Charging issues

[jt]

Yes, yesterday was great riding in the Hill Country. We rode from Bandera to Frederickburg, to Willow, then down to Luckenbach, and back to Bandera a very nice 200 mile loop.

There has been a gem of a Vintage M/C show at Luckenbach called the Harvest Classic which sadly Oct 2022 was the last year for it.It was just as fun walking through the parking lot and looking at all the different bikes as walking through the show. It had ran for around 20 years I believe, I made alot them over the years, actually got 2nd place with my 89 Honda GB500 one year, there was a Ducati 900SS in my class that won, Hard to beat that one! Gonna miss this one for sure.

https://www.harvestclassic.org/2022/

https://youtu.be/CftCxOW4L1Q

[oroepke]

Yes, yesterday was great riding in the Hill Country. We rode from Bandera to Frederickburg, to Willow, then down to Luckenbach, and back to Bandera a very nice 200 mile loop.

There has been a gem of a Vintage M/C show at Luckenbach called the Harvest Classic which sadly Oct 2022 was the last year for it.It was just as fun walking through the parking lot and looking at all the different bikes as walking through the show. It had ran for around 20 years I believe, I made alot them over the years, actually got 2nd place with my 89 Honda GB500 one year, there was a Ducati 900SS in my class that won, Hard to beat that one! Gonna miss this one for sure.

https://www.harvestclassic.org/2022/

https://youtu.be/CftCxOW4L1Q

Yes! Best show in the area, so sad they are done. There were 3 or 4 CBX's last year. I won in my class with my BMW R80 G/S!

[oroepke]

Reporting back. I did some more disassembly, cleaned connectors, will have to replace a few because they were partly melted, but I am 99% sure that my problem is the regulator/rectifier. I measured resistance as per the FSM and I got 600 Ohms one way and "indefinite" the other way. So I just orderd a new one and hopefully that solves my problem! I will also put in a LED head light bulb to reduce the overall draw. Hopefully in a week or so I will be back on the road! Have a good weekend everyone!

[oroepke]

I am back on the road! Dropped in a new regulator/rectifier, changed the headlight to an LED bulb, cleaned all remaining electrical connections, rigged up a new fused wired connector under the right side cover, replaced another two or three connectors that didn't look too good anymore. I have a healthy charging voltage of 14.6V now, but only above 2,200 rpm or so. I think I will be fine even at prolonged stop and go, especially if I can get above 2,500 every once in a while. The LED head light definitely helps as well.

In the meantime, the forks started leaking, well, this didn't come unexpected! I'll have to focus on some of my other bikes now, but have all the parts together to finally put the airbox in, probably in early May or so. In the meantime I will continue to ride as is (after fixixng the forks), because what can be worse than letting a bike sit!

[NobleHops]

Nice! 14.6 at 2K is being all it can be. When we get that, the idle charge voltage is normally just below 13v.

[daves79x]

What LED bulb did you find to fit the headlight bucket?

Dave

[hondaman160mph]

I have a led similar to this in my headlight
https://www.auxito.com/products/9003-le ... CEEALw_wcB

[JoeInTUS]

I really like those Auxito bulbs. I have used them in both CBXs and cars in different sizes and they seem well made. Amazon is a good source.

[Larry Zimmer]

Great! While you are about doing the fork job, consider investing in RaceTech gold valve. Excellent suspension upgrade.

[oroepke]

Dave, the bulb I used is similar to the one that Hondaman shows under his link. Light output is not much better than the original H4, but it definitely draws fewer Amps. I have a Cyclops in my R80 G/S, holy moly, I can light the desert on my way to Dakar with it! It comes with it's own little fan built into the bulb. expensive at $120.

Larry, I have the Racetech springs and gold valves in my G/S, I can attest that the transformation is incredible!

[Arundel2]

Have 1979 CBX.
New brushes, new stator, reconded rotor, new voltage regulator/rectifier , new battery.
All purchased from Ricks Motorsport Electrics.
Issue is at idle only reading 10/11 volts and above idle goes to 13.5 volts. Everything is going great should i worry about it?
You talk on the Forum of a grounded regulator? Does it need a physical earth to it ??
If anyone can enlighten me as to what i have done wrong or forgotten to do that would awesome.
Cheers
Mike Seelen
New Zealand

[daves79x]

Are you reading voltage with a good multimeter at the battery? Do not trust the Honda voltmeter. You should get close to 12 volts at a low idle, but should jump to close to 14 volts at 3000-plus rpm. Your battery must have a good charge to show these voltages. A discharged battery will take quite a while to show normal voltage. No, the regulator does not have to be grounded.

Dave

[Larry Zimmer]

Be CERTAIN that all you connections between alternator, etc. are CLEAN and without any corrosion. Doesn't take much to reduce the voltage. Clean means VERY clean. I assume you are measuring voltage at the battery. Should get 14+ there as Dave said above 3000.

[Arundel2]

Thanks for your advice .Will clean connectors again and take readings from battery.
Will report back after doing those things.
Mike

[daves79x]

Sounds like you were trusting the Honda voltmeter. Checking at the battery will likely give you correct readings.

Dave