Interest In Cruise Control Switch Module? - POLL (See Explanation and Photos)

[Bill Havins]

This may verge on SPAM and I am sorry for that.  But I don’t know how else to make the decision outlined below.

In an earlier thread I included photos of the Switch Module for my cruise control on my Valkyrie (http://www.valkyrieforum.com/bbs/index.php/topic,91738.0.html).  I designed and built the Switch Module, including the enclosure and electronics inside.

In the earlier thread I explained that the Switch Module is waterproof and the internal electronics are automotive-rated.  The Module uses momentary contact toggle switches rated IP67 (i.e., waterproof; cf., https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IP_Code).  The LEDs are daylight visible.  The Module is held in place by the motorcycle’s left mirror stalk.  The Module’s cable connects to the cruise control’s wiring harness with a sealed automotive connector.

Here are a couple of photos of the prototype:




You’ll notice the toggle switches look a little “retro.”  But they are the easiest switch type to use when wearing gloves.  They are also positioned such that you don’t have to remove your hand from the hand grip to use them.  And the switch that is used most (the set/coast – resume/accelerate switch) is closer to your hand.

I am in process of making the final revisions to the Switch Module Enclosure.  I will then make a mold and cast my final version using a fireproof polyurethane.

I have had a number of people ask if I would build a Switch Module for them (it can be used on almost any motorcycle just by changing the bracket; the bracket mounts to the enclosure with two Allen head screws).  So now I have to decide if I am going to build more than one.  If I offer them for sale I estimate the price will be around $149.

Before I make the final revisions to the enclosure I would like to know how much interest there is in this design.  Please respond to the attached poll indicating your level of interest.  You are also welcome to express interest for friends if they are not members of this forum (e.g., they ride a Moto Guzzi Stelvio and have a Rostra Cruise installed).  Based on your responses I will decide if I need to make the enclosure revisions such that the design is easier to mass produce.

You can vote a total of five times.  So, vote once for yourself.  Then, if you have one or more friends who are interested in the topic, express their opinion(s) using your remaining votes.  The poll will run for 14 days.

Thanks for your responses!

Bill

[gordonv]

No one has replied yet, so I will.

I voted.

With the original Audiovox CCS-100 selling for just over $100 (if you can find one), and the updated replacement going for $180, both come with the control switch, why would I pay another $150 for your VERY nice looking switch?

http://www.murphskits.com/product_info.php?products_id=422

It looks very nice, I like where you have mounted it too.

[cokebottle10]

I like the way it looks and understand the cost but I'm not sure were I would mount it on my Interstate. The radio controls goes were you have located your controls.

Thanks David in Fletcher NC

[Bill Havins]

Thanks, David.

My Valkyrie is an 1800.  As you know, they have fewer creature comforts than many of the 1500's.  So there is more room for cruise switches, etc.

Bill

[Bighead]

Ifin I had a CC I might purchase one but don't so can't say.

[hal47]

You can pick up a atv winch switch for around 15 bucks, and they look good on the bike. They use a rocker switch.

[Bill Havins]

You can pick up a atv winch switch for around 15 bucks, and they look good on the bike. They use a rocker switch.

Well, no.  The Rostrta Cruise, for example, requires two independent SPDT momentary contact switches.  An ATV winch relay is operated with a single SPDT momentary contact switch.  You might stack two of them and get it to work (one on top of the other, or side-by-side).  And if you wanted accurate labels and indicator lights you could figure out how to do it.

And then there is the issue of the logic circuit that the switches control.  Each switch controls a modified NAND gate.  On the Rostra Cruise, for example, the logic circuit components (the electronics) are expected to be in the switch module.  So the switch module for a cruise control is more than a pair of momentary contact SPDT switches.  The module also includes the required modified NAND gates.  You could always build your own logic circuits to add to a pair of ATV winch relay switches.

Switches, by the way, are given a rating for their estimated life span.  Many ATV winch switches, which are not waterproof, have a rating of a few hundred or, maybe, 1000 cycles if they are rated at all.  Good quality switches (NKK, C&W, others) are rated at a minimum of 50,000 cycles.  The switches in my prototype are NKKs.

I chose to build myself a rock-solid switch module that will last for many, many years.  It just depends on what a person wants to put on their motorcycle.

Bill

[hal47]

The atv switch is just for setting resume and set, you can add a toggle switch anywhere you like to turn the cruise off are on. I have run this set up for 5 years now and I never turn the cruise off.

[Rams]

Would love to have cruise control, it's on the list but way down there.   Too many other priorities that must be addressed before that's going on my fat lady.    But, I like the design of your switch.

BTW, I've ridden with Hal47, his cruise control works well.   I tried to bribe him to help me build one like it but, he's too busy putting miles on his fat lady.   Yeah, I'm jealous.   

[Bill Havins]

Hal47,

Which cruise control are you using?  The one on my Valkyrie is a new Rostra Cruise.

Thanks!

Bill

[michaelyoung254]

No one has replied yet, so I will.

I voted.

With the original Audiovox CCS-100 selling for just over $100 (if you can find one), and the updated replacement going for $180, both come with the control switch, why would I pay another $150 for your VERY nice looking switch?

http://www.murphskits.com/product_info.php?products_id=422

It looks very nice, I like where you have mounted it too.

I completely agree. I installed the Audiovox CCS-100 on my Valk, and I fabricated an aluminum bracket which I polished to mount the control switch.

While I love the way this switch looks, and it looks much nicer than mine (but I really don't think mine looks all that bad), I just can't justify $150 just for a better looking switch. If the price was substantially less, I would definitely buy one.

[Bill Havins]

I completely agree {with gordonv, above}. I installed the Audiovox CCS-100 on my Valk, and I fabricated an aluminum bracket which I polished to mount the control switch.

While I love the way this switch looks, and it looks much nicer than mine (but I really don't think mine looks all that bad), I just can't justify $150 just for a better looking switch. If the price was substantially less, I would definitely buy one.

The price is the obstacle.  Small production runs cost more per unit than larger production runs.  (You folks know all this.)  If I was building, say, 500 of these I could easily get the price down to around $100.  But a production run of say, 25 that I hand build....  Well, you get the picture.

The switches are actually the highest cost pieces in the design.  So for 25 units (50 switches total) the price per switch would be $12.87; that's $25.74 in switches per unit.  For 500 units the price per switch drops by almost three dollars to less than $10 per switch.  The cost of the printed circuit boards drop from $11.96 per board to $1.86.  The costs change similarly for the enclosure, faceplate, and mounting brackets.  And then there are all of the components that have to be soldered to the printed circuit boards, and the labor costs to have them soldered when doing a large run.

So my decision is between "build a few for friends" or "do a production run and hope they sell."  It is that daunting question people face when they're designing for a niche' market.

Bill