Need help with battery issuw

[stratocat]

My 82 Asby needs a new battery. This will be the third battery in 2 years. The first was a YUASA. It lasted 7 months. Next a AGM battery from Batteries Plus. It lasted 11 months. The bike started and ran great for those 11 months. One day I went out to go for a ride and it was dead. I hooked my charger up to it and it would not hold a charge. My first reacton was to blame the battery, But I was reading a post that stated the charging system should not produce more than 14.5 volts. Mine produces 15.2 volts. I figured the higher volage may have damaged the battery. So I assumed the rectifier is bad. I purchased a used rectifier on ebay and installed it. With the new used rectifier it still produces 15.2 volts. I realize that the neew used one may not be any better than my old used one, but before I go chasing after another rectifier I thought I should check in with you folks in Classic Goldwing Land. The other thing is I removed the 3 wire plug and soldered the wires like is reccommended, but those 3 wires get pretty warm when the engine is running. So there you go . I"m open to suggestions

 

[joedrum]

check grounds to on the frames and the main fuse ...the sator put full load all the
time and grounds out to the frame....on a side note there is a post somewhere where somebody rig a new rectifier....these bikes realy need all the electric gone through honda use of smallest of wire gauge and connectors was top priority and a big problem for batt and sator and stuff

 

[dan filipi]

Yeah the voltage may have killed those batteries.
The Odyssey I have now says anything over 15 volts to it will reduce it's life.

Like Joe say's, should go thru all the wiring and connectors and clean them, especially the grounds.

I have a couple regulators you could try if you want to swing by my place sometime.

 

[mcgovern61]

I am confused by my local Honda rep. They say that 15.2 is the normal high end for thier system. I too am cooking the water out of the battery and in any 12 volt system, I have always worked with no higher than 14.6 volts at the high end. Problem is, the regulators I have (Three of them) all allow 15.2 at more than 3000 rpm. When I sit at a redlight and the fan comes on, the voltage can drop as low as 11.2 while the fan is running. Bring up the rpm for a few minutes and it is right back up to 15.2. My battery has drained a few times and I also spilled some acid out when the bike sat down on it's side (forgot to put down the side stand!). Maybe that explains the fluctions?

My regulator does not get too hot and it is not melting plus I have soldered the wires and they do not get hot.

 

[dan filipi]

I'm reading that many 1100 owners are getting over 15 volts to the battery.
I would bet they are simply at their end of life.
If the regulators were gotten used Gerry, that's probably why they were not in use.

The Honda shop manual, Clymer and Haynes all say should not be more than 15.

 

[stratocat]

Thaks for the replys. I went through all the connectors I could find and opened them up and sprayed electrical contact cleaner in them. I cleaned the battey ground that goes to the frame. I am trying to locate the other ground connections in the system. I am still getting as much as 15.27 volts to the battery. Dan, I might take you up on your offer to try the rectifiers you have if cleaning everything doesnt work. When I bought the bike it had battery issues. I bought a Odyssey pc680 and for 5 years everything worked well. I was having trouble at stoplights with voltage droppong and the turn signals would stop flashing. If I would increase RPM's they would bgin flashing again. The bike had 2 extra stoplights on either side of the license plate. I removed those 2 boulbs and my voltage drop at stops problem went away. The other thing I'm wondering is why the 3 wires from the stator get hot. Maybe I'll open those up and redo the connections. I thouught I did a good job soldering them but maybe not.

 

[Tomahawk]

I think you regulator is toast. My 83 1100 never goes over 14.5 max. I would get a new one before it takes out the stator too

 

[stratocat]

Thanks Dan for posting the pages from the manuals. OK, I performed the ohm meter test on both the rectifiers I have and they appear to be bad. Guess its time to invest in a new recitifier.

 

[dan filipi]

Like I said strat, your welcome to come over this weekend we can test a couple I have. Yours free.

 

[mcgovern61]

Like I said strat, your welcome to come over this weekend we can test a couple I have. Yours free.

I am in San Francisco this week! I am almost close enough to try one out too! :mrgreen:

 

[dan filipi]

Like I said strat, your welcome to come over this weekend we can test a couple I have. Yours free.

I am in San Francisco this week! I am almost close enough to try one out too! :mrgreen:

I would test them myself but mine has the external alt and the internal is dead but if strat comes over we can use his as a tester and I'll send you one.
It never occured to me to use Susies 1200 to test them when I had her bike here with the false tank off. :head bang:

 

[dan filipi]

Check this out, should change your mind about using the stock unit. viewtopic.php?f=12&t=701
It's the way I'd go if I was using the stator.

 

[stratocat]

Thanks Dan, that is very interesting. Just a quick search this am, these are available from ronayres for $146.00. If anyone has tried this I'd like to know. I'll reserch it more tonite.

 

[stratocat]

Like I said strat, your welcome to come over this weekend we can test a couple I have. Yours free.

Thanks for the offer Dan. I'm going to do some long overdue maintence this weekend ,timing belts and cooling system, while I decide what to do about the recitifier and battery. Also my saddlebag and trunk lids are being repainted right now. I found this site doing reserch on the rectifier upgrade you mentioned. Check it out. https://www.roadstercycle.com/Goldwing%2 ... %20kit.htm

 

[joedrum]

statocat thats some good research and i think a great upgrade you guys are digging up its got my intrest big time!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Omega Man]

I would love to hear a very dumbdown explanation of what I saw in those links. I felt like a caveman trying to understand the directions to setting the time on a VCR while looking at those.

If I could do anything to protect my stator I would.

~O~

 

[dan filipi]

I would love to hear a very dumbdown explanation of what I saw in those links. I felt like a caveman trying to understand the directions to setting the time on a VCR while looking at those.

If I could do anything to protect my stator I would.

~O~

Basically,

3 yellow wires connect into that regulator.
A positive and negative come out of it and go to the battery.

My understanding so far; (Correct me if I'm wrong, I didn't read thru all of it.)

The basic difference between this regulator and the original is they say it will make the stator produce current only as needed.
The original design demands 100% from the stator 100% of the time.
This overworks the stator reducing it's life.
They also say the stator will output a higher (which is better) voltage at idle.

It's a pretty win win deal.

 

[Omega Man]

OK, so if someone does this, please take detailed pics I want this.

~O~

 

[Andyb]

OK, so if someone does this, please take detailed pics I want this.

~O~

My regulator has more than the three wires from the stator going to it. A quick look at the wiring diagram shows that the electricity for the lights comes directly from the regulator. How do those get power with the new regulator?

 

[dan filipi]

OK, so if someone does this, please take detailed pics I want this.

~O~

My regulator has more than the three wires from the stator going to it. A quick look at the wiring diagram shows that the electricity for the lights comes directly from the regulator. How do those get power with the new regulator?

Here's a diagram from one of the above links of the "recommended" wiring for this regulator that I didn't see in my earlier post.

It say's to run new 12 gauge wire from the stator and new 10 gauge wire to the battery.
I would think this R/R would work ok by using the stock wires we already have at the R/R plug but running new wiring would be ideal and would insure the least current and voltage drop.

If new wires are run, power for all the original bike loads (lights etc) would come from the same place they do now, the red and red/white at the starter solenoid main fuse.