I was thinking that my next project would be a backup light for my Prairie. There are some that will activate when the quad it put in reverse. I assume this is done by using the wire that feeds the red reverse light and connecting to a relay. Has anyone attempted to do this and have you had good luck with it? Thanks.

 

There are many ways to do this job.There is a reverse signal at the cdi (I believe)which is a negative (-) signal.I did this job on my p650 before i knew about the cdi wire,I think i used the orange wire in the handle bar housing going to the insterment cluster.What I did was wired the negative reverse wire to position 85 of relay coil.I then used the rear light positive (+) to position 86 of relay coil.This only lets the reverse light on when in reverse and light switch is on.Don't forget to fuse the main power to relay position 30 and position 87 would be your reverse positive(+) output.It works great this way,Good luck. M/M

 

I did it but have not written it up yet. Likely won't write it up until spring, but here's a pic of a typical "auto relay" that will help you with the wires....

Click here for Basic Relay description

 

I just used a toggle for the fact that when I am plowing it is helpful to always have them on.
when I need them.

 

The system i hooked up is the best I think. it is the most simple and the most reliable. first fo buy a set of optronics atv lights, they are small and the reflector is awesome, plus they are durable, and the bulb they come with has an awesome white color. you can do this with any lights, mabey some you get at wal mart, where I got my optronics. Anyway throw away all of the wiring that comes with it. get some good 16 gague wire and use that for the hookup. then get a good heavy duty two way toggle switch from an auto parts store, they are about 5 bucks. you dont need a relay, it is just an extra piece of equipment to break. I've had more than one relay fail. A relay is just going to take some amperage off of the switch, that is not necessary with a heavy duty toggle. then hook the lights up to the battery with the switch and a fuse inline. this system works really well. you get two lights this way. one I mounted on the handle bar cover so I could have some light where I moved my handlebars. And I mounted the other one under my rack for a reverse light. the switch is mounted on the fender to the left of the airbox cover. when I push the switch foreward the front light goes on. when I push the switch back the reverse light goes on. this set up is nice because the key does not have to be in the ignition to work. I'll post some pics later today so you can see what I'm talking about.

 

I appreciate this help......I've always wondered why backup lights don't come with ATV's as an option. There are too many times that I wish I had one and I plan on getting this one hooked up.

 

I went the Toggle switch and got a 55 Watt utility/tractor light from Walmart. I leave my gun carrier on my rear rack year round and mounted the toggle switch to it. Wired the swich directly to battery so I could have light without engine running or key installed. I mounted the toggle so that the on position would have to be pushed forward and mounted light to rear rack plastic directly above brake light. Works great. Really helps out when having to back up at night on the trails or pulling your stuck buddy out at night.[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-cool.gif[/img]

 

Here is my secret which looks and works nicely. I am an electrical engineer and don’t like splicing into wires because the wire and contacts may not be designed to handle the current of the reverse light. Plus I didn’t want to mount a switch on the ATV.

These are the two parts needed to hook up your light with using the 12VDC asc. Socket. Total cost is under $15

Wire this one to your light
http://www.radioshack.com/product.as...%5Fid=270-1509
This has screw terminals and is fused protected

This one plugs into your asc 12VDC and then run the wire with wire ties to the rear of the bike where the light is.
This has a switch with LED to turn on or off as needed
http://www.radioshack.com/product.as...%5Fid=270-1559

So far I have this installed for about 6 months and have given it allot of abuse.(wet,cold,mud) It still works great. Even if it does go its an inexpensive way to solve this problem. I think many of you who are not great at wiring can handle to do this one yourself. IF you need pics let me know and I will try to post them. Hope this helps

 

A coupla replies to a coupla posts in this thread.

The accessory socket is only fused with a 5 amp fuse and has some weakly gauged wires. If yer gonna put more than a 55 watt 4.6 amp lamp on it (two 55's would draw near 10 amps), ya might wanna beef up the fuse and watch the wires.

Click here for an amp calculator

A relay is an excellent alternative to fried switches if you are working with a coupla 55 watt lamps or large horns. They also allow for some creative switching when, like the reverse light on the Prairie, the switching is done with the ground circuit and not the hot. Mount a relay in a "lesser" dirty place like under the air cleaner cover or near the CDI and make sure the end where the wires go in points down. I've sealed a few with silicone like on my grandson's Bombardier 90 (my post icon see left). I use relays all the time and haven't ever lost one in many many years of service. I use one to work the horns I have mounted up front on the Prairie. I use relays to work 110 watts worth of backup lights on my Avalanche to come on with the reverse lights (which are OEM switched with hot) and to also come on anytime with the cargo lamp (which is OEM switched with ground like the Prairie reverse). I use one to trigger a bank of six air horns on the Avalanche as well (BEEEEP! [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-shocked.gif[/img] ). Long years of service no probs in 70,000 miles.

Relays are rated at a quarter million "iterations" or more and are reliable. They only need a coupla milliamps to switch a large draw like 110 watts 9+ amps worth of lights.

When the thread was initiated by Rebel and titled "backup lights" assume that the lights would work automatically with the shift lever in reverse. Here's a circuit that would work as a "backup light" on the Prairie lighting up whenever the shift lever is in reverse while she's running... click here for pic of circuit

If yer just mounting field lamps that's something else again and a switch or a plug-in makes more sense (not using the reverse light). But I would (and do) use a relay for the main draw and use the switch to trigger the relay running 55 watts or more back there.

Note: I don't use the circuit pictured above so it has not been tested thoroughly

 

Rattlebars,good post dude!!! That schematic for the p 650 is bang on.That's pretty much how I did mine.I mentioned (orange) but it's definately red/wht.This system works good.

I would like to state this one very important note which is overlooked alot.You should fuse any add on wires to the battery.If they ever dead short with no fuse they can catch on fire (worst case,like a filiment in a light glows red hot burning the outer insulation)or backfeed to the sensitive electronics.Fuses play a very important roll.

Just my two cents worth!!!