrical upgrades really aren't all that difficult. Many owners feel overwhelmed by the seeming complexity but, in reality it's fear of the unknown. 12v conversion and adding new devices is mostly just tedious. For most, starting out with a new wire harness, either aftermarket (for a Chinese clone bike) or reproduction for a turn signal-equipped model, i.e. K3-later, is a huge convenience/headstart. That'll give one nearly all of the required leads, in the exact lengths needed. Using an OEM/OEM reproduction also allows using a Honda wiring schematic for the year of the harness, which can be handy.

12V electrics make a lot of sense. IMO, it'd be silly using anything but 12v on a custom build. I also agree with your choice of LEDs and the integrated tail light unit. Old-school, stalk-mounted, turn signals never really were very practical on these little bikes, even back in the day. As much as I support the purists out there...whom we truly need, as they establish the CT70 as a marque...original doesn't necessarily mean the most practical in every situation. The factory signals didn't fit the bikes, visually or physically and weren't all that reliable. They were simply a band-aid, to meet D.O.T. compliance standards, established in the early 1970s. Contemporary 2020-era LED signals and an electronic flasher relay are a huge improvement over the OEM setup. If you can get at least 30W of DC power from your alternator, an LED headlight can be installed...upgrading light output to current automotive level. That's an important consideration for an 80mph road bike.
 
Joshua McQueen

Joshua McQueen

New Member
As always @racerx thanks for the insightful reply!

Probably the biggest problem I have with my bone-stock K0 is that it doesn't have any turn signals. I live down in a "small" Southern California coastal town -- and mostly run little errands and trips to the beach. Other motorists hardly ever see you, and waving your arm frantically to indicate direction can get tedious (ha, maybe even dangerous).

That's why on this build I was certain that I wanted BRIGHT integrated flashers and BRIGHT headlights. Gotta be seen! Even the brake is tricked out and does a quick strobe blink when applied.

I agree with your points about OEM Wiring harnesses. They take the heavy lifting out of a project and get you 75% of the way there. However, for this project space is at an all-time premium with all the features I'm packing in. I'm one of those guys who is extremely particular about random things, and extremely clean wiring is one of them. Having a gremlin in a project like this -- whether it be a ground short or loose connection -- can be super frustrating. That's why I go the extra mile; make a custom harness with proper AWG, solder all my connections, etc. That way I can focus on having fun and ripping around town not worrying about electronics :-D
 
6

69ST

Well-Known Member
Clearly, we're on the same wavelength with the lighting and electronics. In 2014 I did a major lighting & electronic update/upgrade, similar to what you're doing ...and for the same reasons. I don't want to clutter-up your thread with my old project...and a lot of members here have already seen pix, or can easily search for them. Suffice it to say, I understand...extremely well...how quickly the limited real estate is consumed by control modules, reg/reg, CDI, upsized battery, and the like. It's all worthwhile.

I was able to source a new, OEM Honda wire harness, complete with switchgear, etc, from the same non US spec model. The real work was extending the front end leads, to fit the comparatively tall CT70 handlebars, and figure out the 3-lead (4 if we include the ground lead) harness with a 9-lead (JDM Honda) keyswitch. Not much circuitry involved but a ton of splicing and soldering. And I couldn't agree more with you that having reliable electrics is a high priority. FYI...by 2018 this bike had just shy of 25,000 miles on the odometer.
 
6

69ST

Well-Known Member
On a separate note...for most owner/builders, I think that fabbing a custom wire harness from scratch is going to be impractical. The number of different wire coding colors and various connectors present a logistical nightmare for anyone doing a one-off, if everything has to be sourced and in minimum quantities This is why I modified an existing harness. The project required 16 different color-coded wires and approximately 50 connectors, of various descriptions. Far easier, quicker and less costly to use an existing harness that covered everything but the length of a dozen (or so) leads.

On the other hand, if one does have access to a commercial rack of the needed wire and a goodly assortment of connectors...as a shop would...a full custom, fabbed-from-scratch wire harness could be a very satisfying project. The end result would be even cleaner than what I was able to accomplish. I'm strictly old-school when it comes splices & connectors...solder & shrink tubing. That said, I'll be among the first to say that a single, splice-free, lead is superior to a spliced lead, no matter how good the splicing.
 
fatcaaat

fatcaaat

Well-Known Member
racerx said:
On a separate note...for most owner/builders, I think that fabbing a custom wire harness from scratch is going to be impractical. The number of different wire coding colors and various connectors present a logistical nightmare for anyone doing a one-off, if everything has to be sourced and in minimum quantities This is why I modified an existing harness. The project required 16 different color-coded wires and approximately 50 connectors, of various descriptions. Far easier, quicker and less costly to use an existing harness that covered everything but the length of a dozen (or so) leads.

On the other hand, if one does have access to a commercial rack of the needed wire and a goodly assortment of connectors...as a shop would...a full custom, fabbed-from-scratch wire harness could be a very satisfying project. The end result would be even cleaner than what I was able to accomplish. I'm strictly old-school when it comes splices & connectors...solder & shrink tubing. That said, I'll be among the first to say that a single, splice-free, lead is superior to a spliced lead, no matter how good the splicing.
Click to expand...

As someone that's built many full custom harnesses, I agree. I now always start with some year reproduction CT70 harness and work from there. It's just easier.
 
Joshua McQueen

Joshua McQueen

New Member
This video is short and sweet -- putting on the rear swingarm and shocks. I compare two swingarms for this project: standard and extended.

At the end of the video, you get an idea of what this build is going to look like. It's exciting to see it all come together!


 
Joshua McQueen

Joshua McQueen

New Member
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