GL1800 CB Installation
After struggling for quite some time to put down the money for the original
Honda CB, Christmas 2002 brought the chance to finally convince the CFO on
the purchase order of this item.
But in the end the decission had to be made which Antenna, as the original
Honda antenna requires drilling some more holes into the trunk and aligning
both antennas perfectly well. The alternative was to use the dual antenna
from Sierra Electronics. It was a simple decission in the end to go for the
dual antenna as the installation was going to be a good timesaver.
Having all the items at hand and reading through the installation instructions
it all seemed to end up in a major dismanteling of the bike. Taking the trunk
off to drill some holes into it and removing the fake tank, which actually
only holds the radio. Before actually working on this parts take some
time. Studying all the parts and actions that you are supposed to do, you
will find that the work can be done as good in a much simpler way.
I started off installing the antenna, which is the simplest part of the whole
process. All that is required, is to remove the original Honda radio antenna
at the pole and install the replacement from Sierra Electronics. Next you
remove the seat to get to the connector from the antenna to the radio. Unplug
the existing connection and insert the provided splitter. Now everything
is ready for the "real" work.
First I layed out the items in the places they are supposed to go. The plate
on top of the CB, which is going into the recessed area at the bottom of
the trunk. I drilled the four holes that will hold this plate in place at
the end, noting that the drill marks are already on the plastic making it
unnecessary to have any measurements or other pieces that might give false
readings afterwards. Next on the list was the hole that would allow the cables
from the CB into the main bike area where several connectors are already
waiting for it. This hole can be drilled with the trunk in place from the
front of the trunk where the seat is removed. Another big circle with a X
is indication where the drill is supposed to be used. Making 100% sure I
was on the right spot, I drilled a 10mm opening that I had expanded to the
correct size using a Dremel tool grinding the plastic away, until the shape
and size where correct. Installing the electronic components in the trunk,
fiddling the cable and grommet in place, and covering this part - the work
in the trunk was finished.
As the next and final step in installation, the top shelter has to come off.
To get there the speaker grills have to be removed and work yourself backwards
from there until the shelter actually is removed. Once done, routing the
cable to the connecter is nothing complicated. Connect the CB at this end,
strap the cable in place and reassemble the bike.
Once I had the bike in working condition, it took me about 1 hour 45 minutes
from the time I started working plus 15 minutes of figuring out how to do
the operation, making a total installation time of 2 hours. It would have
been good to have an air filter at hand at that time since most of the work
to replace that unit was already performed and it would only have taken another
10-15 minutes to have that job done.
Now there are some observations while using the CB unit. When the CB is turned
on it can be found that the hissing noise coming from the Alternator or some
other part of the electrical system has multiplied to before. I have since
learned that Honda provides a Headset Noise Kit (32190-MCA-305) for 2001
and 2002 bikes with this problem - however in Honda's infinite wisdom they
think customers should pay about $80 for this part plus installation, when
it clearly is a design problem in the first place.
Since the installation we have taken some rides where my wife has been using
the 1800, while I used 'Black Lilly', our old GL1200, and using the CB made
quite a difference on the rides. The reception is loud and clear and the
range of the CB on the 1800 is sufficient enough for our requirements.