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Charging system question

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Old Apr 12, 2015 | 11:48 AM
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Default Charging system question

I did a search and couldn't get the answer I'm looking for. So, my charging system shows at the battery from high 12.0volts to mid 13volts that to low to keep the battery charged. The reason I asked my bike died on a ride and wouldn't start back up. Ever if I Rev it to 2000rpm it never gets over 13.7volts.
 

Last edited by mchj74; Apr 12, 2015 at 12:15 PM.
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Old Apr 12, 2015 | 11:51 AM
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Are you meaning Volts? If so, sounds a little low. Should be damn close to 14V while running. Go to the Mechanical seciton. Look in the electrical section, there is a stickey about the charging system. Good Luck
 

Last edited by jtarter; Apr 12, 2015 at 11:56 AM.
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Old Apr 12, 2015 | 12:14 PM
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Yes, I mean volts
 
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Old Apr 12, 2015 | 05:45 PM
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It should be putting out 13.5 to 14 volts. If your battery is low when you measure the charge output you MAY get a little lower reading, but that anomaly is hit or miss..
 

Last edited by Pitbull_Dallas; Apr 12, 2015 at 05:48 PM.
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Old Apr 12, 2015 | 05:51 PM
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Are you measuring the voltage with a multi-meter or a gauge on the motorcycle? (Gauges on these bikes are often way off...)
 
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Old Apr 12, 2015 | 05:56 PM
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If your voltage is running around 13+ volts with engine running you should be charging the battery. Take in account other electrical items being powered is gonna drop the voltage, but the amperage produced is around 35-45 amps @ 3000+ rpms. Not 100% sure of the specs but should be somewhere around that.

The stator is producing ac voltage directly to the rectifier/regulator. The rect/reg is the device that controls the amount of voltage allowed to the electrical system and also converts the ac to dc volts.

If you are getting good volts while running but battery is going dead, I would have the battery tested..Maybe your local auto shop can perform a load test on the battery and they will see right off if the battery is toast.

If you connect your voltmeter to the battery and see the voltage rise a good amount when increasing rpms, it is a good sign the electrical system is ok (except for the battery as stated above).
 
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Old Apr 12, 2015 | 06:06 PM
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My stator went out a week ago while riding. Voltage dropped from almost 14 to around 11.
With my meter to battery, I could see 12.5 volts at idle and with a little rpm increase, voltage only increased less than a volt.
I knew right then the stator or rect/reg went out.

These electrical systems are almost identical to boat motors so I already had an idea of what broke and I test these things all the time.
 
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Old Apr 12, 2015 | 08:50 PM
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I'm using a multi-meter to test it but I hate working on electrical parts. The battery was fully charged when I started. I checked the stator it was not grounded and put out around 46volts when rev to 2000rpm.
 
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Old Apr 13, 2015 | 04:35 AM
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Originally Posted by mchj74
I'm using a multi-meter to test it but I hate working on electrical parts. The battery was fully charged when I started. I checked the stator it was not grounded and put out around 46volts when rev to 2000rpm.
I'm not much of an electrical guru either, but aren't stators producing AC voltage measured in the thousands?
 
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Old Apr 13, 2015 | 01:43 PM
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First things first.

Clean and tighten ALL of your battery connections. Ground and Positive. I use a film of Dielectric grease at the battery terminals.

This is the first step, commonly missed. I did not see it mentioned in any of the previous posts.
 
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