Wolfie's Aprilia Futura Pages: Futura primary can derestriction removing the catalytic converter

PowerLet Install Notes
by
Tim Ryan

This is a write-up on installing several PowerLet products on an Aprilia Futura - including an accessory power socket; a tankbag power kit, and a couple of various style connectors to provide convenient electrical power to accessories many motorcyclists like to use.

I cannot say enough positive things about John Swiatek’s PowerLet products and his very helpful website: www.powerletproducts.com I highly recommend a visit to that website. The service and quality I received were the best.

I removed the front right dash panel, and could see this pigtail zip-tied to a cluster of other wires. I reached in with an X-acto knife to cut the two zip-ties one at a time and replaced them with my own after freeing the pigtail. The orange wire is positive and the blue is ground. You can see that the pigtail is long enough that no extra wiring was necessary to connect to the power socket.

The Powerlet socket plugs directly in to the motorcycle’s pigtail – no splicing or soldering necessary.

With an 11/16ths hole saw, I quickly cut a hole in the dash panel. With the panel removed, I inserted the power socket, make the connection with the pigtail, put blue LocTite on the jam nut, tightened it up and replaced the dash panel. You are now in possession of an easy way to access the bike’s electrical power.

This shows the connection into the power socket of the PowerLet PowerMate cable. It comes with 18 inches of cable, but can easily be shortened if that is too much.

Following the excellent directions in the PowerMate kit, this is what my tankbag looks like with the power cable entering the SAE connector at the front of my tankbag, and the SAE connector on the inside.

This is a view of the outside front of my tankbag. The power cable can be easily detached from the connector. There is a cap which covers the plug when not using the system. One can place the connector at any place on the bag according to personal tastes and setup.

This shows the interior SAE connector of the tankbag.

PowerLet sells a variety of connectors for the inside. Pictured here are SAE-to-two cigar lighter outlets, and SAE-to-one cigar outlet-and one “BMW” style outlet.

What do you want to power? Pictured here are most of my uses: BMW heated vest; GPS/Radar Detector/Police Scanner cluster (which I move as a unit from bike to car); cell phone; MP3 player which uses a power inverter when its internal proprietary battery is drained of power. I can use the one-into-three cigar outlet adapter when I’m running a lot of different items. Another obvious use is to hook up a battery tender.

This shows the underside of the RAM mount I use to have GPS, radar detector, and scanner on one cluster. The GPS is bolted onto the plate, and the radar detector and scanner are velcroed, backed up with a couple of wraps of black electrical tape.

This hazy shot through the windshield shows the RAM mount on the clutch line fitting. The small carabiner to the GPS wrist straps provides a backup should the mount assembly fail.

This shows the cluster mounted, with the power cable coming from the right front dash panel before the tankbag is installed.

Final setup. Sometimes I listen to both the scanner and the radar detector with a two-into-one Y jack; sometimes the radar detector and the MP3. The cellphone is inside the bag, hopefully not to be used much – but at least I have a convenient way to power it up should the battery run out.