Flickering headlights

[Flyinfool]

And I thought that you were on my side. My feelings are so huurrrrt

And your feelings are probably not all that was hurt.........

 

You brought it up, or at least tried to........

[tazmocycle]

you may want to check the voltage at the battery as you rev the engine up and down. i was having the same problem and it was the reg/rec not regulating the voltage while running, i was getting up to 16 volts at high revs which boiled the water out of my battery and caused it to die. after replacing the reg/rec unit and adding distilled water to the battery it quit doing it. if your not getting over 14 volts then look else where.

[BIG TOM]

Call Hank.........and stop guessing !!! ps I know someone else who pe'ed on an electric fence.......my son was with me and my wool pants got caught up on the barbed wire part of the fence.....I haven't talk to my son in 18 years since it happened, I tried to once but he was STILL LAUGHING.....

Edited November 4, 2012 by BIG TOM

[tazmocycle]

my brother dave did the peeing on an electric fence when we were younger, it was a shocking suprise to him that it did ground out through his bare feet and it was one of the weed burners model, so it had the higher power!!LOL!!

[OB-1]

The headlight on my bike started dimming and brightening back in June. The problem turned out to be a bad stator. One of the stator windings was totally shorted and the other two windings were shorted to a lesser degree. This allowed the charging system to keep up with things until the carb heaters cycled on. The dimming and brightening of the headlight appeared to follow the carb heaters.

 

Changing the stator is a PIA.

 

[pmelah]

and peeeing on the electric fence is a pian in the front that makes me hurt just thinking about it :whistling:

[StarFan]

Well, am finally back home from Norway and have checked the bike:

 

1. Checked all connectors in the headlight housing and updated some shady ones from previous owner. Everything looks good in there. All connectors cleaned and sprayed with contact spray.

 

2. Opened up and checked and cleaned the light switches - they were actually spotless.

 

3. Opened up and checked and cleaned the starter switch - spotless.

 

4. Installed a new battery.

 

5. Went over all connectors where the battery compartment is. All looked good and are tight and clean. Cleaned and sprayed with contact spray.

 

6. Checked the rectifier connectors - They were tight and clean. No burns or indication of heat build up.

 

7. Battery voltage fully charged without running: 13.20v

Batteri voltage at idle speed: 14.17v - 14.20v steady

5.500 rpm steady throttle for ten seconds: 14.25v steady

 

Still flickering headlights

Even though I am not very clever when it comes to electricity then these readings seem quite normal in my eyes.

 

Now what do you guys think that should I do next ? Open up the stator compartment just to see how it looks?

 

Friendly regards,

 

Jonas

[Freebird]

Not in my opinion. You say that the voltage is steady so assuming that you have a decent meter, I would think that any voltage fluctuation that is enough to cause the lights to flicker would show up on your meter. Now you say you tested the voltage at idle and at higher RPMs but where did you check it? At the battery? If you haven't done so, I would suggest that you take those same readings at the light. If you are not seeing any voltage fluctuations at the light, then I would be looking at the grounds.

 

My headlight flickers a lot....but that's because of the modulator.

[BIG TOM]

This past summer ,my passing lights on my 05 kept going off and on at will....Tore the entire thing apart 3 times looking for a bad connection or ground or short....Long story short......the in line fuse connector went bad and would sometimes make contact and sometimes not....A lousy $2.00 part drove me nuts for 2 weekends till it got figured out......good luck

[StarFan]

Thanks for the info Don.

 

I have a good professional voltage meter and the fluctation barely shows on the meter - only going from14.17v to 14.20v . Measured everything at the battery.

Will measure at the headligt tomorrow.

Will update this thread as my research continues and hope you guys will chime in with further advice. Me and electricity do not get along that good Have little experience in that field.

 

Apart from this the bike has been running perfectly apart from exhaust popping. And building up courage to take the carburator off this winter and do a rejett, float adjustment as well as good cleanup. Will most likely bug you guys with questions when the time comes. Am having a little problem figuring out what jet kit I should buy for this carb since it is a 28mm Mikuni - not the 32mm that the Venture has. The stock pipes have had the silencers/baffles removed completely by previous owner so the pipes are empty. As far as I have read that could be causing the popping and would require a rejett - or/and the popping is caused by clogged jets. Would not mind a rejett to get a little more extra power. I am pretty sure that after I try my V-maxed Tour Classic in the States (the coming august 2013) this bike will feel a little powerless

 

Best regards from Iceland,

 

Jonas

[BIG TOM]

Thanks for the info Don.

 

I am pretty sure that after I try my V-maxed Tour Classic in the States (the coming august 2013) this bike will feel a little powerless

 

Best regards from Iceland,

 

Jonas

 

 

Bwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa ! Sorry, I just help it....That bike screams..Bwaaaaaaaaa !

[StarFan]

Did one last check before calling it the night.

Found out that it is only the headlight that flickers. All other lights stay solid.

So,,,,that would make me think that somewhere along the line there is a weak connection, ground or power. Now I have to figure out where in the world these wires run from the headlight since all the connections there are good and solid.

[we2riders]

Does it do it on both hi and low beams - could be as simple as an element cracked. You might try removing the headlight assembly, turn on the light and jiggle the wireharness behind the light and see if you can force it to flicker.. If so, just keep fiddling with the wires till you find the loose one.. Also tap on the headlight relay with the the lights on, I have had them do exactly what your describing. You could also try a jumper wire from the headlight bulb ground directly to the frame and then try it, this would eliminate the possibilty of a loose ground wire in the harness..

There should be a connector from the stator to the main harness, this is the simpless place to ohm check your stator - someone on here I am sure knows the parametors for the ohm values. In a pinch, if all three stator wires read the same across each other and none read to ground the stator is probably good. This is fairly easy to do but I highly doubt the problem is stator related as you mentioned the headlight is the only device affected..

hope this helps,, I would take any shark meat these guys dont want - dead or alive , we dont have those in lake michigan hahahaha.. you can keep the testies though..

good luck

scott

[StarFan]

Thanks Scott.

 

I just now took the headlight assembly apart again and will continue looking at this tomorrow morning 07:00 sharp. Am being ordered to leave the garage "right now" and pay some attention to the Warden. Better do as she says.

 

WIll change the headlight plug for a ceramic one and do the wiggling test as you described. Am pretty sure that the problem is in the wiring harness of the headlight assembly even though everything feels tight and all the connectors are cleaned up and have a snug fit.

 

Advice Scott - Take the testicles - not half as scary as the stinking shark !

 

Thanks for the advice and ride safe.

 

Friendly regards from Iceland,

 

Jonas

[we2riders]

Your welcome my friend..

Now I gotta ask you,,, how do you obtain shark gonads?? do they hang down underneath them and you just lay on the ocean floor and clip em off as the shark swims by - you da man bro!!! I would say getting poked by electricty is the least of your worries if the above is true

 

Couldnt resist

chears from Michigan

scott

[StarFan]

Well Scott,,,,,

 

Only the toughest ones do that. The others settle for ram testicles. I had to quit eating them - to much s#x drive

[BIG TOM]

Well Scott,,,,,

 

Only the toughest ones do that. The others settle for ram testicles. I had to quit eating them - to much s#x drive

 

You Vikings sure do LOVE your sheep..... :rotfl: I need to have a talk with Greta... ps Scott...If you never want your wife/girlfriend to kiss you again....eat the shark....the shark is fermented for 2 years....( I think in urine and human waste) lol..... also, the Icelandic people invented "black death" to kill themselves if they actually eat the shark more than once in their lifetime.........

Edited November 22, 2012 by BIG TOM

[BIG TOM]

Well Scott,,,,,

 

Only the toughest ones do that. The others settle for ram testicles. I had to quit eating them - to much s#x drive

 

 

Jonas, You have a wonderful wife.....LEAVE the sheep alone.......thats why all the sheep had that funny call they make. I just figured it out.....JOOOOOOOOOOONAS..........

[StarFan]

Man,,,,Am I embarrased !

 

Finally figured out what was causing the flickering of the headlights. And my son had to point it out to me as a possible fault,,,,now he will make fun of me for a month !

 

He said: Dad, did you check if the bulb is O.K. ?

 

I said: Look, the bulb goes blank if it is not alright - No light you know - no bright beams coming out of that glass capsule - darkness ! You got it ? It will not flicker if the bulb is shot !

 

He said: Just a suggestion - would not hurt to try to change it !

 

I said: Listen, I am not born yesterday and I know what I am doing. Is the chicken teaching the hen ?

 

When my son left the garage I decided just in case to change the bulb just to show myself that I was right. What do you know - NO FLICKERING !

Now I am collecting some courage to tell my son what it was - Heavy steps !

 

Lesson learned - Be open minded to simple suggestions/solutions even though it comes from the younger ones.

 

Thanks for all the info and suggestions. Goes into the knowledgebank and will surely come handy in the future.

 

Friendly regards from Iceland,

 

Jonas

[Trader]

Wow.....43 posts and not a single suggestion to check the headlight fluid!

 

You guys are slipping!

[we2riders]

Oh the taste of that good ol humble pie.. Now that kid deserves a ride on the bike!! What a great feast for a Thanksgiving day!!!

Glad you guys figured it out Jonas!!

[FuzzyRSTD]

Wow.....43 posts and not a single suggestion to check the headlight fluid!

 

You guys are slipping!

 

My thoughts to Trader. But I have to admit, after reading all these post in earnest to see what happens next, not once did I think of the stinking bulb either. Maybe I was to interested in something else. I did learn to eat goat testicles and how to get the gonads from a shark with out killing him first. So I learned three different things here today.

 

Fuzzy

 

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