alternator brush length

[TomB]

I think a bit of common sense has to be used and bollox to the manual.

How often do you change car alternator brushes, 50,000 miles?
I've had cars do over 100,000 miles and never looked at the alternator brushes.

I understand checking serviceable length more often if your alt. power is down a bit but replacing them!


I don't know if the XJ11 alt' is lower powered than the XS11 or the European XS11 had a higher output alt'.

Years ago I ran my XS with a big fairing with extra high wattage lights, radio cassette, and heated grips without any problems with the battery being dead.

[trbig]

In the last page of section 2 in the book, it also gives another correct version stating 16k kilometers. It's just a typo... kinda like in my first picture there where it says to replace the "Brushers". The little Japanese interpretor was doing the best he could! lol.

Tod

[brucealmighty]

Originally posted by trbig
In the last page of section 2 in the book, it also gives another correct version stating 16k kilometers. It's just a typo... kinda like in my first picture there where it says to replace the "Brushers". The little Japanese interpretor was doing the best he could! lol.

Tod

Yes, I thought this might be another case of someone whose primary language is obviously not English, being assigned the task of translating a book.

[brucealmighty]

Originally posted by TomB
I think a bit of common sense has to be used and bollox to the manual.

How often do you change car alternator brushes, 50,000 miles?
I've had cars do over 100,000 miles and never looked at the alternator brushes.

I understand checking serviceable length more often if your alt. power is down a bit but replacing them!


I don't know if the XJ11 alt' is lower powered than the XS11 or the European XS11 had a higher output alt'.

Years ago I ran my XS with a big fairing with extra high wattage lights, radio cassette, and heated grips without any problems with the battery being dead.

Although I agree with the common sense part, I don't know if comparing these bikes to cars is an accurate analogy. Lots of things about bikes are very different from cars. For instance, although I just paid almost twice as much for a battery for my bike as I paid for a battery for my pickup truck, I'm told to expect it to last only about half as long.

[brucealmighty]

Originally posted by fredintoon
"I also have the official Yamaha XJ1100J manual and it clearly states: oops. That's every 6,000 km (10,000 miles)."

Hi Bruce,
my calculator says that 6,000km = 3,720 miles. Get a lot of speeding tickets, do you?
If your engine is "sucked down" when you turn those extra lights on, it does show that the alternator is working, right?
Do a search for "LED light conversion" to see how several list members have reduced their bike's power consumption.
I doubt that a kickstarter would help you. The '79 & earlier XS11s had them in case the electric starter crapped out, not to compensate for a low battery. If the battery is too flat to spin the starter there may not be a sufficiently high voltage left in it to work the transistorized thingies in the ignition.

There seems to be an endless debate regarding certain aspects of motorcycle electrical theory. I had a '79 XS750 and there were plenty of times that the battery was too low to run the electric start, but I was able to kick start it. Once it's running, above around 2k, then it isn't really the battery that's running the transistorized thingies anymore. At that point the battery, if it's any good, and the charging system is functioning the way it should be, the excess power from the alternator will charge the battery.
Even if the battery isn't able to hold a charge, the bike will keep running just fine. At least this has been my experience. I'm still trying to get a handle on the whole electrical thing.

[fredintoon]

"I just paid almost twice as much for a battery for my bike as I paid for a battery for my pickup truck,"

Hi Bruce,
yeah, twice the price for half the amp/hours and half the battery life, that's a 4X mark-up. And that's a bargain compared to the price of motorcycle tires.
Remember watching "George of the Jungle" with your kids on the Saturday morning TV cartoons?
George not know meaning of "economics of scale"
George understand "Rip-off"

[TomB]

Although I agree with the common sense part, I don't know if comparing these bikes to cars is an accurate analogy. Lots of things about bikes are very different from cars. For instance, although I just paid almost twice as much for a battery for my bike as I paid for a battery for my pickup truck, I'm told to expect it to last only about half as long.

Yep

I only use the car analogy to bring things into perspective, I still am going to check my brushes at the right periods, or at least until a pattern of wear has formed.

But replacing them every 6000 miles if unworn??


Has anyone had an XJ11 for long years/miles that can give an indication of expected miles from alternator brushes????

It would help me and BruceA

[brucealmighty]

Originally posted by TomB


Yep

I only use the car analogy to bring things into perspective, I still am going to check my brushes at the right periods, or at least until a pattern of wear has formed.

But replacing them every 6000 miles if unworn??


Has anyone had an XJ11 for long years/miles that can give an indication of expected miles from alternator brushes????

It would help me and BruceA

I'm with you there. I'm meticulous about checking things and performing necessary maintainence in a timely manner, but I don't fix things that don't need fixing. I guess a big concern for me when I read something in the manual about periodically replacing things, or at least checking to see if they need replacing, is how difficult is it going to be for me to do that, if it's something I haven't done before. Also, if it turns out to be something that's going to keep the bike out of service, do I want to do that during prime riding season, or can it wait for winter layover. Now that I've had the brushes out of the alternator, and I know it's not a difficult or time consuming job, I'll do that to check them every few thousand miles.