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Headlight pigtail melts

D

db39669

Member
i have a 95 sportster, and every couple of years i have to put a new headlight bulb and pigtail on , i solder and heat shrink the wires and use dieelectric grease on the plug anyone have a fix for this? :wall
 
It's melting from either an oversize bulb or a bad connection. That's about the only things that can do it.
 
Hi, sometimes if there are to many connections in a loop the resistance of the wire goes up causing over heating. If you are splicing in the wires and using the connector you might be putting to much resistance on the load. You can try having the plug rewired with no splices or take the plug out and use only the splice. But instead of a splice you should sauder the wires.
 
BCJ58 said:
Hi, sometimes if there are to many connections in a loop the resistance of the wire goes up causing over heating. If you are splicing in the wires and using the connector you might be putting to much resistance on the load. You can try having the plug rewired with no splices or take the plug out and use only the splice. But instead of a splice you should sauder the wires.
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This is the headlight pigtail as I read it . That would be at the end of the lighting circuit and only supply the headlight bulb, that's why I went with a bad connection too.
 
I agree with Glider . This is a parallel circuit. The total amps drawn equals the sum of the number of legs. Since only the lights are affected it has to be in this leg.

When you soldered DID YOU USE ACID CORE FLUX . THAT WILL EVENTUALLY CORRODE THE WIRE UNDER THE INSULATION PROVIDING A HIGH RESISTANCE PATH.

Did you see any type of bluish green powder on the copper wire ??

Rosin core flux is the best for electrical connections.
 
I did use rosin core flux , and i didnt see any evedince of corrosion in the wire , i solder lots of stuff at work in the same manner , i am a transmission tech and am very familiar with correct procedures on soldering, my best take on the situation is the vibration is making the contact on the pigtail arc? it takes a long time before i have a problem again , i have always in the past bought my headlight and pigtail from the harley dealer , and have no aftermarket accesories wired in, thanks so much for any input from you all , Danny
 
The arcing can cause excess heat. I would stick with a quality pigtail like the stock one that has the locking tabs on it and just check to see that the connections are tight in the plug. They usually fit real tight to begin with.
 
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