When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
The rotor is a solid state magnet and hardly likely to cause any problems. So no, it cannot do any harm, unless it somehow breaks up (I have heard of Sporty ones doing that, but not big twins).
Word, I hear you guys and thank you for your help! I probably will go that route but dont want to throw new parts again at a recurring problem. I guess my question is: Could the plugs fry like this from a wiring issue or is a bad connection the only way this could happen?
When you replaced it 4 years ago did you use OEM or aftermarket parts?
My FXR (1990 model) had a little spring clip thingy like this to keep the plug engaged. Don't know if it was factory or not, but my Electra Glide (also a 1990) doesn't have one.
I concur with the others: A bit of oil isn't going to cause the connection to fry.
Also, the original posting (with the screen shot from redit) is incorrect in saying that you need to pull the inner primary to get to the stator.
A few years ago, the voltage regulator on my Electra Glide went out. At the time, I didn't know any better and replaced it with an Accel regulator. Maybe a year later the stator went out. I replaced that with an Accel stator. Everything is holding up just fine so far, but if I had it to do over again, I'd replace them as a set and go with a higher-powered Cycle Electric setup.
The best thing I ever did for the electrics on the Electra Glide was replace all the lights with LEDs.
For the stock-style plug (and the design does indeed suck) its critical that you get the stator side fully seated in the hole in the inner primary so as to allow for a clean connection with the plug from the regulator.
I think Sir Graham is on to something. The fried plug may be the symptom, not the cause.
My FXR (1990 model) had a little spring clip thingy like this to keep the plug engaged. Don't know if it was factory or not, but my Electra Glide (also a 1990) doesn't have one.
I concur with the others: A bit of oil isn't going to cause the connection to fry.
Also, the original posting (with the screen shot from redit) is incorrect in saying that you need to pull the inner primary to get to the stator.
A few years ago, the voltage regulator on my Electra Glide went out. At the time, I didn't know any better and replaced it with an Accel regulator. Maybe a year later the stator went out. I replaced that with an Accel stator. Everything is holding up just fine so far, but if I had it to do over again, I'd replace them as a set and go with a higher-powered Cycle Electric setup.
The best thing I ever did for the electrics on the Electra Glide was replace all the lights with LEDs.
For the stock-style plug (and the design does indeed suck) its critical that you get the stator side fully seated in the hole in the inner primary so as to allow for a clean connection with the plug from the regulator.
I think Sir Graham is on to something. The fried plug may be the symptom, not the cause.
thanks. I agree, the connection is not the problem. Something else is causing it to cook. I could get new parts and hard wire but then wires could just fry if Im putting band aid on a stab wound
The thing is, these dynamo's always get stressed to the max. On one end you have a stator, a copper wig that is meant to induce a current, on the other hand you have a permanent magnet. In other words, there is nothing to regulate in the dynamo to control the height of the voltage. The voltage is kept at bay by consuming amps.
As simply put as possible, when the electrical components consume 1/3 of the generated watts, the regulator needs to burn 2/3 to keep the voltage at lets say 13.8 volts, and thats what it does. So basically, your dynamo is always pushed to the max in general, and specifically at high revs, where max mechanical power is partly transformed into electrical power. Since your are mostly on highways in higher rev ranges, your dynamo is generating to the max, and your regulator is burning to earth to the max, and everything goes through that one connector.
Long story short, try to measure how many amps go through that wire, and try to compare this with others. If - for whatever reason - the magnetic force of your rotor is stronger then others, your dynamo coughs up more amps than normal, specially on the high revs your engine is doing. If so, you could try a weaker rotor, if there is any. If the measurements are comparable, then the connection - at a certain point in time - must become the culprit. Alternatively, if you are planning to install a 6 gear builder kit, that might have positive side effects for this issue as well (read, lower revs == lower amps output)
Hope this makes sense. My technical English is still a bit rusty...
Last edited by Daedalus; Jul 24, 2018 at 01:13 PM.
The thing is, these dynamo's always get stressed to the max. On one end you have a stator, a copper wig that is meant to induce a current, on the other hand you have a permanent magnet. In other words, there is nothing to regulate in the dynamo to control the height of the voltage. The voltage is kept at bay by consuming amps.
As simply put as possible, when the electrical components consume 1/3 of the generated watts, the regulator needs to burn 2/3 to keep the voltage at lets say 13.8 volts, and thats what it does. So basically, your dynamo is always pushed to the max in general, and specifically at high revs, where max mechanical power is partly transformed into electrical power. Since your are mostly on highways in higher rev ranges, your dynamo is generating to the max, and your regulator is burning to earth to the max, and everything goes through that one connector.
Long story short, try to measure how many amps go through that wire, and try to compare this with others. If - for whatever reason - the magnetic force of your rotor is stronger then others, your dynamo coughs up more amps than normal, specially on the high revs your engine is doing. If so, you could try a weaker rotor, if there is any. If the measurements are comparable, then the connection - at a certain point in time - must become the culprit. Alternatively, if you are planning to install a 6 gear builder kit, that might have positive side effects for this issue as well (read, lower revs == lower amps output)
Hope this makes sense. My technical English is still a bit rusty...
i replaced regulator and stator withdrag specialties brand
And that IMO is why it's toast now.
Chinese crap will never work as well as quality made parts.
For your charging system use only OEM or Cycle Electric if you want it to last.
7 Surprising Harley-Davidson Products that Are Not Motorcycles
Slideshow: The bar-and-shield logo shows up on far more than motorcycles, some of the company's most unexpected products have nothing to do with riding.
Slideshow: From the troubled AMF years to modern misfires, these bikes earned reputations for reliability issues, questionable engineering, or disappointing performance.
Crazy Bunderbike Build Looks Amazing, But Is It Impossible to Ride?
Slideshow: The Swiss custom shop has taken a Harley Softail and stretched it into something so long and low that it looks closer to a rolling sculpture than a conventional motorcycle.
Engraved Rebellion: Inside Bundnerbike's Glam Rock II
Slideshow: A standard cruiser becomes an intricate metal canvas in the hands of a Swiss custom house known for pushing Harley-Davidson platforms far beyond their factory brief.
Slideshow: Harley-Davidson's challenges aren't abstract; they show up in dropping shipments, shrinking dealer traffic, and strategic decisions that aren't yet translating into growth.
