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/5 Flasher Relay Woes (Mounting and vibration issues/etc)

jbf

New member
Hey all,

So I replaced the flasher relay on my bike almost a year ago. The relay itself is a mechanical switch relay and its been working great until about a week ago. I noticed a few issues:


1. Relay is loose in the 'hella' three prong terminal
2. Entire relay/terminal assembly is also loose and is barely fitted on the screw / rubber mount assembly.


I figure its possible the amount of vibration at freeway speed + lack of secure mount for the relay and hella terminal could be contributin to the loose fitting relay as well.


Ive looked at the microfiche and have found most of the parts for the relay to mount to the headlight bucket, but the diagrams are pretty small.


Does anyone happen to have a better/clear picture on how this all is supposed to secure to the mounting plate within the headlight bucket?


Do you think it may be time to replace the hella terminal assembly?





Cheers all!

-j
 
Not sure I have any info, jbf. I was hoping that Lew or even Ken would chime in...they've both have /5s...Ken has been doing some recent work in his headlight shell. I actually check on his thread a few pages back but didn't see anything that I figured would help. Maybe you should page back looking for Ken Tuvman's thread on his headlight work...maybe you'll see something that helps you. :dunno
 
Awesome. Thanks for the Info kurt. I sent a PM to Ken Tuvman so hopefully he'll be able to shed some light on the subject.

I'll share the information with everyone once I hear back.


Cheers!



-Jonathan
 
Inside bucket 1971 R75/5

Pic shows orig BMW mount and non-BMW ordinary auto parts flasher plugged into it
 

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Hi Jonathon - if t/s relay not fitting snugly in socket could it be the relay is not OEM?
Mine is a Lucas, came on the bike and fits snugly - the socket is just stuffed inside the headlight bucket - not attached to anything. Do you have a Haynes or Clymer service manual? You need a schematic if you plan on spending time inside the bucket.

How long have you had the bike? Where in LA do you live? Are you aware of Airheads.org? They publish a monthly newsletter and also host various tech days - if you need contact info let me know.

Your problem is solve-able - if you're interested in DIY, it will take some focus and patience. Lew Morris, on our forum, is one of the most knowledgeable and nicest persons you'll find in our Airhead Forum - let me know how it goes

P.S. If you're not aware of Hucky's Spare Parts, he sells many new slash 5 parts - he won't do diagnosis via email or phone - another good resource is Craig "Vech" - his website is probably listed in Kurt's resource link under his signature line - Craig will help you over the phone and also should have parts to sell you if you need a new socket or t/s relay.
 
Hi Jonathon - if t/s relay not fitting snugly in socket could it be the relay is not OEM?
Mine is a Lucas, came on the bike and fits snugly - the socket is just stuffed inside the headlight bucket - not attached to anything. Do you have a Haynes or Clymer service manual? You need a schematic if you plan on spending time inside the bucket.

How long have you had the bike? Where in LA do you live? Are you aware of Airheads.org? They publish a monthly newsletter and also host various tech days - if you need contact info let me know.

Your problem is solve-able - if you're interested in DIY, it will take some focus and patience. Lew Morris, on our forum, is one of the most knowledgeable and nicest persons you'll find in our Airhead Forum - let me know how it goes

P.S. If you're not aware of Hucky's Spare Parts, he sells many new slash 5 parts - he won't do diagnosis via email or phone - another good resource is Craig "Vech" - his website is probably listed in Kurt's resource link under his signature line - Craig will help you over the phone and also should have parts to sell you if you need a new socket or t/s relay.


Hey Ken,

I actually installed the relay myself (replaced an older one) and it fit very snug in the beginning. When my turn signals started acting intermittent I popped the headlight off and noticed that the relay was loose in the connector. Not to mention the connector itself was not fixed to the rubber mount.


I'm actually out near Monterey Park, CA (near pasadena and east los angeles) but I work in Burbank/Glendale. I checked for a tech day down here but didnt see anything. Granted I only looked through the airheads website (dont have the latest airmail around here)
 
Inside bucket 1971 R75/5

Pic shows orig BMW mount and non-BMW ordinary auto parts flasher plugged into it



Can you perhaps get a clearer image of the actual mount or at least some sort of information on how the flasher is secured to the rubber mount?

Mine will just sit on the rubber mount post/screw and it easily jiggles and shakes around.
 
Hi Jonathan - I don't think mounting the socket is your problem - if the relay flasher is popping out of the socket it could be you need to slightly bend the blades out a bit to get a tighter fit or the socket has worn out which doesn't sound right.

I bet Lew will weigh in soon! In the meantime, I'd keep exploring. There is a solution.
 
"Can you perhaps get a clearer image of the actual mount or......."

Sorry better camera is broken - I am better at keeping bikes going than fixing cameras

From top to bottom:

The flasher is plugged into Hella brown plastic or bakelite fixture same as used for headlight

There is a rubber mount between this fixture and the mounting plate projecting from the side of the headlight shell
this rubber mount has bonded on threaded projections up and down - one goes into the bakelite fixture and is secured with a nut
Other goes down through mounting plate and is secured with a nut
The original taller BMW flasher had a large spring around it also for vibration damping

All this is original setup which in my opinion is not needed for ordinary function
All that is needed is to crimp on terminals to the ends of wires going to the bakelite fixture
and then push these terminals over the spades projecting from any ordinary "heavy duty" flasher - the kind used for older cars with trailers
wrap the whole mess in bubble wrap or foam and stuff into the bucket in such a way that the wrap or foam does not come near the
very hot back end of the H4 bulb

Vibration will no longer be a problem and wire connections will be more failproof
 
"Can you perhaps get a clearer image of the actual mount or......."

Sorry better camera is broken - I am better at keeping bikes going than fixing cameras

From top to bottom:

The flasher is plugged into Hella brown plastic or bakelite fixture same as used for headlight

There is a rubber mount between this fixture and the mounting plate projecting from the side of the headlight shell
this rubber mount has bonded on threaded projections up and down - one goes into the bakelite fixture and is secured with a nut
Other goes down through mounting plate and is secured with a nut
The original taller BMW flasher had a large spring around it also for vibration damping

All this is original setup which in my opinion is not needed for ordinary function
All that is needed is to crimp on terminals to the ends of wires going to the bakelite fixture
and then push these terminals over the spades projecting from any ordinary "heavy duty" flasher - the kind used for older cars with trailers
wrap the whole mess in bubble wrap or foam and stuff into the bucket in such a way that the wrap or foam does not come near the
very hot back end of the H4 bulb

Vibration will no longer be a problem and wire connections will be more failproof


That is a great idea. This may be redundant but do you know the proper size/type nut should be used on the hella connector?
 
Jury rigs are cool. I just prefer to keep everything OEM where possible (and economical); the replacement connector is only $7-8, and will probably last another thirty years or so before you have to replace it again.

We're lucky on these bikes because the electrical system is still relatively "simple" (compared to the /6 and later models). A heavy duty flasher unit is perfectly fine to substitute; just make sure you buy a mechanical one (vs. electronic) ... in my experience they hold up better to vibration.

While you're at it, you might as well buy two ... it's the same connector used on the head light (and it's old too).

The nut, IIRCC, is 4mm.

63128650145.jpg
 
Jury rigs are cool. I just prefer to keep everything OEM where possible (and economical); the replacement connector is only $7-8, and will probably last another thirty years or so before you have to replace it again.

We're lucky on these bikes because the electrical system is still relatively "simple" (compared to the /6 and later models). A heavy duty flasher unit is perfectly fine to substitute; just make sure you buy a mechanical one (vs. electronic) ... in my experience they hold up better to vibration.

While you're at it, you might as well buy two ... it's the same connector used on the head light (and it's old too).

The nut, IIRCC, is 4mm.

63128650145.jpg



Hey Lew (or anyone with a /5)



Question for you. The nut is 4mm but how the heck does it attach to the rubber/screw mount?

When I look at my setup in the bucket, it appears to be setup like this:

Hex/Machine Screw (4mm) inserted with threads facing up - > spring washer - > Headlight bucket mounting plate - > Rubber Mount - > Remainder of threads from screw - > Hella connector ontop - > ?? 4mm nut ??




I don't see how this works. The space where the nut would go on the hella connector is too small to fit a socket or any type of wrench/etc. The diagram makes it seem like the threads are facing upwards.



Wouldnt a better way be to have a hex screw/bolt with spring washer go down into the hella connector, then the threads inserted into the rubber mount (plus spacer/washer), then into the mounting plate, and finalizing it off with a spring washer and a 4mm nut?
 
You've got the plan jb; 4mm panhead screw from the top ... nylok nut on the bottom. I don't think I even have a rubber thingy under mine.

2250-empty-shell.jpg
 
Hey all, so I finally got around to getting a new relay connector. Definitely fixed the problem of intermittent flashers.


On a separate note. I still have no friggin clue how to properly affix the hella assembly to the original OEM rubber mount (it has two bonded threads on both sides of it).

The problem is that the 4mm nut that fits down in the center of the hella connector leaves absolutely no room for a socket wrench/etc. (deep socket or otherwise).


How the hell did these things attach originally? I think somewhere along the line some parts changed and no one updated the diagrams/fiche.


Know this sounds silly but I really want to keep everything stock if possible. The panhead screw fix works if you are using a DIY rubber spacer (or no spacer). But with the original bonded threaded rubber part it seems impossible to secure the connector assembly.
 
I looked at some of the junk parts I have around.

The brown Hella part has a square recess hole molded into it

The original setup seems to have a square nut in this recess that cannot turn in the confined space

So to attach the rubber part with two threaded projections one would simply drop the nut into the recess
and hold in with something like the eraser end of a pencil and then screw the rubber part into the nut
from the bottom side

If you do not have a large enough nut to be prevented from turning in the square recess then just stick
a small screwdriver blade into the recess alongside the nut and then screw the rubber part on

Then mount the combined hella part and its now attached rubber part to the metal bracket in the bucket
 
Ahah! This makes total sense now! Sad the bmw microfiche shows the nut in the diagram but they put it below the hella connector and even then it isnt available by any dealerships or listed as an actual part (not even NLA).



I looked at some of the junk parts I have around.

The brown Hella part has a square recess hole molded into it

The original setup seems to have a square nut in this recess that cannot turn in the confined space

So to attach the rubber part with two threaded projections one would simply drop the nut into the recess
and hold in with something like the eraser end of a pencil and then screw the rubber part into the nut
from the bottom side

If you do not have a large enough nut to be prevented from turning in the square recess then just stick
a small screwdriver blade into the recess alongside the nut and then screw the rubber part on

Then mount the combined hella part and its now attached rubber part to the metal bracket in the bucket
 
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