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Booster Plug "2-wire"?

6K views 21 replies 8 participants last post by  MikeB 
#1 ·
Went to Home Depot and AutoZone today looking for "2-wire" to extend the Booster Plug sensor. No help from the staff.

All I saw was wire gauges, and 2 was huge, which wouldn't be right....I did see "#2 THHM wire", but also seemed to large.

Any insight to which it should be?
 
#3 · (Edited)
The Boosterplug factory wire is around 18ga stranded or maybe even as thin as 20ga stranded. I used 16ga to extend mine and it was definitely bigger than the BP wire.

"2-wire" sounds more like house electrical wiring that's a solid core (one thick metal wire) vs the 18 or 20ga stranded wire that's a single wire that has a bunch of really thin wires twisted together inside the insulation on the wiring.
 
#5 ·
I'm also in a hunt for wire to extend the Booster Plug. Per ysoslo, the original wiring appears to be 20 gauge stranded. 20-16 AWG will work fine.

I was considering using 18 or 20 gauge speaker wire, but was somewhat concerned that the temperature specs on the PVC jacket insulation for speaker wiring is too low to be routed near hot engine parts. As my bike is in storage, I can't look at the wiring route to determine if this would be a factor. If so, high temperature automotive wiring similar to the wire on the Booster Plug would be required.

As ysoslo (and potentially others) have used standard speaker wire to extend the Booster Plug, high temp automotive wiring may be overkill.
 
#7 · (Edited)
I used speaker wire and so far it is good, time will tell. The good thing is, if it causes issues out on the road, it is easy to just pull the plugs and put it back to stock. I routed mine behind then over the fuel injection unit then along the hose that runs along the left side of the fuel tank so it's not subjected to very much heat. For additional protection, I covered the entire length of the wire in 2 layers of heat shrink tube.
 
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#10 ·
If anyone finds some 20 gauge automotive, post here. I didn't really want to use speaker wire but it is all I could find locally.
 
#11 ·
I am no electrical engineer by any means, so this is just a question. This sensor probably sends its signal back based on resistance? Wouldn’t using the wrong gauge wire or something vastly different from the original set up send a different value back to the booster plug unit?
 
#12 · (Edited)
THIS or similar, whichever country you are in will have a listing should do it

the sensor will be sending a signal back to the Boosterplug, i doubt any cable you drop in will make a difference, though a 3 inch armoured would be OTT
 
#13 ·
The wire that Ethariel linked to should work for you guys in "the old country".

For those of us over on this side of the pond I found and ordered some from Amazon. You can choose your color and with or without a tracer. I'm pretty sure my speaker wire will hold up but this will remove all doubt. You have to buy a bulk amount but it doesn't bother me because I'm always building, modifying or repairing something.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N9S5M99/ref=twister_B01N4OHS18?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
 
#14 ·
The wire that Ethariel linked to should work for you guys in "the old country".

For those of us over on this side of the pond I found and ordered some from Amazon. You can choose your color and with or without a tracer. I'm pretty sure my speaker wire will hold up but this will remove all doubt. You have to buy a bulk amount but it doesn't bother me because I'm always building, modifying or repairing something.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N9S5M99/ref=twister_B01N4OHS18?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
Correct me if wrong but that is single, not double conductor. We need a double conductor wire for the booster plug.
 
#15 ·
I emailed Booster plug to ask exactly what was needed to extend, below is the response:

In general, the sensor cable dimension is not critical (Unless you plan to extend it several hundred feet.....)

20 gauge wound wire is perfect for an extension of the sensor cable.

And "2-wire" just means that you need a cable with two cores - like the power cable to a hair dryer or your table lamp.

We will get the FAQ section on our website updated to include this information
 
#16 · (Edited)
The existing cable has 2 wires, color coded black and red, that is why I ordered black and red 20 gauge wire from Amazon. I have 25 feet of each coming so I'd be willing to sell some if anyone is interested (see my link above to see exactly what you would be getting). I'd sell at my cost plus the postage to send 3 feet of each to you (six feet total). PM me if interested, I should be receiving the wire Wednesday or Thursday. I'm not doing this to try to make money, just to help out a fellow rider. If I sell out I won't be doing any more. And I prefer to do CONUS only.
 
#20 · (Edited)
I guess you could, I prefer to cover the entire section with heatshrink to avoid an issue with chafing from road and engine vibrations. That is why most bikes wires have an outer cover on them. Look at the factory wires, they are all made up of individual conductors wrapped in an outer cover. Automotive wire, especially when you get down to this small, has a very thin jacket. I'd be more concerned with chafing than melt (as long as you don't run the wires near the exhaust).
 
#21 ·
To be honest, I'm still unsure if I'm going to replace what I have already used or not (speaker wire). When I was doing the soldering, I noticed that the plastic on the original booster plug wires were being affected by the heat more than the speaker wire jacket was.
 
#22 · (Edited)
I bought this high temp (+200 degree Celsius) 20 gauge silicon wire:

https://www.amazon.com/BNTECHGO-Sil...=8-8&keywords=bntechgo+20+gauge+silicone+wire

It's a single conductor wire, so I doubled it up. You could buy 2 different colors, but it's an unnecessary expense as long as you're careful when soldering the cables. I then encased the 2 wires in this high temp (257 degrees F) cable wrap:

https://www.amazon.com/Wang-Data-Bl...eywords=1/8"+pet+expandable+braided+shielding

It resulted in a highly flexible, chafe resistant cable extension with a high heat resistance.
 
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