a radio for my bike.

E

eltatertoto

Guest
well,earlier today somone posted somthing about making a whire radio (jokingly) and that got my brain turnin im not gonna even try it with the white wire, but if i got a 12 vold lead acid battery, and a thrift store radio, would it not be possible? i dont think the radio part would work very well, being a stationary radio moving... but if i found a small radio and dismantled it and somhow mounted it somwhere if its small enough, in my project box. and get a whole system going.... blinkers lights etc. i know i could get it to work, but is there some JUST PLUG IN THE WALL way of charging the lead acid battery? i wouldnt know cause ive never used one..... thanks and any info will be appreciated!
 
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Yeah you could get a charging port and smart charger for a simple SLA battery. Check out this site http://www.electricscooterparts.com/
I've bought a good amount of stuff from them, quick shipping and nice electrical parts on the cheap. I use insulated connectors so I dont have to worry about soldering anything. Also gives you the ability to disconnect and rearrange your electrical system.
Having a radio on a bike that would be audible while riding would have to pull some major wattage though. You'd need some high powered speakers and a good deck for it. So to me an on the go system doesn't sound feasible. However if you wanted built in tunes for those times you wanna park your bike and chill with friends or something like that you could probably get that going just fine. In any case, it's always interesting to see the projects you have buzzing around in your head dude. Keep it up you may just rock the MB world.
 
In any case, it's always interesting to see the projects you have buzzing around in your head dude. Keep it up you may just rock the MB world.
ill take that as a compliment lol, but i got the idea, cause my dad is doing the same thing on his 86' harley softail. but in a molded fair-ing i dunno how to spell it.i realise it would take a bunch of volts, and thats why i wanted to get somthing rechargeable..... i actually have his old harley bat. trying to see if i could use it somewhow, instead of paying 15 bucks on 1 battery! guess that doesnt compare to the 70 dollar 1 he gave me lol. he said it didnt hold a big enough charge for his drag engine.... i probablly wouldent even use it all that much... i usually just use my mp3 in my helmet, but only use 1 earbud, and make it barley audible, so i can stay alert. but if that battery isnt 20lbs lol i might use this idea on my push bike at the very least, cause i do wanna lose some weight...
 
My 5ah SLA must weigh a couple pounds at the very most. You'd probably want 7ah depending on how long you want your tunes going. When you think about it you definitely get your moneys worth since these batteries can be charged up 300+ times as long as you don't abuse them by deep discharge. Even still I think having a good system on a bicycle would be too much bulk unless you made a system right into a saddle bag setup so everything could be self contained, hidden and waterproof. Why not just look around flea markets or something for an old/cheap portable boombox. Look for one that uses 8 C or D cells if possible to make the required 12v. Then just tear everything out of it and mount in your own saddlebag setup. Speaker on either side, radio guts in one bag, battery in the other and you should have plenty of extra space for storage and extra power for a good lighting system (which is a must IMHO.) You can mount the speakers wherever you want on the bike with adhesive backed velcro and tuck them back in the bag when riding in bad weather or when not in use (or even when taking the saddlebags off when you park/lockup the bike) You could even look around for some small used all weather speakers so they don't get destroyed even if you do decide to kick up more roostertails in the slush with tunes going. I've heard boomboxes get pretty darn loud I wouldn't doubt you being able to hear them while motoring around.
 
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thanks jake, i am going to wire this into my turn signal project. i would be more than happy to have saddle bags, but where do i get any? (for a decent price?) thanks. im thinking of finding a radio that has the old style dial that will fit in my project box. cause the radio stations round here do what they like to call "10-in a row rock blocks" and that makes for very long commercials. and i want to change stations. so i might just tear up a clock radio and hook up some beefy speakers. 1 last thing. where do i get a charger for a battery like this? http://www.radioshack.com/product/i...tery&kw=12+volt+sla+battery&parentPage=search thanks.



my bad jake, i didnt read the 1st post duh.
 
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I run a sirius satalite radio on my MB. The satalite radio is already built for 12 volts, has a headphone jack, and is small in size. My receiver only draws .5 amps, so a small 2.2aH 12 volt battery is good for a couple hours of ride time. Oh, and there is no such thing as commercials on satalite radio!

On your battery... most 12 volt sla batteries will list their maximum charge rate on the battery. A small 1.2aH battery, you would probably want a simple wall plug charger with an output between .2-.4 amps. Available at various web stores or local electronics store.
 
thanks mx, im savin up for hd radio, cause i dont got money for monthly payments. hd radio dont have comercials either. and, do they serll chargers that like clide onto the connections? or do i have to strip wires and put my own fittings?
 
Depends on what type of charger you get. Some come bare wired, but most should come with alligator clips on the ends.
 
ok, thanks, ended up being a long ride lol, 50 is the warmest ive ridden in! cause i got these in november lol can you point me to a supplier? thanks again!
 
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