2nd Gen Tach

[Seaking]

Hey guys, I'm looking for a tach for my Midnight and not sure what to get.. I got up all confused over the single / dual ignition thing etc..

 

What's out there that is bone dead simple to install etc?

 

I had a small little digital tach thing that I couldn't make work as it required me to splice into too many odd wires to make it work (needed converter signal cables etc)

 

Suggestions?

[Bummer]

I got a Baron's mini-tach with reservoir mount and put it on the front brake reservoir. No splicing, it came with piggyback connectors. One wire goes to the signal wire on a coil, two are hooked together and go to the coil's power wire, ground to any reasonable ground point. The one I got has a multi-color display. It has a button to cycle through the colors. I usually leave it on red because that's what it starts out on. The multicolor tach has a box that I believe controls the LEDs.

 

This is pretty much the same, but without the seven color lighting.

 

I just put a 3" Baron's bullet tach on Lilsis' new-to-her '97 RSTC. The little chrome box was not used. Direct connect to same the coil lugs. I grounded to one of the coil base bolt.

[V7Goose]

Any tach designed to work properly on a Harley with stock ignition will work fine on our bike.

 

A little background for anyone who wants to understand the details (but they are also covered in many older threads):

 

A four stroke engine will fire each cylinder one time every TWO revolutions or .5 times per revolution; therefore, a twin cylinder engine with a single coil will fire one time every revolution. A stock HD uses one coil without a distributor that is connected to both cylinders at the same time. This is called a dual-fire ignition. It is a very common and INCORRECT assumption in the HD community that the extra spark produced in each cylinder with this system somehow causes a loss of power, so they often convert their paint shaker to use two coils that each only fire one time in two revolutions (that is a single-fire ignition). A tach for an HD single-fire ignition will NOT work on our bike.

 

The Royal Stars are four cylinder engines with four independent coils, but each coil has a waste spark (an extra un-needed spark) on every other revolution, so each coil behaves like an HD dual-fire ignition. This is why a tach for a twin cylinder engine works.

 

Goose

[Sylvester]

:sign yeah that: I got confused when I installed my Baron's mini tach and had funny rpm readings. V-7 Goose has it together!

 

[Seaking]

There must actually be something wrong with my ignition system then as I installed a minitach as directed for a dual fire ignition and I got wild readings.. As you recalled we tried to install your system to my bike and it wouldn't work.. I wonder what that's all about.. Though the bike does run properly, I can't seem to get a decent tach to work on it l

 

I have a run into Maine next month to get the neck bearings replaced (under warranty =) I'll have their tech check that out for me..

 

I think there might actually be an issue somewhere as every odd time I go to start the bike the starter turns but then clunks to stop but will always start on the next push of the button.. signs of a dying starter? Another warranty item coming up?

[V7Goose]

Yeah, there is definitely something strange going on with your ignition system.

 

For the benefit of other readers, we tried to connect my shop tach to Seaking's bike and got very erratic readings that we could not explain (the same tach worked fine on my bike). We did successfully connect a car tach set for a 4 cylinder engine (displayed 1/2 actual RPM), so we cannot explain what strange signals were affecting my shop tach.

 

Seaking has certainly had way more than his share of problems with that bike - seems pretty evident to me it was abused and cursed with some sort of weird HD hex before he got it! Hope you find something that works for you,

Goose

[Seaking]

Yeah, there is definitely something strange going on with your ignition system.

Seaking has certainly had way more than his share of problems with that bike - seems pretty evident to me it was abused and cursed with some sort of weird HD hex before he got it! Hope you find something that works for you,

Goose

 

LOL thanks Goose, the previous owner 'dumped' this bike for a HD and he's cursing that bike as well... not sure what he did to it but for the price I paid for it, I can't complain too much..

 

I'm learning a whole lot about bike maintenance through this bike =)

[Bummer]

For the benefit of other readers, we tried to connect my shop tach to Seaking's bike and got very erratic readings that we could not explain (the same tach worked fine on my bike). We did successfully connect a car tach set for a 4 cylinder engine (displayed 1/2 actual RPM), so we cannot explain what strange signals were affecting my shop tach.

Is the shop tach an inductance tach?

 

Reason I ask: I have an inductance tach that will not give reliable readings on my bike. Twice now I've gotten accurate readings out of it. Most of the time it dances all over the place and will not even begin to track the engine speed. It's currently in an intermediate phase waiting for me to either figure out what's wrong or toss it in the circular file.

 

I have a tach (as mentioned above) wired directly to the coil that works just fine.

[Seaking]

Is the shop tach an inductance tach?

 

I have a tach (as mentioned above) wired directly to the coil that works just fine.

 

I'll have to try one of those.. see how that works.. Not sure if I like the reservoir mounted one though.. but meh.. tach is a tach even if it's tacky.. ?

[V7Goose]

Is the shop tach an inductance tach?

 

Reason I ask: I have an inductance tach that will not give reliable readings on my bike. Twice now I've gotten accurate readings out of it. Most of the time it dances all over the place and will not even begin to track the engine speed. It's currently in an intermediate phase waiting for me to either figure out what's wrong or toss it in the circular file.

 

I have a tach (as mentioned above) wired directly to the coil that works just fine.

No, the shop tach to which I was referring is an early 70s vintage tach/dwell meter that is powered by the vehicle battery and clips directly to a coil. Has worked perfectly for me on every single vehicle for over 30 years (not counting an RSV recently from Arkansas where I tried to run it from the wrong side of the coil!), but it will absolutely NOT work properly on Seaking's bike (even tried a different coil). I fiddled with it for an hour or two trying different things, but finally just gave up and used an old SUN car tach that worked fine.

 

Although I cannot explain it, there is clearly still something amiss with his bike; wish I had more time to search it out. My best guess is a bad condenser or bad plug caps.

Goose

[Hotrod]

I used a Drag Specialties Mini Tach that I bought from Hellriser Customs for $69 and a chrome P clamp from Formotion.com for $19 and mounted it next to the right master cylinder.I took a pair of vice grips, when I bolted had it in place,used an old shop rag wrapped around the bracket to the tach. and twisted it until it faced where I wanted. I now have a tach that is mounted almost in the same place as the Baron's Tach but at less than half the price. It's not as pretty as the Baron's, but it still looks pretty good and performs great.

[Sylvester]

There must actually be something wrong with my ignition system then as I installed a minitach as directed for a dual fire ignition and I got wild readings.. As you recalled we tried to install your system to my bike and it wouldn't work.. I wonder what that's all about.. Though the bike does run properly, I can't seem to get a decent tach to work on it l

 

I have a run into Maine next month to get the neck bearings replaced (under warranty =) I'll have their tech check that out for me..

 

I think there might actually be an issue somewhere as every odd time I go to start the bike the starter turns but then clunks to stop but will always start on the next push of the button.. signs of a dying starter? Another warranty item coming up?

 

 

The tach issue could be the product you bought. The Baron's works fine if you install it as dual fire. The starter issue (I have experienced) is due to timing issues. Get the carbs synched and a full tune up.

 

[Seaking]

The tach issue could be the product you bought. The Baron's works fine if you install it as dual fire. The starter issue (I have experienced) is due to timing issues. Get the carbs synched and a full tune up.

 

Could be just the tach however the bike is fully tuned up and carb synched.. All done that down in Dallas, and re-verified when I got home (new plugs etc)..

 

Kinda odd..

[Cheesehead in flatland]

I used a Drag Specialties Mini Tach that I bought from Hellriser Customs for $69 and a chrome P clamp from Formotion.com for $19 and mounted it next to the right master cylinder.I took a pair of vice grips, when I bolted had it in place,used an old shop rag wrapped around the bracket to the tach. and twisted it until it faced where I wanted. I now have a tach that is mounted almost in the same place as the Baron's Tach but at less than half the price. It's not as pretty as the Baron's, but it still looks pretty good and performs great.

 

It's been a few years since you posted this but I figured it wouldn't hurt to ask. Could you post pictures of your tach installation? I'd like to install a tach on my RSV but don't want to spend the money needed for a Baron.

 

 

Thanks!

[MikeWa]

This uses only one wire that wraps around any spark plug wire.

Mike

[ATTACH]77080[/ATTACH]

[Hotrod]

Cheese Head sent me a PM asking for pictures of my install, I thought I would post them to help someone else save some money instead of buying the Barons tach. Love the look of the Barons tach, just could not justify the price. I used a Drag Specialties 1 7/8 mini tach and Formotion or Kuryaken P clamp.

[Cheesehead in flatland]

Cheese Head sent me a PM asking for pictures of my install, I thought I would post them to help someone else save some money instead of buying the Barons tach. Love the look of the Barons tach, just could not justify the price. I used a Drag Specialties 1 7/8 mini tach and Formotion or Kuryaken P clamp.

 

Thanks, that helps a lot!

 

What is the gauge down by the gas cap? I like that mounting point too.

[Hotrod]

It is a clock from Formotion.

[Richie R]

That looks cool, looks like something I may have to add to my baby.

 

Richie R