New Kuryakyn Triple Whammy Run-Turn-Brake Light Kit

[aKorn]

look on their website. It has detailed installation instructions w/ pics.

[butrball12]

went home and realized that i have the 4 plugs as well... wont work for the 09 SEs....

[woodswoman]

Hubby just scored one of these for his Nomad; we picked it up from Kury's display at Americade.

Wow, it's NICE -- a big step up in conspicuity. And easy-peasy to install!

Wish to heck they'd make one of these for the 1500 Classic!

[NoRegrets78]

My 09 has the 4 wire as well. DAMNIT!!!

[Lookin2Ride]

Sorry about just jumping in without an introduction, but I was looking through this thread because I am getting ready to pull the trigger on a new 09 900LT and I was interested in the PNP RTB controller. I'll have to get the guys at the shop to look for me and let me know how many wires the bike I picked out has, but Kury says as long as it has the single connector I should be fine (even though the website says just thru "08" )

Does anyone here have an 09 classic 900LT with this unit installed?

[Belrix]

I have an '08 with the Kury PnP RTB and it's painless - I'm 99.99% sure the '09 would be the same.

Look under your seat, forward of the battery for a square connector with 4 (I think) wires. That's where the PnP controller will plug in.

[Slots]

Sorry to bother you...... but how the heck did you separate the darned connectors on the 1600? I have a 2006 Nomad...and the Kury setup....but those connectors are the work of the devil <g>. I have played with them a wee bit...but I see no easily deduced method of separating those little jewels.

Thanks in advance for your info.

Slots

[Belrix]

The connector is the kind that takes three hands - one for the left, one for the right, and one to hold down the little tab that locks into the slot to keep them from vibrating apart.

I think, and it's been a while, that it's just the trick of pushing down the locking tab with the tip of a thumb while using the rest of the thumb & fingers to grip the connector.

Just stare at it a bit.

All this being said, making it sound easy, I broke the locking clip on the one in the headlight bucket and a similar on in my car going to the headlight. Careful - they can be brittle.

[Lookin2Ride]

Originally Posted by aKorn

look on their website. It has detailed installation instructions w/ pics.

Just out of curiosity, I was wondering about this blurb in the installation instructions for the module.

Caution! Load equalizers generate heat when in use. Avoid using the turn signals for an extended period of time, otherwise the load equalizer will overheat. Never operate the four-way flashers unless you first remove the load equalizer. Overheating damages the load equalizer causing loss of turn signal operation and could create a fire hazard!

Since you are using the load equalizer, have you had any trouble with the unit getting very hot? I'm not sure how long they consider an extended period of time as far as the turn signals are concerned, but I'd hate to have a problem if I forget to turn one off sometime.

I've not seen anything about 4 way flashers on the 900 LT's so I'm not concerned about that one, but the turn signals could be a problem.

[Vulcan900]

The "equalizer" is basically a couple of ceramic encapsulated wire wound resistors. I zip-tied them to a frame member on my VN2000 and didn't have any problems. If they should fail open it would cause the flash rate to increase, like the EQs weren’t there. If they were to fail as a short the fuse running the blinkers would blow… no blinkers.

[Lookin2Ride]

Originally Posted by Vulcan900

The "equalizer" is basically a couple of ceramic encapsulated wire wound resistors. I zip-tied them to a frame member on my VN2000 and didn't have any problems. If they should fail open it would cause the flash rate to increase, like the EQs weren’t there. If they were to fail as a short the fuse running the blinkers would blow… no blinkers.

True.... And from experience, resisters very rarely short, they usually fry open, so I'll just make sure I mount them to the frame and away from everything else.

Thanks.

[Zamman]

I really wish I had had enough electrical knowledge to have a clue what you are talking about!

[ForestLake900LT]

Help me understand this please... the way this sounds, is the load equalizer an option to install? What determines if the load eq is needed or not? If it's prone to overheat, I wouldn't want to install it if it's not really needed. But I'm thinking of riding up to Dennis Kirk tomorrow and picking one of these things up (if the rain quits, that is).

[Lookin2Ride]

Originally Posted by ForestLake900LT

Help me understand this please... the way this sounds, is the load equalizer an option to install? What determines if the load eq is needed or not? If it's prone to overheat, I wouldn't want to install it if it's not really needed. But I'm thinking of riding up to Dennis Kirk tomorrow and picking one of these things up (if the rain quits, that is).

The turn signals are set up so that when both are working properly they flash at a particular rate. When one bulb burns out, there is a reduced amount of current that is flowing through the flasher and it causes the remaining bulb (and turn signal indicator) to flash at a higher rate. It works as an indicator to us that there is a problem with the bulb.

After installing the R-T-B module, the signals might flash at the higher rate seemingly indicating a problem situation. Installing the load equalizer corrects for this problem.

Personally, I scrapped the whole idea. I contacted Kury because I read in the instructions that the load equalizer does get very hot and you can cause problems if you aren't careful. What they told me was this:

a. Yes, the load equalizer does get very hot.
b. No, you might not need it, it depends on how fast your flash rate is after installation.
c. If you run 4-way flashers or forget to turn off your turn signal (4-5 minutes) you will most likely burn up the equalizer.

They said if the equalizer does burn up, it won't cause a fire or anything or hurt the bike in any way, it will just smoke itself......

I figured I would search for a better setup somewhere. Maybe just go with a lightbar or something. I know I shouldn't, but I still forget my signal once in a while and I don't feel like burning up electical units because of it. It's my opinion of course, but when installed the module should be able to handle running all day long if designed right.

This is one of those little things that I think the manufacturers should install at the factory. Why don't we have rear running lights? We have front ones......

[pb641]

Originally Posted by Lookin2Ride

This is one of those little things that I think the manufacturers should install at the factory. Why don't we have rear running lights? We have front ones......

Absolutely. I've thought the same way since installing mine about a year and a half back. I also feel that highway spots should be standard. The more visibility the better.

As to heat, I've never noticed a problem.

[anarkust]

Originally Posted by Lookin2Ride

The turn signals are set up so that when both are working properly they flash at a particular rate. When one bulb burns out, there is a reduced amount of current that is flowing through the flasher and it causes the remaining bulb (and turn signal indicator) to flash at a higher rate. It works as an indicator to us that there is a problem with the bulb.

This also happens in oem automobiles. A faster flashing rate usually indicates a defective bulb.

Originally Posted by Lookin2Ride

Personally, I scrapped the whole idea. I contacted Kury because I read in the instructions that the load equalizer does get very hot and you can cause problems if you aren't careful. What they told me was this:

a. Yes, the load equalizer does get very hot.
b. No, you might not need it, it depends on how fast your flash rate is after installation.
c. If you run 4-way flashers or forget to turn off your turn signal (4-5 minutes) you will most likely burn up the equalizer.

They said if the equalizer does burn up, it won't cause a fire or anything or hurt the bike in any way, it will just smoke itself......

I've had my kury rtb installed for a little over a year and have had no problems with the operation. Yes I have forgotten to turn off my blinker right after a turn a few times, but it has not gone up in smoke and still works flawlessly.

[ke6igz]

I have a 07 900 custom with 4 wires going back to the tail section. So the tripple whammy will not work on my bike. Has anyone tried one of the many 1157 flashing LED taillight bulb replacements. I was looking on EBAY and found this but I a not sure how bright it would be:

LED FLASHING BRAKE LIGHT - 1157 CLEAR Tail Light Bulb:eBay Motors (item 270307938416 end time Oct-20-09 12:52:57 PDT)

[anarkust]

Originally Posted by ke6igz

I have a 07 900 custom with 4 wires going back to the tail section. So the tripple whammy will not work on my bike. Has anyone tried one of the many 1157 flashing LED taillight bulb replacements. I was looking on EBAY and found this but I a not sure how bright it would be:

LED FLASHING BRAKE LIGHT - 1157 CLEAR Tail Light Bulb:eBay Motors (item 270307938416 end time Oct-20-09 12:52:57 PDT)

The design of that bulb won't be brighter than a standard bulb, in fact I found out that design was dimmer than the factory brake light. Led lighting seems to be more directional than standard bulbs so you would need an led bulb that has a wider spread of light to make use of the built in reflectors that are in the housing.

Something like this would be more appropriate:
2x 1157 Car 36 LED TaIl Turn Brake Bulb Light White:eBay Motors (item 250506879258 end time Oct-03-09 16:12:21 PDT)

If the rear turn signals are not wired at the factory to work as running lights at the same time, how is adding a bulb going to change that? All you are doing is changing the bulb, not the wiring. That is why we are discussing the kury rtb. We are in effect rewiring the rear of the bike to work as both running and turning lights.

[Lookin2Ride]

Originally Posted by anarkust

This also happens in oem automobiles. A faster flashing rate usually indicates a defective bulb.

Yep. They design it like that so you know when there is a problem.

I've had my kury rtb installed for a little over a year and have had no problems with the operation. Yes I have forgotten to turn off my blinker right after a turn a few times, but it has not gone up in smoke and still works flawlessly.

I'm glad to hear that it's working well for you. I was very tempted to install it even after the call to Kury, but I figured It wasn't worth the cost of replacing the unit if I would have burned it up like that.

[ke6igz]

Yeah I agree about the directionality of LED's. I like the ones you mentioned because they have LED's pointing to the side as well. I figured if could not get the tripple whammy working on my bike I could at least get a super bright tail light that would flash a few times before going solid when I applied the brakes. Maybe this is what I need:

Kisan TailBlazer Brake Light Flasher 20W-D - Plug-In

Originally Posted by anarkust

The design of that bulb won't be brighter than a standard bulb, in fact I found out that design was dimmer than the factory brake light. Led lighting seems to be more directional than standard bulbs so you would need an led bulb that has a wider spread of light to make use of the built in reflectors that are in the housing.

Something like this would be more appropriate:
2x 1157 Car 36 LED TaIl Turn Brake Bulb Light White:eBay Motors (item 250506879258 end time Oct-03-09 16:12:21 PDT)

If the rear turn signals are not wired at the factory to work as running lights at the same time, how is adding a bulb going to change that? All you are doing is changing the bulb, not the wiring. That is why we are discussing the kury rtb. We are in effect rewiring the rear of the bike to work as both running and turning lights.