wow,that was a pretty good idea Starky,but the wire i chose was near the fuse box,and by tapping into it,it only has power "available" to the controls/relay (when key is in the on position),but doesnt actually draw any juice until you actuate the winch control

i ended up having to lengthin the red control switch wire about 10 inchs to get it to where i needed to be(used connectors,and shrink tube),,,but with your placement i wouldnt had to do that

it doesnt put extra drain on the battery having to use the lights the same time you use the winch everytime?

 

Did you cut into the cable that goes to the light switch? Was there only one wire in the light switch cable?

 

my winch isnt drawing power all of the time my key is turned on,,,the power is only available to the winch when the key is in the on position,,,,,the only time the winch is drawing power from the bike is when you close the circuit to the relay,by depressing the winch actuator switch to reel,or feed,,,thats when the winch control switch tell's the relay (the part i mounted in the trunk under the seat)which circuit to open,and which circuit to close

 

Starky,,,i thought about the headlight wire,,,,are you saying you have to have ythe headlights on in order to use the winch?

if so,i would think that,that is worse for your battery,and charging system,since you are using unnecessary power,while trying to run your winch,,,,,that is the only way i can figure your way to work,because the only way to make that wire to your headlights "hot",is to close the circuit to the headlights in order to turn them on