Acumen Plug-In Gear Indicator

OK Guys...Update.
Received an e-mail today that it's been shipped. As soon as it arrives (Hopefully this week), I'll be happy as a little boy running barefoot through a field of titties.

 

That's just funny, I don't care who you are!

 

Laughin' my ass off!

 

Ben. I tried to figure that philosophic though of your in my mind. I immediately gave me flashbacks:biggrin: . Keep me informed, I want to get that too. I'm tired of hitting that 7th gear with no luck.:frusty:

 

Yoda Man will do.

 

The Install

OK Guys. What you all have been waiting for. Gear Indicator came in today, and I was immediately on it. Lets begin.........
Please keep in mind this is for a 6th Gen Version.
First of all, the Gear Indicator comes with no install instructions. Instructions included are for programming the Indicator. So it's best to have access to a service manual. Thanks to VFR world, I had access to the downloaded version.
1. Remove the two plastic trim pieces on on each side of the instrument panel. (2 hex screws and one plastic on each side).
2. Remove the two trim pieces that hold the wind screen. (One phillips head and on hex screw on each side). Remove wind screen.
3. Now the tricky part that gave me a fit and resulted in numerous cuss words. Removing the Center Panel (gauge cover). There are two visible plastic screws on the front. What you can't see unless you look up underneath, is that there are two boss/grommets which you must gently pull out to release the panel. Again there is one on each side. I finally had to take a very small scew driver and push from the bottom to release. Again, be gentle. It's all plastic.
4. With the center panel off, you'll have easy access to the wiring harness that plugs into the back of the instrument panel. Unplug, and plug supplied wiring harness into rear of panel, and the factory harness will plug into the other end of the supplied harness. It's then just a matter of placing the gear indicator where you want it, and putting it all back together.
5. Programming was pretty easy to follow using the supplied instructions. The blue display on the gear indicator is pretty cool. Once programmed it works like a charm. For neutral you have a choice between n, N or 0.

 

Excellent write-up and nice pics!!:thumb:
I have been thinking about insalling one of these also so thanks for the post!!!

Cheers!

 

Good job on the write up and I'm glad you got the panel off with out breaking it.

Action

 

Nice write up. Easy to see. Are you going to leave it on the triple clamp or mount it somewhere else?

 

Good Question. I tried different spots on the meter panel, but I could NOT find a good spot for it to mount correctly. Every time I did find a spot, I found that when you turned the hard right or left, the cables would hit it.

So, reluctantly I mounted it on on the triple clamp.
I wish I could find some pictures of the acumen mounted on other vfr's but I couldn't.

 

nice write-up, i wish i could mine as well as that. i have seen that indicator and have debated on it. maybe some time in the future .

 

Excellent write up. Thanks for that. Whats your opinion of the functionality of the unit ? Is there much delay in its indication ?

 

Thanks Tori.
1st Question: Functionality for me is great. I love it, and wish I had bought it last year. I got tired of thinking I had another gear...you know the elusive ghost 7th gear. I also like gadgets. I know there are riders out there who don't need it, but for me it helps.

2nd Quesiton: Out on the road, I haven't noticed any delay. I don't drive hard, and go through the gears fast, so I'm just talking about your everyday driving.
The only delay I saw, was when I was programming the unit, which requires putting the bike on the center stand and shifting through the gears.
Again, this was with the bike on the center stand.

I really enjoy the unit and knowing what I know now about the &$^# center panel, I could install one in about 15 minutes.
The unit appears to be well built and the wiring harness is sturdy with no cheap looking cables.
Take care and ride safe.

 

Thanks Ben, it does look like a quality piece. Id like to have one for mine, and will be putting it on the shopping list.

How about a video....... maybe the bike on the center stand running thru the gears ??

 

Will do Torre. I was going to do that for my brother who drives a Beemer. I'll post it when it's done.

 

I used to find myself searching for 7th gear all the time. Now, I just kind of get this inkling feeling that I'm out of gears and don't attempt to shift again.

 

More Pics

I was helping another VFR Member out (RedRover5683)..good guy by the way..and thought I would post these additional pictures which may help someone else.
RedRover's question ..."device in question has enough cord length to allow
for some flexibility and creativity in terms of positioning it within
the bike's cockpit."
A: As you can see from the picture below, there is plenty of additional cord to play around with.
Second Question..."In one of your follow-up posts, you said "I really enjoy the unit and knowing what I know now about the &$^# center panel, I could install one in about 15 minutes." Question: What exactly did you discover, figure out, and find a simple/quick solution to, which you now realize
would've saved you so much time?"
A: The back of the meter panel there are two plastic tabs that extend about an inch that press into rubber grommets. They are in there GOOD and TIGHT. I was so afraid I was going to break something, but the trick for me was to take a small screwdriver, like the ones you use on glasses, and come up from the bottom to push the tab out.
Keep in mind that you don't have to take the entire panel off, but it makes it easier to run the wires, etc.

 

Update?

Ben, just wondering how this unit is holding up for you? Are you still enjoying it? Think about pulling the trigger myself, but want to make sure this "toy" holds up to the test of time. tia

 

Hey Mav.....I wish I could tell you that it held up, but that is NOT the case, which I hate because I really liked knowing what gear I was in. As sated above the wiring harness was built well, but the part that fell apart was the plastic part on top of the gear indicator. I was washing my bike one day, and noticed that the top of the indicator was fogged up. After further inspection, I noticed the top of the gear indicator (the clear part that lights up) had become unglued and peeled up letting water in. I was pissed because I had only had it for 5 months. I sent a lengthy email to Riderstation.com where I purchased it explaining what happened and their response was pretty crappy...."glue it back or you can purchase another unit".

Mav if you get one, I hope you have better luck than I did. Again, it worked well, just did not hold up. I feel like the folks at Riderstation should have replaced it as much as they cost, since it was only 5 months old, so I would not recommend purchasing from them if you do buy one.
Good Luck and let me know what you do.

 

Thanks for the update Ben, I was afraid this might be the case, I've viewed several other forums where they had similar results. This may be my dumb question of the day but....."Did the unit see much rain or water?" I'm going to look around at other manufacturers, I'd hate to go through the trouble to install and it just last a few months, let me know if you switch to something else Ben.