nicholas900
Well-known member
Thought I'd share this.
I picked up a pair of Motogadget M-blaze disc LED directionals. They are designed to be mounted in handle bars like bar ends. But got to thinking they would look cool in the rear axle. I got them from here. The only downside is they are expensive.
There are a few mods that need to be done with them.
In the pic below the bottom one is for the brake side. The rubber grommet needs to have a channel cut into it for the wires to exit. Also the washers need a little recess. I used a dremmel to cut it, and also to smooth out the cuts.
The top one is for the pulley side. Notice how the rubber is slid all the up to the light. I used a stepped drill bit to open up the inside of the rubber so it would slide all the way up. This has to be done on this side because of how the axle is made. The rubber will be grabbing the area where your axle wrench goes in.
The wires for the lights will be run through the axle and exit out the brake side. The pulley side will have some connectors soldered in so I can pull out the brake side and unplug the pulley side.
For the wiring inside the axle my wife's phone charger was staring me down.
I connected the coily wire to the pulley side. Prior to soldering I slid on shrink wrap of various sizes. These wires are so skinny I want to beef up the area where the wires go into the light. I also slid a small piece into the housing to prevent any chaffing. Then soldered and shrunk them with a heat gun. The other end of the coily cable will have two male terminals soldered on and shrink wrapped.
Then I wired up the brake side signal. The hot wire for this one goes right out the axle. The ground for this signal will exit out the axle, and also have a female connector soldered on to pick up the ground for the pulley side. Here is a few pics of it finished up.
For the brake side, where the wires exit I ran the wires through the channel I cut in the rubber and washers. I slid a piece of heat sharing over it. I used one of the rubber orings supplied with the kit to secure the wires where they exit the bike.
Now its time to install. I twisted a scrap wire to the wiring for the pulley side and slid it through the axle. Push the signal into the axle and adjust nut for a snug fit. Then I pulled my coily wire through and plugged it into my brake side signal and pushed it in.
The wiring will enter the swing arm through a drain hole on the bottom of the arm. This hole leads into a cavity for the brake caliper. I added a wire hold down to keep the wire snug and out of sight (for the most part). I use these hold down all the time. I get them from Home Depot in the electrical section. They are handy in design, but the white foam tape they come with sucks. I peel that off and use 3m outdoor tape to secure it. I've used this tape plenty of times. It's excellent for this type of stuff. I did trim the plastic hold down a bit with a razorblade.
I mounted it in the groove in the swingarm.
Then I ran the wire through the drain hole into the swingarm and zip tied my wires to the plastic wire retainer.
The wires come into the swing arm by the brake caliper. I routed the new wires along side the brake line and used a few zip ties to secure it.
Unless your laying on your back on the ground the wiring is not seen. It is pretty discrete.
These are really, really bright.
Other than being very expensive, I don't see a down side. They are way brighter than any factory signal. They shine 360° and can be seen from any angle.
If anyone tries this and gets hung up, feel free to ask.
Peace
I picked up a pair of Motogadget M-blaze disc LED directionals. They are designed to be mounted in handle bars like bar ends. But got to thinking they would look cool in the rear axle. I got them from here. The only downside is they are expensive.
There are a few mods that need to be done with them.
In the pic below the bottom one is for the brake side. The rubber grommet needs to have a channel cut into it for the wires to exit. Also the washers need a little recess. I used a dremmel to cut it, and also to smooth out the cuts.
The top one is for the pulley side. Notice how the rubber is slid all the up to the light. I used a stepped drill bit to open up the inside of the rubber so it would slide all the way up. This has to be done on this side because of how the axle is made. The rubber will be grabbing the area where your axle wrench goes in.
The wires for the lights will be run through the axle and exit out the brake side. The pulley side will have some connectors soldered in so I can pull out the brake side and unplug the pulley side.
For the wiring inside the axle my wife's phone charger was staring me down.
I connected the coily wire to the pulley side. Prior to soldering I slid on shrink wrap of various sizes. These wires are so skinny I want to beef up the area where the wires go into the light. I also slid a small piece into the housing to prevent any chaffing. Then soldered and shrunk them with a heat gun. The other end of the coily cable will have two male terminals soldered on and shrink wrapped.
Then I wired up the brake side signal. The hot wire for this one goes right out the axle. The ground for this signal will exit out the axle, and also have a female connector soldered on to pick up the ground for the pulley side. Here is a few pics of it finished up.
For the brake side, where the wires exit I ran the wires through the channel I cut in the rubber and washers. I slid a piece of heat sharing over it. I used one of the rubber orings supplied with the kit to secure the wires where they exit the bike.
Now its time to install. I twisted a scrap wire to the wiring for the pulley side and slid it through the axle. Push the signal into the axle and adjust nut for a snug fit. Then I pulled my coily wire through and plugged it into my brake side signal and pushed it in.
The wiring will enter the swing arm through a drain hole on the bottom of the arm. This hole leads into a cavity for the brake caliper. I added a wire hold down to keep the wire snug and out of sight (for the most part). I use these hold down all the time. I get them from Home Depot in the electrical section. They are handy in design, but the white foam tape they come with sucks. I peel that off and use 3m outdoor tape to secure it. I've used this tape plenty of times. It's excellent for this type of stuff. I did trim the plastic hold down a bit with a razorblade.
I mounted it in the groove in the swingarm.
Then I ran the wire through the drain hole into the swingarm and zip tied my wires to the plastic wire retainer.
The wires come into the swing arm by the brake caliper. I routed the new wires along side the brake line and used a few zip ties to secure it.
Unless your laying on your back on the ground the wiring is not seen. It is pretty discrete.
These are really, really bright.
Other than being very expensive, I don't see a down side. They are way brighter than any factory signal. They shine 360° and can be seen from any angle.
If anyone tries this and gets hung up, feel free to ask.
Peace
