Electric load capability

[jetmechmarty]

I plan a trip next week and it's going to be cold. A friend has offered me his electric vest. It draws 54 watts and has only off/on control. Will my SG power it without killing the battery?

[Jerry]

Provided you don't have any other auxillay lighting, provided your charging system /wiring is in good shape, and providing you keep over 2,800 RPMs you should be OK... (The 2,800 figure is from memory, it could be a little lower.)

Output of the charging system is on a curve, and the XS /XJ systems don't really hit break-even point until around the 2,800 RPM mark. Below that you are running mostly on battery reserve, at idle almost all your electrical power is from the battery. If your ride is around town, stop and go traffic, you probably will not get enough juice from the charging system and the battery will eventually discharge.

A couple things you can do to get a little more available current: change out the mechanical flasher for an electronic unit, clean all electrical connectors to reduce resistance, check ground wires (particularly rear signals) for a good, clean connection, and some folks have replaced the standard turn signal bulbs with LED units. (Mixed results...LED's can't bee seen as well from the side. Quality/suitability vary widly from brand to brand.) ) All these checks/ upgrades will give you more power for other uses.

Having said all that, I've found my hands, knees, and ankles get cold long before my chest. There have been other "cold weather" threads; do a search to get some suggestions on gear to try. I use heavy leather gloves with cotton liners, riding pants with armor on the knees, and tall lace-up boots with 2 layers of socks. Riding behind the big Windjammer I don't wear a lot under my riding suit except a t-shirt and heavier sweater. My winter helmet is an HJC unit with a heated face shield, as I found my Shoei full-face would fog easily. The anti-fog stuff Itried worked OK, but had to be re-applied almost every day. The heated unit keeps the visibility good under all conditions.

[Dennyz]

54 watts is about 3.5 amps. If everything else on your SG is working correctly, you should not have a problem at cruising speed. Under 2K rpm you are running on the battery anyway. Again if your battery is in good shape and your don't spend much time in town, you will be OK. My Dad built a circuit that would shut his vest off when the battery voltage dropped below 13 volts. I will see if he has some info on his circuit.

[randy]

Since you guys are on the subject, this seems like as good a place as any to let you know that I'm working on an alternative rectifier / regulator for my XS.

I'm building it based on the regulator and rectifier packs from a standard Delco-Remy 10Si Alternator. The Delco regulator pack is designed to provide 14 volts at engine idle (650 - 750 rpm). The standard automobile application has the alternator slightly overrun with a smaller pulley than the crank, so the idle rpm of the Delco is actually closer to 1000 - 1100 rpm, which puts it right in the idle range of the XS crank/field/stator assembly.

My goal is to have a decent reg output regardless of rpm and load, and a side benefit is the availability of an 'ALT' or 'GEN' warning light just like a car, so if anything goes wrong, at least I'll have been notified.

If all goes as planned and I don't smoke anything, I'll let you all know how it works out, then I'll find a way to post the plans.

Randy

[jetmechmarty]

I'm near Atlanta and I'm going south. I may need a little heat for the first couple hours and I don't expect to need it after that. On my return, I may need it on the last leg. My RPM should remain at at least 3500, so I guess I'll be OK. -Thanx

[D. P. Larmee]

South from Atlanta?

It doesn't get cold south of Atlanta

[Hobbit]

power

The 3.5 amps that Dennyz mentions is about the same as 5 extra taillights, but at higher rpm should be okay.
As for as face shields, I used ZOOK spray on my windshield and face shield this year at TWO and it worked great I haven't added any more since then, but it hasn't been too cold yet here either.
Walt

[Pat Kelly]

On the subject of helmet sheild fogging....
I work at a hospital and I asked a Respiratory Tech for a face mask used for breathing treatments. It fits over my mouth and nose (under the helmet) and comes with a 1" diameter hose that I cut off to be 6" long. The tube comes out just under the lower edge of my helmet and directs my breath out the helmet, no fogging. Downside is when I look down and the end of the tube gets covered with my collar. Looking back up restores my ability to breathe.

[Dennyz]

Jerry,

How does the face shield heater actually work on your HJC?

[dntemp_ca]

Attaboys for Randy! Since xs/xj's do have a marginal charging system, this would be a welcome mod / upgrade!

[Jerry]

Jerry,

How does the face shield heater actually work on your HJC?
__________________
DZ

The shield has a heater wire similar to those found on auto rear windows. Placemnent is up on forehead and down below nose, nothing in line of vision. The two ends of the heater are attached to a wire pigtail that ends in a male RCA jack. I just ran a 2-conductor speaker wire from to the battery up along the handlebars, put a female RCA jack on the handlebar end. Just plug the helmet jack into the cable and the shield heats. Photo and description is here:

http://www.hjchelmets.com/snow_shields.htm

HJC also offers (or did offer) a temp control unit, similar to a thermostat, that would turn power on and off to the shield as needed. I have not tried this, just plugging mine in seems to work OK.

Went with HJC as Shoei dows not have a similar shield. I bought my set-up from Zanotti Motores a few years back, is holding up quite well. I use the same helmet/shield for snowmobiling, so gets dual-purpose use.

[Dennyz]

Thanks Jerry,

I just bought a new Shoie and am disappointed by the fogging problem, which is my only complaint with the helmet. But, it is a big one.

[skids]

Interesting! Make it work and market the thing! Keep the static volume in the hose as small as possible without restricting breathing...you really don't want to "rebreathe" much percentage of your exhaled air. Provide more than one outlet in case the hose gets pinched. I have lots of respirators around here, I just might try it for myself!

Originally posted by Pat Kelly
On the subject of helmet sheild fogging....
I work at a hospital and I asked a Respiratory Tech for a face mask used for breathing treatments. It fits over my mouth and nose (under the helmet) and comes with a 1" diameter hose that I cut off to be 6" long. The tube comes out just under the lower edge of my helmet and directs my breath out the helmet, no fogging. Downside is when I look down and the end of the tube gets covered with my collar. Looking back up restores my ability to breathe.

[skids]

I wish the best of luck in your project. I am thinking that the main problem may be with the alternator rather than the volt regulator. With the stock alternator, there is only so much power generated from the electric field from the bike's battery at a given rpm...

PS, I have also done some work with more modern integrated circuit (electronic) regulators in the xs11. I am NOT a very good tech writer, but here is what I have found. I am doing this for all three of my xs11's:

http://home.earthlink.net/~sidskids/voltreg/voltreg.htm

Originally posted by randy
I'm building it based on the regulator and rectifier packs from a standard Delco-Remy 10Si Alternator. The Delco regulator pack is designed to provide 14 volts at engine idle (650 - 750 rpm). The standard automobile application has the alternator slightly overrun with a smaller pulley than the crank, so the idle rpm of the Delco is actually closer to 1000 - 1100 rpm, which puts it right in the idle range of the XS crank/field/stator assembly.

Randy

[skids]

I should mention that I have had some success with the alternative VR. It does not charge the system well with the headlight on when below about 1400 rpms, however. The headlight does not dim as badly as stock, so I guess it is somewhat successful.

Originally posted by skids

PS, I have also done some work with more modern integrated circuit (electronic) regulators in the xs11. I am NOT a very good tech writer, but here is what I have found. I am doing this for all three of my xs11's:

http://home.earthlink.net/~sidskids/voltreg/voltreg.htm