The International CBX Owners Association

My voltage system is not charging the battery. I know the battery is pretty cooked. I have tryed using 3 differnt regulator rectifiers. They all seem to not charge. I am getting about 24 volts A/C. But no D/C voltage increase. Is it possible that the battery being very worn out is the cause of no battery voltage increase. If I replaced with a new battery would that in turn charge the battery causing a voltage increase of about 14.5 volts?
Thanks

Are you basing your opinion that the bike is not charging on the voltage meter on the dash? If so, think again. The volt meter just shows what's in the system, not whether the current is flowing in or out. Don't feel bad though, most CBX owners make the same mistake.

Long ago, cars had an amp meter in the dash. It told what the alternator (or gernerator) was doing, but not whether the battery was accepting the charge. Now we have volt meters which indicate charge, but not whether the altetnator is working. We need both to diagnose a problem.

To find out if your alternator/regulator is working, you really need an amp meter. K-D Tools makes a decent inductive unit, palm sized, that you place over the wire to see if there is current flowing, which direction, and how many amps. I find this tool so useful that I have three of them.

The volt-meter in the CBX may be used as an indicator of the charging performance of the alternator. If the ignition is switched on and the voltmeter indicates 12 or so volt, for example and the needle climbs to like 13 or 14 when the engine is properly warmed up and revved over 3,000 rpm, your charging system should be O.K. If the indicated voltage does not increase or even drop below the indicated voltage at stillstand, then you are draining the battery and the alternator does not charge.

Mike,
As usual, I made some assumptions and you know what happens when you assume.......

But your right. If you just keep an eye on the volt meter during normal riding, you'll have a good handle on whether everything is okay.

In most cases, when someone is concerned about a charging problem, the battery is already in some state of discharge. So, the voltmeter would take a LONG time to come up to a decent number, especially if the bike were just idling of the throttle was being blipped. Compounding this is the notoriously inacurrate volt meter, and old wiring with a bit of corrosion lurking about......


But for diagnosing a problem, especially when more than one component is suspect (in this case both battery and regulator/rectifier), an amp meter is very helpful.

DevonCbx wrote:My voltage system is not charging the battery. I know the battery is pretty cooked. I have tryed using 3 differnt regulator rectifiers. They all seem to not charge. I am getting about 24 volts A/C. But no D/C voltage increase. Is it possible that the battery being very worn out is the cause of no battery voltage increase. If I replaced with a new battery would that in turn charge the battery causing a voltage increase of about 14.5 volts?
Thanks

I would suggest that you go through the charging system components systematically upon the installation of a good battery. After a brush & track check, I would check cable continuity about the connectors. Look for signs of overheating.....