[jonapplegate]

Okay, I know I shouldn't have done this but that is why you are here right? RIGHT, MY FRIENDS? I recieved the Bullet turn signals, was eager to get rid of the stock ones but got distracted and forgot which wire was which. Luckily for me, our Indian friends came up with a good solution. The positive wire would be blue. Just in case there was any confusion the negative wire would also be blue, only a slightly different shade. WHICH ONE IS WHICH?  Thanks

[oldsalt]

jonapplegate
Hope tis helps.  I had the turn signals off my 06 Bullet today and made a sketch of the wires and their colors. 

-The right turn signal has a dark blue and a light blue wires.
-The left turn signal has a dark blue and a red.
-The is a snap-together connection for two wires from the tail light bulb.  They are brown [sorta] and green with a yellow stripe.  The brownish goes to the green side of the mateing connector and the green with yellow goes with the gray.
-Wrapped with the snap connector from the tail light bulb is a green wire.  It connects with the black bullet conector.  It's a single connector.  There is a double bullet connector...that's not the one.
-The double bullet connector takes a dark blue wire from the right and left turnsignals.
-The red wire from the left turn signal connects to the black with white stripe.
-The light blue wire from the right turn signal connects with the black with green stripe. 

Hope that does it.  Put mine back together useing the above notes and everything works.  A word of caution....Be very sure that the bullet connectors are infact FIRMLY pushed into the female side.  The bullet connectors can fool you about really being engaged.     

[geoffbaker]

Okay, I know I shouldn't have done this but that is why you are here right? RIGHT, MY FRIENDS? I recieved the Bullet turn signals, was eager to get rid of the stock ones but got distracted and forgot which wire was which. Luckily for me, our Indian friends came up with a good solution. The positive wire would be blue. Just in case there was any confusion the negative wire would also be blue, only a slightly different shade. WHICH ONE IS WHICH?  Thanks

On turn signals I believe that you can reverse polarity safely... in otherwords, it doesnt matter which is which... unless you have a bike with only one connector the other being the ground...

But I am sure more knowledgable users will correct me if I am wrong

[cowboysculptor]

Whenever I'm taking apart wiring, I like to fold a little tag of masking tape around each wire and label it on the tape.  Sorry, I know that doesn't help now. Good luck!

Peter

[oldsalt]

Ordered, and received yesterday, a set of turnsignal lights.  Much smaller ones than the stock units.  I'm thinking the local lawmen are  going to let me slide even if they look kinda puny.  In any case today an attempt was made to wire one in and see if there was going to be a problem.  There is a problem.  The OEM turn signal bulb is 10 watts.  The aftermarket bulb is 21 watts.  The flasher will not operate with anythig but a 10 watt [approx.] bulb!   In anycase that is my belief.  Went back and forth between the 10 watt and 21 watt bulb.  One works...one dosen't.   Now I gotta figger out if it will be easier to: 1. Find 10 watt bulbs that will fit the strangest socket ever encountered in the free world [The pins are offset..not 90 degrees!  There is nothing in the McMaster-Carr catalog that even shows this base].  2. Wire in resisters in the circut to reduce the draw from 21 to 10 watts.  3.  Find a flasher that will work with 21watt bulbs.  If there be some one out there that has worked this out PLEASE advise me of the cure.  Is this really an Ohm's Law problem or am I missing something.  I know I should leave the proper lights on the Bullet but I want little ones.   

[jonapplegate]

You know, I always tell my friends to take the extra time to label everything because you never know what may happen. I don't know if it is ironic that I would do the very thing I know better than doing but it sucked just the same. I guess we just gotta' remind ourselves why we do the things the way we do.

[geoffbaker]

Like I say, on standard incandescent turn signals you can reverse polarity safely. Not true on some of the LED's and not true on the brake/running light.

[jonapplegate]

Success! My wiring for the front signals is backward to what must be on your bike old salt. The two blue are on the left. Red and dark blue on the right.

[oldsalt]

jon
I was, without reason, thinking you were talking about the REAR turn signals.  Last night I pulled the headlight out and noticed that the colors seem to be switched up there.  geoffbaker is right when he advises that the two wires from a turn signal can be switched without ill effect. 

Has anyone pondered the problem [noted in this thread] regarding only 10 watt turn signal bulbs being compatable with the flasher.  I think an inline resistor would be the easiest to reduce the bulb wattage down to 10.  But I'm sorta slow about fooling with the wireing....this Bullet is still on warranty.  Heck.  Some one has done this switch to aftermarket turn signals.  I don't wanta try to reinvent the wheel.     

[geoffbaker]

jon
I was, without reason, thinking you were talking about the REAR turn signals.  Last night I pulled the headlight out and noticed that the colors seem to be switched up there.  geoffbaker is right when he advises that the two wires from a turn signal can be switched without ill effect. 

Has anyone pondered the problem [noted in this thread] regarding only 10 watt turn signal bulbs being compatable with the flasher.  I think an inline resistor would be the easiest to reduce the bulb wattage down to 10.  But I'm sorta slow about fooling with the wireing....this Bullet is still on warranty.  Heck.  Some one has done this switch to aftermarket turn signals.  I don't wanta try to reinvent the wheel.     

I converted all my turn signals and running lights to LED's and replaced the existing flasher unit with an electronic unit made for LEDs. The result is a very significant drop in power loss. I can literally leave my running lights on all night without killing the battery. In the process I have brighter lights as well. Most commercial plug in LED lights are NOT as bright as the factory standards; but I built my own LED arrays. You can find out more by searching for LED on the threads...

[mike704]

In NC turn signals are optional. But if they are there they must work. one bulb went out they all came off. I have done this to every bike i have ever had. Simple

[oldsalt]

jon
I was, without reason, thinking you were talking about the REAR turn signals.  Last night I pulled the headlight out and noticed that the colors seem to be switched up there.  geoffbaker is right when he advises that the two wires from a turn signal can be switched without ill effect. 

Has anyone pondered the problem [noted in this thread] regarding only 10 watt turn signal bulbs being compatable with the flasher.  I think an inline resistor would be the easiest to reduce the bulb wattage down to 10.  But I'm sorta slow about fooling with the wireing....this Bullet is still on warranty.  Heck.  Some one has done this switch to aftermarket turn signals.  I don't wanta try to reinvent the wheel.     

I converted all my turn signals and running lights to LED's and replaced the existing flasher unit with an electronic unit made for LEDs. The result is a very significant drop in power loss. I can literally leave my running lights on all night without killing the battery. In the process I have brighter lights as well. Most commercial plug in LED lights are NOT as bright as the factory standards; but I built my own LED arrays. You can find out more by searching for LED on the threads...

Thanks for the info.  Those threads were quite interesting.  Great inovation, and all the needed information is there.  I went ahead and looked up a flasher that would handle approx. twice wattage than the OEM flasherwas sized for.  Now the new, tiny signal lights work like they should.  I'll switch everything to LEDs when the bike gets converted to a cafe racer.  That's 'bout 9 months away.  Attached is a picture of the small lights. 

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[geoffbaker]

Thanks for the info.  Those threads were quite interesting.  Great inovation, and all the needed information is there.  I went ahead and looked up a flasher that would handle approx. twice wattage than the OEM flasherwas sized for.  Now the new, tiny signal lights work like they should.  I'll switch everything to LEDs when the bike gets converted to a cafe racer.  That's 'bout 9 months away.  Attached is a picture of the small lights. 

I kept the large rear turn signals as stock but put in 36LED arrays... much brighter!
The front turn signals are small like yours, but LED's... I got them as an aftermarket unit from a local cycle shop. They aren't bright enough. I'm adding some LED lights to my mirrors to increase visibility. I'll upload some pix of that when its done... right now I'm knee deep in my diesel conversion. Good luck with your light project.

[chris-bartlett]

OK, I have the bullet style turn signals. They only have one wire each. I added a ground wire to both (to connect to the middle double connector) and the signals come on, but don't blink. What am I doing wrong?

[cowboysculptor]

I added signals with only one wire myself.  They were grounded through the metal housing, so they work fine.  Have you tried just disconnecting the ground wires?

Peter

[chris-bartlett]

I tried it first without ground wires and the lights don't even come on.

[The Garbone]

I thought you had to replace your flasher with one that is variable load so it does not matter the wattage of the signal is.  When I replaced my signals a few weeks back and went out an bought a noisey 2 wire flasher with variable load at NAPA for $2.26 Its yellow and round and clicks like a relay when flashing.  Not loud enough to hear with the engine running but I wish it was.  Held it in place with a large cable tie wrap at the same location as the stock unit.

[redcat]

Chris , My Bullet signals only have one wire also. As was peviously stated they ground with contact to the bike. Make sure the fastener that secures the turn signal housing to the bike is clean and free of corrosion.

[chris-bartlett]

So nothing goes in the center plug then? I shouldn't need ground wires?

[redcat]

If your signals were sold to you with one wire then they ground out on the bike and should work fine if you have a clean contact when you mount them.

[chris-bartlett]

A break through!
1.) The signals come with rubber gasket/washers. Once I removed those, you're right, I didn't need the ground wires and....

2.) You have to have the front AND back connected in order for them to blink. Got it!

Now the right side blinks, but the left side (rear) only comes on (doesn't blink) and the front left doesn't come on at all. I checked all wires and the wiring diagram and confirmed they're all connected to their proper colored wires (black/green for right, black/white for left) . Maybe it's just a bulb at this point. Thanks for all the help.

[LotusSevenMan]

CB.
Yes, you have found out that you do need a ground (in this case through the body to the bike's earth/chassis).
Also you need front and back connected for the units to operate the flasher unit (it's all to do with resistance). I tied to fit an nice bright LED into the warning light holder for the indicators and due to less resistance than the std 4Watt bulb it didn't work! 
I have small but bright 23w indicators so used a Suzuki GS1000 flasher unit.
Load is of course 50watts when actually illuminated (2 x 23 + 4), but the bike's output copes fine with this.
Glad you're 'getting there'!!! 

[The Garbone]

On my fronts I had to file the coating off at both the location that the signal connects to the signal bracket and were the brackets bolt to the front fork in order to get a good ground without a second wire,  I also had 2 bad bulbs of 4 turn signals,  however I used the bulbs from my stock signals and they fit nicely.

Hope this helps.

[chris-bartlett]

Well I'm stuck. The bulb works when used on other signals, but I get no light out of the current front left signal. (rear comes on fine, doesn't blink - right side functions perfect front and back) The colored wires are correctly linked. I turned it on, then wiggled the wires around in different places to see if I could spark anything on the left front signal. Anyone have tips on running diagnostics for a bad connection? Do I need to unplug and replug every connection down the line?

[bob bezin]

so ole says to sven will you help me check my turn signal? yah shure. ok is it on? yah no yah no yah no yah no yah no

[The Garbone]

I would suggest a cheapo multimeter.  You can pick one up at Walmart or an auto parts store.   
 

Using the volts setting remove the bulb and check  (with signal running) from the contact in the center of the socket to the negative post on the battery,  you should have 12volts. If not take off the headlight and trace it back through.  When I did mine I put the same type of connector that the factory uses and just plugged into the harness behind the headlight.

If you have good voltage to the bulb socket  switch your meter  to ohms, checking from the outer ring of the socket you should have zero to 2 ohms resistance to the negative post of the battery.  If not you have a grounding trouble.   It can be chased the same way as volts,  this is how I realized that I needed to scrape the paint on the bracket for a better ground.

Also you can swap the wires for the left and right signals behind the headlight, if the trouble follows the signal you have problem with the signal,  If it switched sides you have a bad flasher.

Good luck, 
Gary

[meilaushi]

OK, I have the bullet style turn signals. They only have one wire each. I added a ground wire to both (to connect to the middle double connector) and the signals come on, but don't blink. What am I doing wrong?

If your positive and ground connections are good the problem could be an incompatibility between the wattage of the bulbs in the signals and the wattage your turn signal unit is expecting.  I put in a brighter LED bulb in the turn signal indicator in the speedo only to have the same thing happen -- the LED used lower voltage and apparently it was insufficient to get the flasher unit to function.  The appropriate turn signal light would come on but wouldn't flash.  Wisdom from the forum here says to get a more sensitive flasher unit or to get one that will automatically sense the wattage/amps of the bulb(s) and work.  Apparently the OEM flashers are set to work only with the OEM bulbs all around.  Maybe the flasher's the problem.