I'd avoid cutting into the factory harness.

 

Why? People splice the harness all the time when putting on taller bars and/or risers.

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And people all the time create problems for themselves and for the next owners.

 

Yep, it can happen if the person doing the work is less than competent.

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That unfortunately includes a large number of DIY'ers. Then their next thread is:

* Bike won't start...
*Bike keeps stalling and cutting out...
*Lights don't work...
*etc...

Best to avoid destroying a perfectly good main harness.

 

There's no reason to wind up destroying anything.
Those that do will learn a good lesson.

Unless the poster is an obvious noob or states that they lack the skills required, I'll continue to pass out what I consider appropriate advice.

Accessory devices that draw power, like a GPS, radio, etc, should be wired into the bike's electrical system such that they shut down and stop drawing power when the key is turned off. There is no way to access a switched circuit to do that without cutting into the existing electrical harness.

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Solder and shrink tube. What's the big deal?
Could try a jumper fuse:

 

I guess me and the next owner of my bike are screwed. Im in the process of removing all the connectors then soldering all the wires back together over the backbone of my bike so I can lower my tank back down.

 

This depends on the bike, because some have provision for additional accessory fuses. My Dyna had this, a spare plug-in. But you still have to R&R connector pins. So it was simpler/easier to run a separate, unswitched, fused circuit, directly from the battery. Its principal 24/7 function is to keep the battery charged, so no switch is desired. On a trip, it powers the GPS, which is turned off and unplugged when not riding.

For those who wish to preserve their bike's resale value there are other options than hacking into the main harness.

 

Orange (instruments) or orange/white (accessories) wires at the 12 pin instruments connector are the only ones that are switched (and fused).

What kind of GPS are you going to use? Some systems (like the Garmin Zumo I use) prefer constant power in order to prevent entering trip/route data after a gas/lunch stop. Constant power be pulled from the B+ connector under the seat without having to cut into the wiring.

B+ connector with installed empty housing:



PACKARD MALE/FEMALE CONNECTOR
METRI-PACK 480 SERIES UNSEALED 1 CAVITY GRAY

link to image 1

link to image 2