Now onto the electrical.

WarrensKZ
Topic Author
User
Thanks: 0

Now onto the electrical.

05 Mar 2019 13:20

Im pretty sure I will have my 77 KZ650 up to snuff for Spring after having it sat for 12 years. Its immaculate and Ive kept her running over the years but never rode her.

Today I dug into the electricals. At idle, the sealed battery reads 14.5-14.8v. Is this normal? If I turn on the headlight, at idle it goes down to about 13.5. All the components are new, reg/rec voltage regulator and the like.

Should I be concerned?

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

Warren3200gt
Offline
User
Posts: 1570
Thanks: 792

Re: Now onto the electrical.

05 Mar 2019 15:40

#799793

Normally it would read 13+ at idle but as all your bits are new maybe your not seeing the deterioation from time. I would worry that much over your readings when the engine was reving higher it would cook the battery.

Z1000J2 somewhat modified!

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

Olajoe
Offline
User
Free at last
Posts: 133
Thanks: 17

Re: Now onto the electrical.

05 Mar 2019 16:28

#799796

On another bike I have that does not have a volt meter, one was installed permanently. That bike has a few accessories. To see if the charging system was adequate I hooked a dual controller with heated gear to it. This showed how the charging system reacted at different speeds under different loads. In this situation, the charging system was not adequate. Knowing that, I took somethings out of the loop and probably prevented damage to the charging system. If you are curious, this can give you an idea if how much excess your system has.

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

WarrensKZ
Topic Author
User
Thanks: 0

Re: Now onto the electrical.

05 Mar 2019 17:12 - 05 Mar 2019 20:22

#799801

Olajoe wrote: On another bike I have that does not have a volt meter, one was installed permanently. That bike has a few accessories. To see if the charging system was adequate I hooked a dual controller with heated gear to it. This showed how the charging system reacted at different speeds under different loads. In this situation, the charging system was not adequate. Knowing that, I took somethings out of the loop and probably prevented damage to the charging system. If you are curious, this can give you an idea if how much excess your system has.

Thanks.

Im going to go over the connections tomorrow or when its warmer and see if anything is loose, corroded or pinched.

At idle the bike is at 14.2 volts. At 6k RPM it gets up to 14.8. I need to figure out why. I have no accessories on the bike, Its stock.

Last edit: 05 Mar 2019 20:22 by WarrensKZ.

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

hardrockminer
Offline
Sustaining Member
Posts: 3033
Thanks: 1138

Re: Now onto the electrical.

05 Mar 2019 19:56

#799805

It sounds to me like your situation is normal.

I have several restored bikes along with a 2006 Goldwing with a sidecar. My wife has a 2019 Suzuki DR 650 for on and off road.

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

650ed
Offline
User
Posts: 15343
Thanks: 2832

Re: Now onto the electrical.

06 Mar 2019 04:34

#799808

WarrensKZ wrote:
Thanks.

Im going to go over the connections tomorrow or when its warmer and see if anything is loose, corroded or pinched.

At idle the bike is at 14.2 volts. At 6k RPM it gets up to 14.8. I need to figure out why. I have no accessories on the bike, Its stock.

Since the symptoms you describe are perfectly normal for a properly operating charging system on a 1977 KZ650 I do not understand what makes you believe there is a problem that you need to figure out. Rather than chasing your tail over "problems" that are not problems I would urge you to buy or consult a Kawasaki Service Manual. Trust me, it really will help you with the bike. Ed

1977 KZ650-C1 Original Owner - Stock (with additional invisible FIAMM horn)

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.

WarrensKZ
Topic Author
User
Thanks: 0

Re: Now onto the electrical.

06 Mar 2019 04:56

#799810

650ed wrote:

WarrensKZ wrote:
Thanks.

Im going to go over the connections tomorrow or when its warmer and see if anything is loose, corroded or pinched.

At idle the bike is at 14.2 volts. At 6k RPM it gets up to 14.8. I need to figure out why. I have no accessories on the bike, Its stock.

Since the symptoms you describe are perfectly normal for a properly operating charging system on a 1977 KZ650 I do not understand what makes you believe there is a problem that you need to figure out. Rather than chasing your tail over "problems" that are not problems I would urge you to buy or consult a Kawasaki Service Manual. Trust me, it really will help you with the bike. Ed

Thank you for this Ed. I have downloaded a manual!

Please Log in or Create an account to join the conversation.