I have a 2010 ultra classic. bought it 3 months ago. it had 5600 miles.
two weeks ago i was riding and my volt meter dropped to 10 volts and the check engine and batt lights came on. I turned around and headed for home and within a few minutes the VM jumped back to 13-14 volts and the lights went out and did not return for the duration of the trip. since then, while riding this exact phenomenon has occurred, coming and going and then not to be seen for a while. last night it did it again on a ride but this time it did not go away and my VM dipped to 8 volts as one system after another shut down. when i got to my GF's house it was dead. I hooked up the battery tender overnight and in the morning i had enough battery to get home and for the first part of the ride, about 10 min, it was working, but the last 10 min it dropped to 10 v and ck eng and batt lights are on. i checked and wiggled wires in and out of the regulator with no luck. any ideas what is going on???

 

In order to properly assess your problem, we'll need to see a picture of your GF.

 

Sounds like you need a stator and voltage regulator.

 

sorry, i need five posts and five days before that is possible. anticipation........

 

why both? I'm waiting for it to cool down now so i can unplug and check the stator and regulator. it doesn't seem right that one or both should go bad in 7000 miles, does it?

 

I vote for voltage regulator based on your description. I would highly doubt the stator at 5600 miles but I've seen stranger things happen with a HD.

 

Check the obvious & simple things first. Have you checked all the connections for tightness on the battery & frame grounds. Just seems odd the way it swings so much & comes & goes.

 

How old is the battery? You could have a cell shorting out (plates worn and falling over when you hit a bump)

I'd start with cables/connection check at the battery, and a load test of the battery, if that checks out I'd check the stator wires and voltages, then do a diagnostic on the regulator.

 

just checked stator, all phases 72-75 vac, connected to regulator and measured output of regulator........0000000
this happened to my old flhtc 2007, at 9000 the regulator went bad. smh wth?

 

regulators go bad. hell my 2012 that I bought in 8-12 had the recall so I brought it in, they changed regulator, left the dealer, 2 miles down the road my headlights and passing lamps went down to almost nothing, turned around dropped it off, they changed it again, a week later I was back at the dealership getting it replaced again. The one that's on it now (4th including stock one) has been fine ever since