b4schroer wrote:
The problem I am attacking is failure out of the blue for my charging system. Battery takes a good charge, bike runs great for 20 minutes.... then blinkers, headlight, etc die out and stop working.... bike continues to run, but it is clear the battery is the only thing the bike is getting sufficicent power from.
What is the voltage on the battery posts NOT THE CONNECTORS
On the fully charged battery before you crank her up _____?
After she starts running ______? When reved up to 3500 ______?
Between the negative battery post and the engine case revved to 3500_____? If you shut her down after running about five minutes ______?
After the lights have died? Running _______? Revved up to 3500 ____? After you shut her down ______?
I took the battery to a reputable Honda dealer, they said they put a good load on it and it tested good. I never saw them do this as it was in the back, but I don' figure they are lying or wrong. Battery is a year old, and like I said, takes a good load. Headlights and blinkers are fine for about 20 minutes and then slowly get more and more dim, but in the beggining you would never know. Additionally, I checked voltage across battery terminals while running and only measure 12.2 volts.... when it should be great than 14 volts (And used to be). So whatever the problem is, it has stopped sufficient voltage reaching the battery.
I have checked connections, however, I haven't stripped it down.... in other words, I haven't "cleaned" all the connectors or checked for frays, etc underneath my harnessing. I mean, that is so unlikely that the wires wrapped in tape and rubber linings have all of a sudden caused this issue. I just don't believe it, I checked all wires that are exposed, but it seems to me that it would be a waste of time and destructive to take apart a well protected series of wires.... I am open to criticism about that opinion though, and provided you all think that may be a problem, I'll check them out.
So you guys think the stator is good since .9 Ohms is more or less close to .45 Ohms ~ 0 ohms.
Find zero on your meter by connecting the leads together. Write it down. CHeck the stator. Write it down. Find zero again on your meter. Write it down. The two zeros may not be the number zero but should be the same. Subtract this number from the stator reading to get a more accurate value.
I don't think this can really be attributed to old wires, but I might be wrong. The leads are only about 6 inches long, and in my opinion in great shape, copper is bright still, no frays or corrosion of any sort. I agree with Wired George that the Alt. is good still. I am not convinced the stator is, but what next? Connections are all solid, though I can go through them again and really "clean" them.... again, I am skeptical as to that being the problem. I appreciate the battery thought, but I don't see anything more I should do there unless the Honda Dealer made a mistake.... I could go get it rechecked.... It would make my day if the battery was at fault!
Where do I go next?
Tell us the measurements
Also, Steell, your Kaw manual matches mine.... .48 ohms is the spec I'm given in mine... and RE: the accuracy of the ohmmeter, I would say it is not worse than +- .1 ohms, but I may be wrong... and in that event, you could be hitting the nail right on the head since the error would allow for a measure of .9 to be within the accepted .45.
It is very difficult to accurately measure a low resistance with a hand held meter. It can't put enough current through the circuit to give a voltage drop that is not near the noise limit of the A/D converter. I assume you are using a digital meter with three and one half digits. If you are using a $10 digital meter, all bets are off...
-Duck
Post edited by: Duck, at: 2006/06/26 21:25
Post edited by: Duck, at: 2006/06/26 21:26