If it's worth doing right, it's worth doing over

After installing saddlebags, and relocating the turn signals on my wife's Dyna Super Glide, (see my earlier post, "I'm not a very good mechanic") I simply wasn't satisfied with the wiring job on the turn signals.

The stock wiring from the original turn signals was frayed when I first inspected it. It was probably installed that way at the factory. It caused no problems in the original fender-mounted configuration, but when I rerouted the wiring through the metal "license-plate mounted" turn signal stem, the fraying caused the turn signals to short out. So I had to splice the wires very close to where they emerged from the stem. The proximity to the stem and the fender made splicing, soldering, and heat wrapping the wires very nerve racking and tedious. I got it done, but the resulting splices were pretty sloppy, and I'm not sure they were waterproof.

I decided to rewire them today, knowing I could do a better job of splicing and sealing the wires if I did the splicing on the workbench, instead of on the bike.

I did exactly that, and ended up with neatly sealed and waterproofed splices. The only way to accomplish this, since the properly spliced and wrapped wires were too fat to run through the stem, was to run the wires outside the turn signal stem. This freed up enough space to properly splice and wrap the wires.

Purists may object to the "wired" look, preferring the hidden wiring of the original design. But in my case, since the stock wires were frayed to begin with, I would've had to buy new turn signals, with a new, intact, unfrayed wiring harness, in order to route them through the stem.

If I ever have to replace the rear turn signals, that's what I'll do. But in the meantime I have a properly wired, properly waterproofed wiring harness which does the job, and looks good. Well, it looks as good as it can for wires running outside the stem.