There Was a Warning

[MikeWa]

Recently I posted about my battery going dead without warning. Well thinking back I now believer there was plenty of warning. I just overlooked it. When I first started putting this bike on a maintainer. The kind with led indicators. The maintainer would switch from red, charging, to green, charged, very quickly. The change would occur in under five minutes. But for the last few months it has been taking considerably longer. I passed it off as riding habit change or maybe the battery was getting older or weather. Truth is I didn't think very much about it at all. So long as it eventually turned green everything was ok. I thought. Now that I have replaced the battery the led switch over occurs very quickly again. Under five minutes. So it seems I was getting warning of an impending failure after all.

 

All this makes me wonder if continuing to run a tired battery was adding unnecessary stress to the charging system. I suppose it is possible that pushing batteries beyond their useful life could be responsible for some early charging system failures. Could create extra heat trying to keep up with an old, tired and worn out battery. Food for thought.

 

Mike

[djh3]

In my opinion and somewhat experience yes. You figure your charging system is rated @ say 14v max. So normal operation your vehicle needs 12v to run. Generic modules like ecm, body control module usually need to see something like 10v to be happy and somewhat function.

So if everything is working normal, your charge system only has to put out over 12.8v or something for a minimal time after start up, say 10 min, from there on its done charging the battery so to speak. Then its 12-12.2v or so. Now if the battery does kind of like you said an "on and off" sort of thing and takes a long "break without taking a charge". The alternator has to work harder to get the battery back up to correct voltage. Hope this kind of helps.

[Flyinfool]

With the way the charging system is designed on these bikes, the stator puts out way more power than what is needed by the bike. The RR takes all of the excess power that is not needed and effectively shorts it to ground. This means that no matter what you pull for a load, the stator output does not change. and the higher the load on the system the LESS heat in the RR. It is kind of counter intuitive and hard to wrap ones head around. This is all fine and good until you start to ask the system for more power than it has available to give, that is the point where things really start to get hot and fail. If you get into that point, you will be going thru stators, not batteries.

[jakester]

We should just all go and buy new bikes!!! This way nothing is worn out any time soon.

[camos]

With the way the charging system is designed on these bikes, the stator puts out way more power than what is needed by the bike. The RR takes all of the excess power that is not needed and effectively shorts it to ground.

The current mosfet style R/R's only draw as much power as demanded so should, as a result, be easier on the stator.

[Flyinfool]

The current mosfet style R/R's only draw as much power as demanded so should, as a result, be easier on the stator.

 

This is also true and is the reason I have a mosfet style on my bike. I just hate the whole concept of always running the electrical at 100% capacity till the magic blue smoke comes out. But Mosfet is also not how the system is designed, and most people still have the stock system still in place.

[MikeWa]

With the way the charging system is designed on these bikes, the stator puts out way more power than what is needed by the bike. The RR takes all of the excess power that is not needed and effectively shorts it to ground. This means that no matter what you pull for a load, the stator output does not change. and the higher the load on the system the LESS heat in the RR. It is kind of counter intuitive and hard to wrap ones head around. This is all fine and good until you start to ask the system for more power than it has available to give, that is the point where things really start to get hot and fail. If you get into that point, you will be going thru stators, not batteries.

 

Agreed. In the permanent magnet generator system used on bikes excess voltage (which can be quite high) is sent to ground by the regulator. I just hadn't given much thought to current control. I just assumed, without looking, that it was similar to an automobile or demand controlled. ie: As the battery becomes charged resistance increases and current flow decreases. And as the accessory load increases or decreases current demand follows. I never considered that current flow would always be at maximum with the unused portion shorted to ground. If that is what occurs it seems a rather inefficient power robbing heat generating waste. Sounds about right.

 

Mike

[cowpuc]

One thing for sure, weak batteries are not good on starters. Running a good crisp new battery is cheap compared to having a starter go south while on the road.

[djh3]

One thing for sure, weak batteries are not good on starters. Running a good crisp new battery is cheap compared to having a starter go south while on the road.

 

Especially being we aint had kickers for a long time. I also was thinking more in line with automotive charging systems.

[camos]

This is also true and is the reason I have a mosfet style on my bike. I just hate the whole concept of always running the electrical at 100% capacity till the magic blue smoke comes out. But Mosfet is also not how the system is designed, and most people still have the stock system still in place.

My sentiments as well. Without actually saying it, my point was don't replace a faulty R/R with an OEM style one.

[cowpuc]

Especially being we aint had kickers for a long time. I also was thinking more in line with automotive charging systems.

 

and OH HOW I MISS THOSE KICKERS!!!!!!!!!!:thumbsup:

 

Think I better go to the "what we want on our 3rd Gen Ventures" thread and update to include a kickstart Deej = GOOD POINT BROTHER!!!