I hope to make a digital tachometer and expect to use the stock tach signal. What sensor sends the tachometer signal? Crankshaft sensor?

Actually, not a digital Tach, an LED tach like the ZX-10. Too late to rename this thread.

* Last updated by: Rook on 6/19/2018 @ 10:52 PM *

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Well........

Anything you want to do is possible, including your own tac.

Quick thoughts would be......

Need to tap into the Can BUS rpm signal up by the cluster gauge.

Once you find the signal(address) on the Can BUS you feed that signal, (would guess
it to be a PWM signal not sure) into a micro processor.

Write a program for the micro controller to interpret the signal.

Then have your program output your signal(s) to trigger your LED circuit design.

There's more, but that would be in a nut shell

holy crap. Thanks piken, that's a start.

I was thinking it might as simple as tapping the signal from a 0~5 volt sensor and the LEDs could be made to respond to the voltage increase the way an analog or digital gauge would. This would basically be a bar gauge like the fuel level and water temp on the Gen1 meter but mine would be 48 LEDs instead of 6 LCDs.

Sure would be nice to have that backward rolling pattern and flashing shift point of the ZX-10 tac---but really--a computer program?? I can't get that involved in this.

I was hoping for something a little bit more elaborate than what's in the video below. It would suffice though as long as it had 48 LEDs. Looks like this guy used the coil instead of the rpm sensor.

and this guy did indeed need to do some computer work to run his DIY LED tac.

Just getting ideas for now. Do you think it would be better/easier to use the CAN BUS rpm signal or the coil?

* Last updated by: Rook on 6/20/2018 @ 12:52 PM *

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Either one of those probably easier to set up then then using the can bus.

I like the PIC micro controller one. But the other would be easier
to set up without the micro controller, but PIC chips are a lot
of fun to learn/program.

Then again if you can learn how to decipher the can bus data you would
ultimately have access to other engine signals/data too.

When ever I think of tapping into a car/bike sensor signal I
think micro controller and the least obtrusive way to capture the signal.

Many sensors have a voltage reference and you can't disrupt that or
you'll have a failure.

But getting a signal from the coil should be no issue, but can bus sounds
like more fun.

I like the PIC micro controller one. But the other would be easier
to set up without the micro controller, but PIC chips are a lot
of fun to learn/program.

OK, maybe I will learn more about that and decide if it's something I want to get into. I feel myself digging another hole here though.

Then again if you can learn how to decipher the can bus data you would
ultimately have access to other engine signals/data too.

There's a number of sensors I can already monitor and datalog through the LCD-200. It might be cool to do other things with them too though.

Many sensors have a voltage reference and you can't disrupt that or
you'll have a failure.

I see, so tapping a sensor wire could cause a voltage drop and that would feed the sensor an incorrect signal so it would do things it shouldn't or not do things it should.

But getting a signal from the coil should be no issue, but can bus sounds
like more fun.

I'll start with coil I think. This is a long way off. Since I'm messing with wiring, I'm trying to get things laid out ahead of time so I don't need to undo a lot of work to put new electronics in.

Thanks. Keep an eye out for this thread to pop up again. It might be a year from now.

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Stick coil connector hot side wire and back-probe with safety wire. Solder safety wire to the wire of the tach. Go under the weather-pac rubber and stick it thru the back of the male/female prong so it makes contact. Use an ohm meter and probe the connector end to the tach wire being used. Dab goop glue over the safety wire and hold the soldered wire down on the stick coil harness. This way you cover the exposed wire and solder, and hold it secure. Pull the wire out when you take the tach out, etc., and the glue stays or peel it off. Looks like no one touched it once removed.

Driven to be squidless--one hacked wire at a time.

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A quick look around there's quite a bit of info on using the diagnosis port (OBDII)

This sounds like the direction I would go. Didn't dig around that much, but
a couple of links that caught my eye......

KDS2Bluetooth

OBDII adapters

Kawaduino

LED strip

* Last updated by: piken on 6/21/2018 @ 9:22 AM *

Go under the weather-pac rubber and stick it thru the back of the male/female prong so it makes contact.

Excellent idea, Hub! Slide a thin, stiff wire through the little grommet where the hot wire goes into the stick coil connector!! I like that. I don't know if safety wire is annealed. I'd try a high E guitar string. If it's long enough, you could even use the whole guitar string instead soldering electrical wire to the probe. Shrink tube the high E, Goop the probe. The guitar string even comes with a ring terminal on the opposite end to connect to the tach. Or -- I have inline connectors to the stick coils for my quick shifter. I could back probe one of those or just positap the QS harness.

Very interesting, piken. I'm glad you brought that up because I had expected to positap a bunch of wires to for datalogging, and DJ system features. If I can just buy one of those adapters, I'd just plug into the diagnostic connector(s) under the seat. I believe there's one on the LH side and another by the ECU.

I'll look into both of these when I get into this project. Thanks guys.

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