Alternator to regulator A/C wire size???

Status
Not open for further replies.

toppy

Joined
Dec 2, 2012
Messages
895
Country flag
I have a 150w single phase alternator (as supplied with Alton Ekit) this weekend i had changing issue after bike vapour locked carbs. An so alot of starter motor was used as i was trapped in middle of very busy junction and wanted to get going even more so as had cars moving on both sides of me an one clipped my elbow with his mirror. Not a place to put it on centre stand let it cool then kick it up i thought.
So am going over the wiring to see if there is anything a miss as the battery was not charging back up again even after about 50 miles the bike died at low revs an struggled to kick back to life in very hot weather (for UK). It made it the next 50 miles home with only 8.5v in battery when it got back.
Nothing looks a miss with wiring but the wires from alternator the Regulator/Rectifier could be routed better but are to short so I wish to replace them but what size would be correct with a nice safety factor. Each of the two wires would end up being around three feet long.
Thanks
 
Thanks LAB. the wire that is on at present says 1.75mm so its up grade time.
 
toppy said:
I have a 150w single phase alternator (as supplied with Alton Ekit) this weekend i had changing issue after bike vapour locked carbs. An so alot of starter motor was used as i was trapped in middle of very busy junction and wanted to get going even more so as had cars moving on both sides of me an one clipped my elbow with his mirror. Not a place to put it on centre stand let it cool then kick it up i thought.
So am going over the wiring to see if there is anything a miss as the battery was not charging back up again even after about 50 miles the bike died at low revs an struggled to kick back to life in very hot weather (for UK). It made it the next 50 miles home with only 8.5v in battery when it got back.
Nothing looks a miss with wiring but the wires from alternator the Regulator/Rectifier could be routed better but are to short so I wish to replace them but what size would be correct with a nice safety factor. Each of the two wires would end up being around three feet long.
Thanks
Click to expand...

Sounds a nightmare.. Went out yesterday and had a less extreme version . Bike cut out at lights would not restart..Circuit voltage was over 12volts and had been charging , Soon the red light was on and just as about to give up , it fired.. Began to charge have ammeter fitted on ride home ,but regulator was cutting in and out . Let it cool and everything back to normal . Alton spins motor like a top. Has made me wonder about the oldish battery.
 
Hmm..vapor lock is not associated with gravity-fed fuel systems - like most carbureted motorcycles. Did you check to see if you could get raw fuel dripping using the ticklers when trying to start the bike? That would immediately tell you if there was liquid fuel in the carbs.

The charging issue is, of course, a different thing.
 
toppy said:
I have a 150w single phase alternator (as supplied with Alton Ekit) this weekend i had changing issue after bike vapour locked carbs. An so alot of starter motor was used as i was trapped in middle of very busy junction and wanted to get going even more so as had cars moving on both sides of me an one clipped my elbow with his mirror. Not a place to put it on centre stand let it cool then kick it up i thought.
So am going over the wiring to see if there is anything a miss as the battery was not charging back up again even after about 50 miles the bike died at low revs an struggled to kick back to life in very hot weather (for UK). It made it the next 50 miles home with only 8.5v in battery when it got back.
Nothing looks a miss with wiring but the wires from alternator the Regulator/Rectifier could be routed better but are to short so I wish to replace them but what size would be correct with a nice safety factor. Each of the two wires would end up being around three feet long.
Thanks
Click to expand...
What reg rectifier are you using? It sounds a bit more than undersize wire gauge problem to me
What ignition do you have?
 
Yes tickled the carbs an got fuel then it fired up. Everything was real hot an may have just been heat soak in carbs as idle was just starting to hunt a little (i could just ear it raise an fall slightly) an its normally steady. Maybe vapour locked is not the correct term on my part but both bike an me were defiantly feeling the heat.

The ignition is Boyer the red box type that is not to bother about low voltage. It did run fine at anything over 2k an was even overtaking as normal but i not want to risk letting rev drop.

I don't have the normal charge warning light but one of those LEDs that change from red to green as voltage changes. It was flashing red for over 50 miles which ment less than 10.5v but bike ran fine an made it home so could have been worse an certainly wouldn't have made it without the Kickstarter.
 
toppy said:
so could have been worse an certainly wouldn't have made it without the Kickstarter.
Click to expand...

Sure you could have - just bumpstart it! I used to do that regularly INSTEAD of kickstarting if the bike happened to be pointing down hill but did it on level ground without any difficulty every so often because that was what the racers did! ;)
 
Had the alternator on my alton play up a few years ago. Engine was hot after a motorway run and alternator rotor had rubbed the stator .
Rotor was intact but had lost a lot of its magnetism on one side. I presume because of heat buildup killing the magnets.
Had to replace the magnetic ring on the alternator rotor to restore proper output.
 
I have looked at the rotor an stator and they seem ok to look at. Checked with circuit tester the stator has continuity an no short to earth.
Didn't think to check if rotor still had magnesium but i will go stick a screwdriver on it after work (there is am sure a better way of checking but that's as much as i can do to test it).
I have ordered some wire an over coming weekend i should get time to change A/C wire an start bike to test charging system. All the lights are LED and there are four 5amp fuses (all fine) right next to battery so i can't imagine it to be a short somehow draining charge away but not charging instead.
 
You could have a bad earth , a regulator/rectifier issue, a dead battery cell , have you disconnected the original warning light circuitry ? the simulator was dependent on an AC bleed that might run direct to earth.
 
MexicoMike said:
Sure you could have - just bumpstart it! I used to do that regularly INSTEAD of kickstarting if the bike happened to be pointing down hill but did it on level ground without any difficulty every so often because that was what the racers did! ;)
Click to expand...

Related story about bump starting.... My first Norton, a ‘72 combat roadster that had 300 miles on the odometer when I bought it in May ‘73. At the mountain station parking lot that year above Palm Springs, just for fun I decided to bump start. Fourth gear rolled up to 40mph going down the steep road, drop the clutch and skidded to a stop. Very impressive compression.
 
Always wanted a Combat; never had one. Maybe I was lucky NOT to have one - too hard to bumpstart! :)
 
toppy said:
I have looked at the rotor an stator and they seem ok to look at. Checked with circuit tester the stator has continuity an no short to earth.
Didn't think to check if rotor still had magnesium but i will go stick a screwdriver on it after work (there is am sure a better way of checking but that's as much as i can do to test it).
I have ordered some wire an over coming weekend i should get time to change A/C wire an start bike to test charging system. All the lights are LED and there are four 5amp fuses (all fine) right next to battery so i can't imagine it to be a short somehow draining charge away but not charging instead.
Click to expand...
The magnets on the Alton are very strong, if you have any dead magnets on the rotor you will be able to feel it when putting a steel screwdriver next to it.
 
Currently Alton is including three extra small washers to space the alternator off the stator.
 
I found out yesterday the Regulator is rate at 120w an the Alton alternator at 150w. So given the high load due to lots of starter use without motor firing i think the Regulator probably failed due to being overloaded but i have not had time to test it yet. If the Boyer was advancing due to low voltage the at the speed the engine was running at it would not be an issue. An in my defence i fitted the Regulator before having the electric start an it was well up to the Lucas equipment output. Normally the bike fires up with trouble an i don't do stop start type riding so its not been a problem for 5 or so years. The shear pin pastic bits in the Alton have gone so they also did their job i suppose an so they will need to be changed. But the bike got its self home with at least 50 or maybe as much as 100 miles without charging so i guess i can't complain things could have been worse.
 
Yeah - I had a charging system failure failure on my commando a few years back - bike made it home - about 50 miles on the battery with no odd symptoms at all. This was with a Shorai 18 AH batt/Tri-spark
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top