marginal

[chevy45412001]

well my charging system is very marginal ,i think. test batt sitting still 13.2v. start bike goes to 13.6-13.8v . have to rev to about2,000+ then get 14.3-14.5v. let come back to idle and volts go down slowly14.2-14.0-13.9-13.7-13.5- you get the jist of it. will this be suitable for every day driving?tia. and thanxs for the help already givin.also is testing the white wires and the brown-green wires the same as on the XS? mine XJ

[Pat Kelly]

Sounds about average for XS11's

[Dragonrider]

Yep...that's about normal.

[randy]

Ditto,

Normal

[skids]

Re: marginal

Yup! The charging system does not keep up at idle with the lights burning. It is a GOOD thing to install a headlight switch so that you don't run the battery down in day-time traffic jams!

Originally posted by chevy45412001
well my charging system is very marginal ,i think. test batt sitting still 13.2v. start bike goes to 13.6-13.8v . have to rev to about2,000+ then get 14.3-14.5v. let come back to idle and volts go down slowly14.2-14.0-13.9-13.7-13.5- you get the jist of it. will this be suitable for every day driving?tia. and thanxs for the help already givin.also is testing the white wires and the brown-green wires the same as on the XS? mine XJ

[randy]

Yes, that's why a regulator that would give us 13.5 at idle would be a godsend. I'll keep you all posted!

[Pat Kelly]

It's the alternator that provides the voltage, not the regulator. The voltage regulator prevents overcharging at higher RPMs.
Maybe a belt-driven external alternator? A 95 amp GM (internal regulator) would handle anything you wanted to bolt on the a bike.

[rover]

That would be an excellent idea, but where would you drive it from? About the only thing that turns and is accesible are the wheels.

[TopCatGr58]

Hey Rover,

Surprisingly, this has been discussed before. Since you wouldn't need the OEM alternator, you could drill a hole in the side of the ALT case and mount a pulley shaft on the end of the crank shaft sticking out just slightly beyond the end of the OEM case! Then mount the ALT rearwards. We need to keep the OEM case to help keep the oil galley seal plug in place, at least that's my understanding!

However, aside from rigging/fabricating a mount for it close to the clutch cover and finding one small enough to not interfere with your foot placement, the engine rotates counterclockwise from the right side. IIRC, most American motors turn clockwise when looking at the front, and so the ALT's rotate clockwise as well!?

We'd have to find one that rotates CCW, or rig up some jackshaft adding even more weight, complexity to an already difficult design idea?!?
T.C.

[Pat Kelly]

Gear drive would reverse the rotation.

[randy]

It's the alternator that provides the voltage, not the regulator. The voltage regulator prevents overcharging at higher RPMs.

That's right, Pat, That's the problem with our regulator. it's not a real regulator. A real regulator would keep the voltage constant at any rpm.

I'm working on a substitute that's based on the GM 10Si regulator pack.

[Pat Kelly]

I'm not arguing with you, just trying to see this....

If at 1,500 RPM the alternator is only putting out 10.5 volts, how is a voltage regulator going to make that 13.5 volts?

My bike doesn't make enough voltage for the regulator to route the XSive voltage (over 14 volts) to ground until around 3,000 RPM.

If what you're making works that would be great. I ride year-around and I'd like to use my fog lights. As it is they will work for about ½ and hour if I keep the RPMs above 3,000. I shut them off at stops. WHen I had a stereo on my bike it wouldn't work when I used the turnsignals. As it is my voltage (at idle) with the turnsignals goes from 11 to 9 volts. Turn them off and I'm charging at 12 volts (voltmeter in fairing).

It's no big deal on my LG as it's run nekkid but my E has a few more lights (the full tour set-up). I have the rear signals set as running lights too and there are a couple of marker and accent lights (most LED). I converted my tail/brake light to LED and that helped a lot.

[TopCatGr58]

Hey Randy,

Geezer has been doing alot of this work, and has a working prototype already done. He's posted several messages about them in the Yahoo group list. You'll probably be able to ge glean more tech info from it knowing the techno-speak! You can review the messages on the web site thru a search. He's stated that he's going to charge about $90.00 for them, -$10 discount for YAHOO LIST members thru the end of the year! His is a completely built from scratch design IIRC!? Competition is good, but I get the impression that this and a few other projects he does IS his livlyhood!
T.C.

[randy]

Pat:

The alternator's output is dependent on the field coil input. Increase the field coil voltage and viola, the alternator puts out more juice. the trouble with our regulator is that it's not an active field control regulator.

The GM ( or any auto ) regulator is an active part of the field circuit. That's why it does such a good job at any RPM.

T.C.:

I know of Geezer's work but i would venture to guess that his regulator is fashioned after another bike unit, so would work the same as the one we've got. Would be a good replacement but may not be an improvement in low end performance.

Geezer, please chime in on this!

[TopCatGr58]

Watch out, I was thinking again!!

IF we had a spare Alt cover, perhaps we could cut it up somehow, Remove the STator and windings, and remove the Rotor....OR does it need to be there for a FLYWHEEL affect?

Hey, wait a minute, they removed it on that RACING XS for weight reduction! Anyways, then either mount a flat round bracket onto the crankshaft end that you could then bolt onto the Pulley end of an Alternator mounted onto the end of the shaft, that way it would be turning the same direction. And you could fab the cover to house the ALT securely.

Would probably still need to cut venting holes in the casing, think the auto ALT's need some air cooling affect! I don't think one mounted this way would stick out too much farther than the OEM housing?? Just wonder how it would be in RAIN?? Hmmmm, have spare bikes, may tinker with this later....!
T.C.