Stebel Nautilus Install pics or tips

[RoadKingX]

Here is the wiring diagram I used to connect the Stebel
http://www.bikerhiway.com/installinfo/stebel/wiringdiagram.pdf

Positive from the battery to 87 terminal.
30 terminal to the positive tab on the compressor.
Negative tab on the compressor to ground.
Soldered into the two wires coming from the OEM horn and
connected them to the 85 & 86 terminals.
I don't think it makes any difference which wire goes to which terminal.

I hacked into the horn wires where they enter the bike harness right under
the right top cover. Pix below show blue & gray wires where I came out if the
harness.

Hope this helps since I'm not sure how your purchased harness is wired.

[SonnyC]

Finally, it is done.  I had to do it twice!  Originally installed it on the left side near the tank and behind the top foam.  Had all the wires connected and tested it.  When I was reinstalling the middle fairing, I found the compressor was on the way by about an1 inch.  Go to Plan "B".  Remove compressor, fabricate a mount using a 2"X4"X1/8 flat aluminum and drilled two holes.  Top hole was bolted to the left side of the stress frame.  Bottom hole is where I mounted the compressor.  The horn was zip tied, and taped (industrial 2 sided tape) to the top of the left fork with the baffle oriented to the right of the bike.  Vinyl tube is about 2.5 ft.  Made sure the hot wire was away from exhaust header.  Tomorrow I'll test the mounting stability by riding to Los Angeles and I know I'll have ample opportunities to blast away at some crazy cagers in LA.  See pictures.

[Jeremy Mitchell]

Guys,

I mounted mine under the left side fairing.
I made a "L" bracket out of a piece of aluminum and mounted it to frame.
There is just enough room to get all the plastic back on there.

later,
C-14 Pilot

Did you mount it to the forward fastener for the frame brace, right in front of the coolant tank?  That is where mine is mocked up and it looks like it will work nicely.  I just have to wait for my son to wake up from his nap before I can start testing to make sure all my wiring is correct.

[maxtog]

I just have to wait for my son to wake up from his nap before I can start testing to make sure all my wiring is correct.

Make sure all your neighbors' children are also awake too...

[SonnyC]

To Jeremy,
     Yes, I did indeed mounted the compressor section on the forward bolt on the frame brace.  Funny think, my dog was taking a nap in the garage while I was working on the bike.  When I was done, I hit the horn button...let me tell you, with the horn section mounted in front of the radiator...it was very loud...my  choc. lab must have jumped 2 feet in the air with a look of sheer terror on its face.  I hope I did not do any permanent psychological damage to my pooch.  Later this afternoon, off to LA and its famous traffic.  I know I'll have opportunities to really test it there.

SonnyC

[Jeremy Mitchell]

I got everything mounted up.  The Stebel is plenty loud where I have it.  It doesn't sound muffled at all.  It is actually louder than the one I had on my last bike.  It is protected fairly well from the elements and the sound comes out the left fairing and through the radiator.  My son absolutely  loves it!

I will say that Murph's Stebel wiring kit is top notch (two thumbs up Murph).  I did have to lengthen the hot and ground wires for the Stebel since I mounted it in a different location than normal, but the kit made everything a breeze.  I just cut and formed some steel plate to act as my mounting bracket and keep everything clear of the header and cooling fans.

[maxtog]

I got everything mounted up.  The Stebel is plenty loud where I have it.

I looked at that location when mounting mine and rejected it because it is too close to the extremely hot exhaust header.  I felt it would cause premature failure.  Maybe it won't, but I wasn't willing to take that chance.

[SonnyC]

That looks good.  I like what you did with the wires.  What is that black thing around the wires?  Is it heat shrink or some kind of heat shield?  What kind/brand?  So far I've taken the bike for a 200+ mile ride to Los Angeles yesterday, 40 miles in traffic and had to lane split.  So far nothing has melted yet.

SonnyC

[Jeremy Mitchell]

SonnyC, it is just regular wire loom.  I think I have everything spaced far enough away to not have to worry about heat damage. 

Maxtog, if my electric fans have survived 30+ thousand miles even closer to the header then I think the Stebel should be ok.

[maxtog]

Maxtog, if my electric fans have survived 30+ thousand miles even closer to the header then I think the Stebel should be ok.

That is a valid point, although there are many different types of plastics and composition.

[just gone]

I just mounted a Stebel horn, but instead of mounting the whole horn, I separated the horn from the compressor.
The compressor is mounted under the right hand inner cover in front of the Rostra CC and the horn is mounted on the rear of the left front fork.
The horn is connected to the compressor by a length of plastic tube.

Until then here is where I got the original idea.
http://www.sportbikes.net/forums/fz6-mods/343461-hidden-stebel-nautilus-horn-install.html
It's a bit of work to do but since space is a premium this gives you some options. Plus it gets the horn out from under the plastic.
I can detect no delay with the separated horn(the OEM horn is still operational) and it is LOUD!

Separating the compressor is a great idea for this horn!

 I separated mine as well and mounted the compressor (as many others have) under the right side cover in front of my Rostra CC. Taking a note from Fred H.'s inner fairing install of his Gold Wing horns, I found that the Stebel Nautilus plastic horn fit well in roughly the same spot. It's just an experiment for now so pardon the shoddy work. When the inner cover is attached the foam compresses and the horn is fairly stable but not rigidly mounted. Accordingly (not pictured) I put some foam between the horn and the right front turn signal wires to protect them from the pipe fittings. I used 12 gauge wire straight from the battery (using an inline 30 amp fuse close to the battery connection) to the relay and left the original horn in the circuit. The horn seems to work fine so far. After a month or so I'll go back in and tiddy things up and may actually seal the horn opening better with some closed cell foam. If all goes well I think I'll get a Harbor Freight version of the Stebel Nautilus and install it on the other side.

[maxtog]

Separating the compressor is a great idea for this horn!

 I separated mine as well and mounted the compressor (as many others have) under the right side cover in front of my Rostra CC. Taking a note from Fred H.'s inner fairing install of his Gold Wing horns, I found that the Stebel Nautilus plastic horn fit well in roughly the same spot. It's just an experiment for now so pardon the shoddy work. When the inner cover is attached the foam compresses and the horn is fairly stable but not rigidly mounted. Accordingly (not pictured) I put some foam between the horn and the right front turn signal wires to protect them from the pipe fittings. I used 12 gauge wire straight from the battery (using an inline 30 amp fuse close to the battery connection) to the relay and left the original horn in the circuit. The horn seems to work fine so far. After a month or so I'll go back in and tiddy things up and may actually seal the horn opening better with some closed cell foam. If all goes well I think I'll get a Harbor Freight version of the Stebel Nautilus and install it on the other side.

The creativity of the people on this board never stops amazing me

[Caffeinated]

I got everything mounted up.  The Stebel is plenty loud where I have it.  It doesn't sound muffled at all.  It is actually louder than the one I had on my last bike.  It is protected fairly well from the elements and the sound comes out the left fairing and through the radiator.  My son absolutely  loves it!

I will say that Murph's Stebel wiring kit is top notch (two thumbs up Murph).  I did have to lengthen the hot and ground wires for the Stebel since I mounted it in a different location than normal, but the kit made everything a breeze.  I just cut and formed some steel plate to act as my mounting bracket and keep everything clear of the header and cooling fans.

Figured I'd dredge up this old post rather than a new one....

Jeremy, does this placement have any affect of heat dissipation? I have an '11, and the big opening on the side is really the only way for the heat to get out, since everything else is sealed.

Also, got the Stebel from Murphs, and it seems they have added a plastic covering over the entire horn now, which looks to make it a bit beefier/larger and much harder to separate the compressor from the horn. I was going to go this route, but if it's fine down below I'll do that.

[Jeremy Mitchell]

Figured I'd dredge up this old post rather than a new one....

Jeremy, does this placement have any affect of heat dissipation? I have an '11, and the big opening on the side is really the only way for the heat to get out, since everything else is sealed.

Also, got the Stebel from Murphs, and it seems they have added a plastic covering over the entire horn now, which looks to make it a bit beefier/larger and much harder to separate the compressor from the horn. I was going to go this route, but if it's fine down below I'll do that.

No issues at all.  It is up in front of the opening.  I don't think I would go through a puddle deep enough to soak the compressor so I am happy I kept the horn together. 

[wildnphx]

So I seperated mine and now all I get is a low sound like air wrench without enough air comming from compressor...

I don't think it has anything to do with the seperation but the fact that I have it wired using factory wiring and it is not getting enough current.  I will try it on a car batt to see if that is indeed the problem.  Do you guys use existing horn button and wires?

[just gone]

So I seperated mine and now all I get is a low sound like air wrench without enough air comming from compressor...

I don't think it has anything to do with the seperation but the fact that I have it wired using factory wiring and it is not getting enough current.  I will try it on a car batt to see if that is indeed the problem.  Do you guys use existing horn button and wires?

I use the existing horn wires ONLY to trigger a relay that gets power from a 30 AMP circuit (that I installed from the battery), the relay then powers the Stebel. When I checked the amp draw using a battery charger before my install it was a little over 15 amps (edit: specs say 18 amps), so I'm fairly certain you are correct, that it is not getting enough current. I'm kinda surprised that you haven't blown a fuse using the existing circuit. Using a relay will let you not only keep the original horn, but will also help your horn button to last for the life of the bike. I could be wrong (heated gear?) but I think the only thing that draws more current than a Stebel is the starter motor.



http://www.ehow.com/video_4874551_wire-relay.html

http://www.gadgetjq.com/airhorn.htm

http://www.nathanielsalzman.com/diy/diy-stebel-nautilus-air-horn/

[Jeremy Mitchell]

Just an FYI, Murphs has a wiring harness that will allow you to keep the original horn in the loop and it makes installation a breeze.  $20 well spent IMO.

[maxtog]

Just an FYI, Murphs has a wiring harness that will allow you to keep the original horn in the loop and it makes installation a breeze.  $20 well spent IMO.

Totally agreed.  I bought that harness and it is nice.  I love having BOTH horns, because it is yet more sound.  Plus I can tap the horn button super-fast and get a "beep" out of the OEM without resorting to the full megablast.

One should *NOT* attempt to run the Stebel Nautilus horn through the factory switch/wiring.  It requires far too much current, so the voltage will drop greatly, causing the horn to be weak, if it works at all.  It will also wear out the factory horn switch.  Always use a relay and connect directly (fused, of course) to the battery.

[Caffeinated]

Got my Stebel mounted and wired this weekend. I mounted it on the lower left right behind the radiator like C14-Pilot and Jeremy did. I have a 2011 though, so was concerned with it blocking the heat venting out the side.  Don't think it will be much of a problem though, and since it's mounted low and outside, I don't get the noise blast if mounted on the upper right.

Used Murphs mounting harness and like everyone says, it is the best and easiest, and having the OEM horn is a plus. I added some wire to extend it a bit to fit my install
Here are some pic of the install. Not totally happy with the relay placement, so it may get moved.

[wally_games]

Got my Stebel mounted and wired this weekend. I mounted it on the lower left right behind the radiator like C14-Pilot and Jeremy did. I have a 2011 though, so was concerned with it blocking the heat venting out the side.  Don't think it will be much of a problem though, and since it's mounted low and outside, I don't get the noise blast if mounted on the upper right.

Used Murphs mounting harness and like everyone says, it is the best and easiest, and having the OEM horn is a plus. I added some wire to extend it a bit to fit my install
Here are some pic of the install. Not totally happy with the relay placement, so it may get moved.

I've never pulled the lower side fairing to get access to that area. How much of a pain is it? Anything that I should look out for?

Rather than add wire to get back to the battery, couldn't you connect it to the power connections that are hidden under the L/H glove box?