Cheap"Cyclone" Alarm fitting/Review

[R1ffR4ff]

As a new owner to the SV650 family and having had a motorbike stolen I've taken to upping my security.Yes we all know if they are determined they will get it but the idea is to put them off onto and easier target.

In view of that and because I'm a tightwad I looked for a cheap motorcycle alarm.I took a chance on one of these,

£13.97

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/EASY-FIT-O...IAAOxy0zhTOFJ3

With a little hacking I found a nice place for it on the SV,




Had to get the angle grinder out(You can use a file) to flatten a bit of the box so it would slide under the hook bar,



Then secured the hole with a bit of black gaffa tape




The wires from the Flashing LED running under the seat to the back,




With the seat on the wires are discrete and I added some tape over the wires where they come through the fairing to allow for chaffing.

It's simple/loud and easy to use and the flashing LED is great

It claims to have a low current draw but I'm fitting an SAE connector to my SV battery so I can easily use my Battery tender anyway

Tip:As I'm working in a cold garage I use a Hairdryer to warm the fairing and the adhesive on the back of the LED to make sure the glue warms and adds to adhesion.A Hairdryer is also useful when doing paint touch-ups to warm metal and the paint prior to application.I come from a Paint Spraying background and adhesives and paint don't like temps below 15 Deg c before application.


PS
It has a,"Bike Finder" button.Press it and it continually beeps so if you have parked in a crowd you can find the bike easy

[bigup]

Nice one mate.

How sensitive is the alarm ? Slighested of nudges triggers it ?

[R1ffR4ff]

Originally Posted by bigup

Nice one mate.

How sensitive is the alarm ? Slighested of nudges triggers it ?

Not tested it on the bike but on a battery in my kitchen and it has four sensitivity settings you set using the key-fobs with a double button combination(Lock and finder buttons on the fob) so can be adjusted to the user's needs.Absolute doddle to use

For 14 quid you can't go wrong.Time will tell how robust is is but then I could put it in a plastic bag with a silica gel pack to make it even more secure against moisture.

Update:
On the factory setting just nudging the bike firmly and the alarm kicks in.

[R1ffR4ff]

I just thought I'd add that I was messing around on me bike today and tried to check the current use with a Digital Multi-meter.According to my findings it's around 130 mA even when not engaged.This may not be good so I'm going to wire it up tomorrow and see how long it takes to drain the battery over the week.

This may not be an issue with the bike garaged and on a Battery tender and or if the bike would be used everyday.I may fit an inline switch run to under the rear seat so the device can be fully switched off and only used when required.

[TicklinJock]

I wonder if the alarm has a battery inside, so the drain current looks high just now, but might drop once the battery is charged.

[SV650rules]

many alarms do draw significant current on standby, my sister in laws car drains its battery in a couple of weeks if left parked, my car (with immobiliser but no alarm can be left for months).

I always mark new batteries with the fitted date as well - just my OCD side showing.

[R1ffR4ff]

Originally Posted by TicklinJock

I wonder if the alarm has a battery inside, so the drain current looks high just now, but might drop once the battery is charged.

I'll check this out but I don't think it does have a battery inside.

[R1ffR4ff]

Originally Posted by SV650rules

many alarms do draw significant current on standby, my sister in laws car drains its battery in a couple of weeks if left parked, my car (with immobiliser but no alarm can be left for months).

I always mark new batteries with the fitted date as well - just my OCD side showing.

I'm the same.I don't consider it OCD just a good marker for knowing how long the battery has been used and when it was fitted.I thank the previous owner for doing this.

Over the years I've found batteries to be a bit like Spark plugs.You get a good one out-of-the-batch and it can last for many more years than expected.I had a set of stock NGK plugs in one of my CX500s that did well over 20,000 miles and still had great electrodes.

I've bought a set of Iridiums for the SV but will ride the bike first when the better weather comes and I've finished doing my ,"Mods".
I usually only change plugs when they falter as I've known some new plugs to be crap and breakdown before they should

[embee]

I have what looks to be almost the same item http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/EASY-FIT-M...0AAOxyVLNSz-tf fitted to my NC700, just without the flashing LED. I wanted something very simple which would hopefully alert me if someone tampered with the bike at night while I'm on camping trips. I tried a Xena disc lock with alarm but I found it too twitchy, occasional false alarms, and it means having to physically unlock the thing to stop it, not campsite friendly.


So far it has been reliable. I fitted it with a hidden in-line switch so it is isolated when I don't actually want it operating so don't have to worry about drain. I measured the drain current to make sure it wouldn't be an issue overnight, I can't remember exactly what it was but it was in the low double digit range, 10 or 20mA or something relatively trivial (as long as you're not leaving it for more than a day or 2).
Like you I thought at that price it's worth the punt, if it dies then in the bin, no big deal, but so far so good.

[R1ffR4ff]

Originally Posted by embee

I have what looks to be almost the same item http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/EASY-FIT-M...0AAOxyVLNSz-tf fitted to my NC700, just without the flashing LED. I wanted something very simple which would hopefully alert me if someone tampered with the bike at night while I'm on camping trips. I tried a Xena disc lock with alarm but I found it too twitchy, occasional false alarms, and it means having to physically unlock the thing to stop it, not campsite friendly.


So far it has been reliable. I fitted it with a hidden in-line switch so it is isolated when I don't actually want it operating so don't have to worry about drain. I measured the drain current to make sure it wouldn't be an issue overnight, I can't remember exactly what it was but it was in the low double digit range, 10 or 20mA or something relatively trivial (as long as you're not leaving it for more than a day or 2).
Like you I thought at that price it's worth the punt, if it dies then in the bin, no big deal, but so far so good.

As I do have some electronic knowledge Digital multi-meters aren't always the best for checking low amps use so my figure could have been wrong.
I've put the SVs battery on my Tender and when full will wire the alarm and see how long it will go before it depletes the Battery to a point where the bike won't start.

I've also sent for a couple of small on-off mini buttons

http://vod.ebay.co.uk/vod/FetchOrder...&ul_noapp=true



and will fit one for the Alarm and like you want a hidden immobilizer so if you don't mind whereabouts did you break into the ignition circuit?I don't need to know where you fitted your switch

PS
Even having the flashing LED can be a deterrent