Bonneville America Forums Forums Technical Forums Accessories Triumph Light Bar Kit

I'm thinking about getting the Triumph light bar kit for my '02 BA and I'm wondering if any of you guys that have installed one could tell me how difficult the installation is.

Thanks,

Keith

It is not difficult at all if you do one thing.

CUT THE SPADE TERMINALS OFF THE HARNESS THEN INSTALL IT IN THE BAR AND FINALLY REINSTALL THE TERMINALS.

If you don't you are going to be tugging and pulling for a good while.

Hey Keith...

Have a look at my website for alternatives and fitting of the lightbar...

Quote:

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If you don't you are going to be tugging and pulling for a good while.

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Hmm sounds like my lovelife...

Matt

Thanks Matt,

Your site is great BTW. I've spent quite a bit of time reading the stuff on your site previously and weighing the +'s and -'s of each. Right now I'm preping for a two week tour later this spring and I'm a little un-easy about getting into another non-OEM project that may require some fabrication or other.

Frankly the "Jim's Spacers" ordeal pretty much wore me out. It seemed like a very simple job that turned out to take hours of work and weeks of waiting for a custom clutch cable. Likewise the tach install on my '02 BA required I run that extra wire and force the "little tiny ends" into "little tiny holes" that they had no desire to stay mounted in - what a PITA that was. If it was October and I had all winter to play around with it I'd probably go with your idea of ordering just the bar from Triumph and sourcing the lights but having spent 2+ months working on my Trophy and another 6 weeks working on the BA my energy for playing "Triumph Mechanic" is about used up. I'm looking to ride not wrench and at this point if it isn't a 20 minute plug & play install I'm reluctant to give it a try.

Thanks,

Keith

Keith,

I put the Triumph light bar on my '03 TA. It is a very big PIA getting the wires pulled through the bar with the connectors on the ends, but I did it after several tries. I used electrical tape and picture hanging wire. I cannot imagine why the factory wouldn't thread the bar and crimp the connectors on... except for er, the cost to pay someone to do that.
But I will say this much, the lightbar is one of the best mods I've installed. It makes a real difference at night and is also good for added visibility during the day. It is worth the struggle.

That is a little annoying. You'd think for nearly $300 they could make the thing a little easier to install. Will it help to grease up the connectors at all before trying to pull them through???

It sure would have been worth the money to me a few nights ago. My teaching schedule this semester is afternoons and nights. I rode the BA to work at about 1 pm on Wednesday afternoon and when I came out to ride it home at 10:30 pm I had no headlight beam just that little parking light. I thought the bulb had blown but the connector had just come loose - probably from all the pounding putting those spacers on. Rode 23 miles home with virtually no lights at Colorado highway speeds (75+ mph). Needless to say this was very scary - and stupid. I promised myself I wouldn't ride the BA again at night until I had backup lighting of some kind so I've been using the Trophy (2 headlights:) as a commuter until I get this figured out.


Keith

I never thought to try using any kind of lube, but actually, with the amount of wire and connector mass you are trying to tug through those small holes, any lubricant would probably just make your fish wire slip out of the electrical tape wrap. You have to really space all the connectors to a different point of entry with the tape and wire as you try to pull them through the bar. I thought about cutting the connectors off and reinstalling new ones but the instructions had "thrown down the gauntlet" and I was going to get those damm wires through even if they were longer and a smaller guage when I was done!

I have to agree with Grump. They were a PITA to thread the wires through. At one point I had to walk away before I did something I regretted. That is the hardest part of the job, threading the wires. The rest was cake and went together fast and smooth. Alot of others made their jobs easier and cut the connectors off first then after threading the wires added new connectors, but I didn't have any with me, the stores were all closed and I just wanted to get the lights on the bike so I couldn't wait.Hands down the best mod I've done to the bike.