Modern Vespa

This is a very quick and dirty (and cheap!) method of providing a hazard warning switch on a GTS (or any bike with a separate two-wire flasher unit).

Needed - an On-On DPDT switch plus some spade connectors to make removal easy. I used a push-button one, a toggle switch would be fine as well electrically.

Method - when the switch is thrown, the ignition-fed +ve supply to the flasher unit is replaced by a permanent +ve supply, and the other half of the switch connects the two feeds to the indicator lamps together.

Cons - the switch can be thrown regardless of whether the ignition key is operational - properly the switch should only be capable of being thrown (either on or off) when the ignition is on.

Pros - very cheap and easy!

GTS diagram:

Nice one Jim! Now I have one more project to add to my list...

Or how about a momentary pushbutton supplied with ignition power triggering 2 SPDT latching relays? Then the emergency flashers could only be turned on or off with the key on, but the key could be removed and they would continue to flash until the key is turned back on and the pushbutton is pressed again. A roundabout way to get flashers like the MP3

Here is a relay that would work

http://www.amazon.com/RoadPro-HEAVY-DUTY-LATCHING-RELAY/dp/B001JT0GEQ/ref=pd_sbs_indust_1

They make DPDT latching 12volt relays but they are big & $$

Excellent project. That is the one thing I miss from my moto - it had a dedicated hazard light switch that would turn off after 20 minutes or so to avoid draining the battery.

That could get a little tricky. You would need a triggered timer module, a DPDT relay, and (tricky part) a cancelation function. The AMP TR7 would do it but the timer is limited to 4min 15 sec.

I thought of latching relays, or even knocking up a bit of logic, but for the time and money involved I might just as well have bought an MP3 flasher unit that has the hazard function built-in. The whole idea was to do this simply and cheaply! There are far better solutions that could be used, but they'd miss the sub-USD6-GBP5 limit I set myself.

i've done some research, but am still not certain. on-on dpdt switches seem to come in momentary or maintained variety. I think I would need the maintained variety but am not certain. Is maintained correct?

Some switches say that they are either momentary or maintained - others don't specify -- is there a presumption? ie - unspecified = maintained, or unspecified = momentary

lastly since the turn signals are 10 watts ( I think this is right on a gt 200) the switch needs to be 12 vdc 1 amp or better?

learning the electronics as I go, so pointing out errors greatly appreciated!

You will see switches that are on-off-on, on-on, on-off-(on), (on)-off-(on)

translated that would latched-center off-latched, latched-latched with no center position, latched-center off-momentary on, momentary on- center off (at rest position)-momentary on. They could all be DPDT switches. For the circuits descibed above you would want on-on or on-off-on. Examples of momentary switches would be a horn button, a window or door lock switch.

Latched is maintained