Just Did The Radio Shack Siren Install
#121
05-22-2009, 07:33 AM
This is hardly a ''mod''.
The stock security system comes with an output. It's attached to a flasher module on all bikes. It's tee'ed off in the stock wiring harness and goes nowhere. My assumption is it's a 12V output when triggered. As I recall there were 3 leads, perhaps constant 12V, ground and the actual trigger although I used the SS so didn't bother to double check.
One has to look at the reasons for the need and how the owner wants to react to any given alert.
A thief wants parts or the whole bike and does not want witnesses for identification, get caught by the authorities or especially the owner.
Due to the very nature of HD bikes the security system provides an ignition ''kill'' feature. No longer is it necessary to lock your switch, this does 2 things. One, a theif can't just walk up to a bike, turn it on and ride away. Two, it provides the owned with a reduced effort ''lifestyle'' - no need to lock the switch. The proximity fob is another ''lifestyle'' feature, you don't even have to hit a button. This has some drawbacks but lets not go there, it's pretty obvious.
Actually, NOT locking the switch is a better approach to security in the case of HD bikes....
That sounds weird - DON'T lock your switch. The reason is, we want the earliest warning possible. The first thing a thief will do if he want the whole bike is see if it's locked. Fortunately, the HD security system uses the ignition switch as a triggering mechanism (please take note). What we want is to attract all the attention to the bike (for witnesses) and perhaps get notified ourselves so we can react in whatever way we as owners prefer. Some will never do more than act as witness, others of us may like to sprint with shotgun in hand (please check your local laws ;~)>
So we add a siren or 10, blinking lights, a transmitter that blows out a signal, a receiver we carry notifies us and the likes.
Now is where the fun starts, we've only begun if you REALLY want some ''mods''. A determined thief with some HD background KNOWS how it works and could attempt to circumvent the features a stock system has in place. For example, w/a pair of dikes, cut the wire to the siren (you hardly even need to spend any time pulling that very secure side panel - way to go MoCo). Without a backup battery and a device smart enough to realize it's lost power, you have no siren. I need to check the SS to see if it has the smarts HD claims. If I can pop off the side cover, unplug and it says nothing, I'll be very disappointed - that's worthless let alone worth $100!!! (I'll return it and fix that little problem)
A REAL MOD would be something like this (early warning, right?):
As you noted above, the ignition switch has a mechanism that sends INPUT to the security system. How about you add a device that could get tied into the same circuit to provide another form of input and early warning?
At some point, when the weather is bad, I'll dig up where this input is, drop a couple of devices on the bike. One will be a highend adjustable motion sensor and one or two will be, yet another proximity sensor (same as the fob but different ;~)> with full adjustability. Both will have on/off switches and perhaps sensitivity switches for quick adjustment based on the needs at the time. Now we get warning BEFORE the bike is even touched and if a thief wants to start unscrewing parts and yanking, we accomplish what we need where the stock system would never have known the difference.
THAT would be a MOD!
Course you could always chain yourself to the bike, carry a shotgun and skip all these highend complicated ''mods'', but for many this would interrupt the current ''lifestyle''.
The stock security system comes with an output. It's attached to a flasher module on all bikes. It's tee'ed off in the stock wiring harness and goes nowhere. My assumption is it's a 12V output when triggered. As I recall there were 3 leads, perhaps constant 12V, ground and the actual trigger although I used the SS so didn't bother to double check.
One has to look at the reasons for the need and how the owner wants to react to any given alert.
A thief wants parts or the whole bike and does not want witnesses for identification, get caught by the authorities or especially the owner.
Due to the very nature of HD bikes the security system provides an ignition ''kill'' feature. No longer is it necessary to lock your switch, this does 2 things. One, a theif can't just walk up to a bike, turn it on and ride away. Two, it provides the owned with a reduced effort ''lifestyle'' - no need to lock the switch. The proximity fob is another ''lifestyle'' feature, you don't even have to hit a button. This has some drawbacks but lets not go there, it's pretty obvious.
Actually, NOT locking the switch is a better approach to security in the case of HD bikes....
That sounds weird - DON'T lock your switch. The reason is, we want the earliest warning possible. The first thing a thief will do if he want the whole bike is see if it's locked. Fortunately, the HD security system uses the ignition switch as a triggering mechanism (please take note). What we want is to attract all the attention to the bike (for witnesses) and perhaps get notified ourselves so we can react in whatever way we as owners prefer. Some will never do more than act as witness, others of us may like to sprint with shotgun in hand (please check your local laws ;~)>
So we add a siren or 10, blinking lights, a transmitter that blows out a signal, a receiver we carry notifies us and the likes.
Now is where the fun starts, we've only begun if you REALLY want some ''mods''. A determined thief with some HD background KNOWS how it works and could attempt to circumvent the features a stock system has in place. For example, w/a pair of dikes, cut the wire to the siren (you hardly even need to spend any time pulling that very secure side panel - way to go MoCo). Without a backup battery and a device smart enough to realize it's lost power, you have no siren. I need to check the SS to see if it has the smarts HD claims. If I can pop off the side cover, unplug and it says nothing, I'll be very disappointed - that's worthless let alone worth $100!!! (I'll return it and fix that little problem)
A REAL MOD would be something like this (early warning, right?):
As you noted above, the ignition switch has a mechanism that sends INPUT to the security system. How about you add a device that could get tied into the same circuit to provide another form of input and early warning?
At some point, when the weather is bad, I'll dig up where this input is, drop a couple of devices on the bike. One will be a highend adjustable motion sensor and one or two will be, yet another proximity sensor (same as the fob but different ;~)> with full adjustability. Both will have on/off switches and perhaps sensitivity switches for quick adjustment based on the needs at the time. Now we get warning BEFORE the bike is even touched and if a thief wants to start unscrewing parts and yanking, we accomplish what we need where the stock system would never have known the difference.
THAT would be a MOD!
Course you could always chain yourself to the bike, carry a shotgun and skip all these highend complicated ''mods'', but for many this would interrupt the current ''lifestyle''.
Last edited by fatglide; 05-22-2009 at 07:44 AM.
#122
05-22-2009, 08:09 AM
This is hardly a ''mod''.
The stock security system comes with an output. It's attached to a flasher module on all bikes. It's tee'ed off in the stock wiring harness and goes nowhere. My assumption is it's a 12V output when triggered. As I recall there were 3 leads, perhaps constant 12V, ground and the actual trigger although I used the SS so didn't bother to double check.
One has to look at the reasons for the need and how the owner wants to react to any given alert.
A thief wants parts or the whole bike and does not want witnesses for identification, get caught by the authorities or especially the owner.
Due to the very nature of HD bikes the security system provides an ignition ''kill'' feature. No longer is it necessary to lock your switch, this does 2 things. One, a theif can't just walk up to a bike, turn it on and ride away. Two, it provides the owned with a reduced effort ''lifestyle'' - no need to lock the switch. The proximity fob is another ''lifestyle'' feature, you don't even have to hit a button. This has some drawbacks but lets not go there, it's pretty obvious.
Actually, NOT locking the switch is a better approach to security in the case of HD bikes....
That sounds weird - DON'T lock your switch. The reason is, we want the earliest warning possible. The first thing a thief will do if he want the whole bike is see if it's locked. Fortunately, the HD security system uses the ignition switch as a triggering mechanism (please take note). What we want is to attract all the attention to the bike (for witnesses) and perhaps get notified ourselves so we can react in whatever way we as owners prefer. Some will never do more than act as witness, others of us may like to sprint with shotgun in hand (please check your local laws ;~)>
So we add a siren or 10, blinking lights, a transmitter that blows out a signal, a receiver we carry notifies us and the likes.
Now is where the fun starts, we've only begun if you REALLY want some ''mods''. A determined thief with some HD background KNOWS how it works and could attempt to circumvent the features a stock system has in place. For example, w/a pair of dikes, cut the wire to the siren (you hardly even need to spend any time pulling that very secure side panel - way to go MoCo). Without a backup battery and a device smart enough to realize it's lost power, you have no siren. I need to check the SS to see if it has the smarts HD claims. If I can pop off the side cover, unplug and it says nothing, I'll be very disappointed - that's worthless let alone worth $100!!! (I'll return it and fix that little problem)
A REAL MOD would be something like this (early warning, right?):
As you noted above, the ignition switch has a mechanism that sends INPUT to the security system. How about you add a device that could get tied into the same circuit to provide another form of input and early warning?
At some point, when the weather is bad, I'll dig up where this input is, drop a couple of devices on the bike. One will be a highend adjustable motion sensor and one or two will be, yet another proximity sensor (same as the fob but different ;~)> with full adjustability. Both will have on/off switches and perhaps sensitivity switches for quick adjustment based on the needs at the time. Now we get warning BEFORE the bike is even touched and if a thief wants to start unscrewing parts and yanking, we accomplish what we need where the stock system would never have known the difference.
THAT would be a MOD!
Course you could always chain yourself to the bike, carry a shotgun and skip all these highend complicated ''mods'', but for many this would interrupt the current ''lifestyle''.
The stock security system comes with an output. It's attached to a flasher module on all bikes. It's tee'ed off in the stock wiring harness and goes nowhere. My assumption is it's a 12V output when triggered. As I recall there were 3 leads, perhaps constant 12V, ground and the actual trigger although I used the SS so didn't bother to double check.
One has to look at the reasons for the need and how the owner wants to react to any given alert.
A thief wants parts or the whole bike and does not want witnesses for identification, get caught by the authorities or especially the owner.
Due to the very nature of HD bikes the security system provides an ignition ''kill'' feature. No longer is it necessary to lock your switch, this does 2 things. One, a theif can't just walk up to a bike, turn it on and ride away. Two, it provides the owned with a reduced effort ''lifestyle'' - no need to lock the switch. The proximity fob is another ''lifestyle'' feature, you don't even have to hit a button. This has some drawbacks but lets not go there, it's pretty obvious.
Actually, NOT locking the switch is a better approach to security in the case of HD bikes....
That sounds weird - DON'T lock your switch. The reason is, we want the earliest warning possible. The first thing a thief will do if he want the whole bike is see if it's locked. Fortunately, the HD security system uses the ignition switch as a triggering mechanism (please take note). What we want is to attract all the attention to the bike (for witnesses) and perhaps get notified ourselves so we can react in whatever way we as owners prefer. Some will never do more than act as witness, others of us may like to sprint with shotgun in hand (please check your local laws ;~)>
So we add a siren or 10, blinking lights, a transmitter that blows out a signal, a receiver we carry notifies us and the likes.
Now is where the fun starts, we've only begun if you REALLY want some ''mods''. A determined thief with some HD background KNOWS how it works and could attempt to circumvent the features a stock system has in place. For example, w/a pair of dikes, cut the wire to the siren (you hardly even need to spend any time pulling that very secure side panel - way to go MoCo). Without a backup battery and a device smart enough to realize it's lost power, you have no siren. I need to check the SS to see if it has the smarts HD claims. If I can pop off the side cover, unplug and it says nothing, I'll be very disappointed - that's worthless let alone worth $100!!! (I'll return it and fix that little problem)
A REAL MOD would be something like this (early warning, right?):
As you noted above, the ignition switch has a mechanism that sends INPUT to the security system. How about you add a device that could get tied into the same circuit to provide another form of input and early warning?
At some point, when the weather is bad, I'll dig up where this input is, drop a couple of devices on the bike. One will be a highend adjustable motion sensor and one or two will be, yet another proximity sensor (same as the fob but different ;~)> with full adjustability. Both will have on/off switches and perhaps sensitivity switches for quick adjustment based on the needs at the time. Now we get warning BEFORE the bike is even touched and if a thief wants to start unscrewing parts and yanking, we accomplish what we need where the stock system would never have known the difference.
THAT would be a MOD!
Course you could always chain yourself to the bike, carry a shotgun and skip all these highend complicated ''mods'', but for many this would interrupt the current ''lifestyle''.
#123
05-22-2009, 08:12 AM
#124
05-22-2009, 08:23 AM
Road Warrior
#125
05-22-2009, 10:00 AM
It's a mod if you cut and splice wires like I did, and if you don't have a match for the connector you must do this. Even then you'd have to splice the siren wires into the connector.
I think this is correct, but the SS sends signals that make the siren make different noises--chirps for warnings, loud shrieks when the SS is activated. I'm not sure how that works, but it also works with the RS siren.
I would agree with Kooljerk that locking the switch or forks as well as activating the alarm (automatic) is the best security setup when parking the bike for the reasons given. Although the alarm won't sound unless the bike is righted, I don't see why locking the forks and/or ignition would decrease security. I do understand your early-warning idea, but I doubt if any thief with a brain would turn on the ignition of a modern HD since 99% of them have SS's installed.
I understand your point, but when the ignition is turned on the SS will only shriek once as a warning.
I have always assumed the stock siren will sound if the circuit is cut. If not it would certainly be a major flaw in the system. The RS siren of course has no battery, so cutting the wires will obviously do nothing except deactivate the siren, as I doubt if the module will sense any interruption in the circuit. What I bank on is that a thief does not know that I have a cheap-*** siren installed, and few HD riders even know this is an option, so how would they tell without removing the side cover? Most won't do this since most wouldn't know the RS siren is even an option. Further, most wouldn't know where the siren is even located since it varies by model year.
In my case the siren is really unnecessary most of the time and I only added it because it was cheap and does serve a minor purpose. My bike is stored in a secured (burglar-alarmed) garage 99% of the time, and the only time I would really fear having the bike stolen is on a bike trip, which only happens 1-2 times per year. That's the reason I initially wanted a bike without the SS installed, but as time went on I realized the lifestyle benefits as you described. I really do like the ability to just walk away from the bike in lieu of physically locking it.
I would be careful doing this, as it might cause a fault code, and if the SS is truly smart it might know when the system has been tampered with and do something we might not want. Just speculating here.
I do like the idea of the motion and/or proximity sensors, so please report back with anything you discover. I also wonder about somehow tying in my Zumo to the SS, but that's a long shot given my lack of understanding of the ECU, SS module, and their anti-tampering features. If I could figure out a way to sense the Zumo being removed from the cradle after activating a switch, it might serve as a good SS for the Zumo. I doubt if this could be worked into the stock SS, but maybe a relay that trips when the Zumo is removed and second siren installed could be the answer.
The stock security system comes with an output. It's attached to a flasher module on all bikes. It's tee'ed off in the stock wiring harness and goes nowhere. My assumption is it's a 12V output when triggered.
Actually, NOT locking the switch is a better approach to security in the case of HD bikes.
That sounds weird - DON'T lock your switch. The reason is, we want the earliest warning possible. The first thing a thief will do if he want the whole bike is see if it's locked. Fortunately, the HD security system uses the ignition switch as a triggering mechanism (please take note). What we want is to attract all the attention to the bike (for witnesses) and perhaps get notified ourselves so we can react in whatever way we as owners prefer.
Now is where the fun starts, we've only begun if you REALLY want some ''mods''. A determined thief with some HD background KNOWS how it works and could attempt to circumvent the features a stock system has in place. For example, w/a pair of dikes, cut the wire to the siren (you hardly even need to spend any time pulling that very secure side panel - way to go MoCo). Without a backup battery and a device smart enough to realize it's lost power, you have no siren. I need to check the SS to see if it has the smarts HD claims. If I can pop off the side cover, unplug and it says nothing, I'll be very disappointed - that's worthless let alone worth $100!!! (I'll return it and fix that little problem)
In my case the siren is really unnecessary most of the time and I only added it because it was cheap and does serve a minor purpose. My bike is stored in a secured (burglar-alarmed) garage 99% of the time, and the only time I would really fear having the bike stolen is on a bike trip, which only happens 1-2 times per year. That's the reason I initially wanted a bike without the SS installed, but as time went on I realized the lifestyle benefits as you described. I really do like the ability to just walk away from the bike in lieu of physically locking it.
As you noted above, the ignition switch has a mechanism that sends INPUT to the security system. How about you add a device that could get tied into the same circuit to provide another form of input and early warning?
At some point, when the weather is bad, I'll dig up where this input is, drop a couple of devices on the bike. One will be a highend adjustable motion sensor and one or two will be, yet another proximity sensor (same as the fob but different ;~)> with full adjustability. Both will have on/off switches and perhaps sensitivity switches for quick adjustment based on the needs at the time. Now we get warning BEFORE the bike is even touched and if a thief wants to start unscrewing parts and yanking, we accomplish what we need where the stock system would never have known the difference.
#127
05-22-2009, 03:48 PM
K00LJerk:
In your case, what's the point of a security system if you can lock the ignition?
Sorta as I stated, different strokes.
HD sec is no different than the sound system, seat, bars. paint, u name it. They suck in stock form, little room for personal fitment w/out $$$ and effort. Do what works for you, or don't, can't argue w/success.
ETA: Good luck w/your removable tour pac.
In your case, what's the point of a security system if you can lock the ignition?
Sorta as I stated, different strokes.
HD sec is no different than the sound system, seat, bars. paint, u name it. They suck in stock form, little room for personal fitment w/out $$$ and effort. Do what works for you, or don't, can't argue w/success.
ETA: Good luck w/your removable tour pac.
#129
05-22-2009, 04:43 PM
#130
05-22-2009, 05:00 PM
Not too far off from reality, actually. I use it for a helmet rack, which covers it from view, and naively think of this as a security system. I have a different sort of removal device on the cradle that isn't readily discernible, although a very quick take-off once you figure it out.