Relay wiring for LEDs

[Armyguns]

OK, I know what I want to do and I have all the parts (relay and dimmer). I want to install a SPDT (Single Pole, Dual Throw) relay to 'feed' the LEDs.  One side of the relay will come from the dimmer.  The other side will be to feed full voltage to the lights.   The power will be hooked to the Eastern Beaver PC Fuze Block and wired 'switched' so the ignition must be on for the lights to get power.  (They are wired that way right now.) 

When the ignition is on and the bike low beam is on, the lights would run through the dimmer (via the relay- normally closed position).  When the high beam switch is turned on, the relay switches to the full voltage (normally open position) and the LEDs go BRIGHT. 

I've bench tested the relay and I know that when I apply voltage across the coil terminals of the relay, the relay swaps from the normally closed (dimmer) to the normally open (full voltage) circuit.  All that works as planned. 

Here's the question.  What do I use (specific wire colors and locations) to grab the trigger for the relay to activate when I switch from low beam to high beam?  I think I can tap off the high beam relay under the tank top cover, but before I accidently let the 'magic smoke' out of something, I figured it would not hurt to ask someone who might actually know!  Basically, I want to tap into the High/Low beam switch (I think).

Any suggestions?

[SVonhof]

Everything sounds right, but I cannot comment on where to grab the wires or the color of the wires you need as I have not touched any wires on my bike yet.

[just gone]

Well, I'm no electronics expert, but I don't let that stop me from having an opinion.

I think the White w/Red stripe wire coming out of the high beam relay would be where I'd
tap in. I guess anywhere between the relay and the bulb would work but I think the easiest
spot would be an inch or two after the wire leaves the relay. I'm fairly certain that the high beam
relay is the second from the left under the plastic cover in front of the tank on the 2010 model.

Now to further confuse things, since you are just using this to energize another relay coil
I guess you could also use the Red w/black stripe wire going to the High Beam relay coil
as that circuit including the high beam/Flash to Pass switch are most likely robust enough to handle
two small relay coils.

Take it for what it's worth, I do live in Fort Worth but I'm no Fred H.

[Bob]

I think Marty is correct! 

If your dual throw relay has the built in resistance to give you the higher and lower output to drive the led lights this way. Then tapping either the high beam relay or the high beam wire at the head light socket (same wire) would work. Now since your saying the relay is under the tank top cover, I assume the bike is a 2010-11.
 Although I'm not sure if the newer bikes have changed any of the color coding for the lighting system (which I doubt). As posted by Marty, the schematic shows it being the white/red wire. It should make it fairly easy to distinguish between the two head light relays. The low beam wire is a white/yellow. So the one with the White/red is what you're looking for.
 By grabbing the trigger (+ coil) for your relay on this wire. You will have a lighting relay that follows the request for high beams. Plus it will only have low power until you bump the starter button, starting the bike. (This is assuming that the fuse block is wired off the key, but not wired to stay off until the bike is started).

(Now this is speculating since I don't have the full schematic in front of me) and you should verify the wires first. But IIRC, If you ran your fuse blocks (+coil) off either of the head light relays white/black  wires. It would keep your fuse block off until the bike is started (like the head light). I will try to check later (if I remember) when I can see my schematic.

So anyway, your positive coil wire should come off the white/red wire the runs between your high beam relay and the headlight socket. Your positive power for the LED lights should come from the relay, which has it's power supplied from the fuse block, where it is fused. (the fuse block itself should have a main fuse for it's power at the battery!) Your common wires should be able to go to the appropriate common (ground). Just make sure your wires, fuses and anything required is capable to handle the load of the device it's running, and is appropriately fused.


Hope it helps!

[Armyguns]

Thanks to all who responded.  The suggestion on using the white/red wire is correct.  Last evening, prior to getting all this wonderful information, I figured 'what the heck, I can use a multimeter, and it just can't be THAT hard'.  However, I was a bit reluctant to mess too much with the existing relays so I went directly to the headlights themselves. Of course that required taking the top panels off and I removed the Cee Bailey's Ultra as well just to give me more working room.  Knowing there was a ground, a low beam and a high beam wire, all I needed to do was figure out which was which.  Despite a determined effort to remove the bulb from the housing, I just could not figure out how the damn thing came out, so I carefully exposed the wires leading to the bulb and went from there.  Sure enough, white/red is the high beam which shows 12+V when the high beam switch is turned on AND when the Flash to Pass button is pushed.  I ran a wire from that to the coil of the relay and another from ground to the other side of the coil.  The meter shows continuity on the relay across one terminal with the low beam on.  As soon as the high beam is turned on, that terminal shows open, and the other terminal is then closed (showing continunity).   That's all I needed to know. 

It was only about 90 degrees in the garage and close to 9PM at that point, so I was content to put the tools down and back away before I did something stupid.  Tonight, I will wire it all up and be done (for now).  I am thinking I will mount the rather large (1 1/4 x 1 1/2 x 1 1/2) dimmer below the left top side panel - in front of the glove box.  I intend the dimmer to be a 'set and forget' device, so I will literally mount it under the panel so that it is not visible.  This will also eliminate the need for drilling a hole or multiple holes in that panel and also allow me to replace this dimmer should I be able to locate a smaller one. 

I will take the camera to the garage and take some in-process pics as I go along.