The Charging Mod Illustrated

[yyt]

11 hours ago, wsn03 said:

Surely this wasn't from factory standard? Im guessing a bodge? Interested to know more

Obviously it's not a factory standard, but my harness is all original and never has been tampered with.

I guess a certain batch had this problem, It was odd to me all the voltage differences all around when I had alternator problems.

I think the best indication to see if there is a problem is to check the voltage at the fuse box, if it's the same as the batt I guess it's OK.

[wsn03]

1 minute ago, yyt said:

Obviously it's not a factory standard, but my harness is all original and never has been tampered with.

I guess a certain batch had this problem, It was odd to me all the voltage differences all around when I had alternator problems.

I think the best indication to see if there is a problem is to check the voltage at the fuse box, if it's the same as the batt I guess it's OK.

Thanks for that, i will check mine

[Crass]

Original writeup now edited to include an inline fuse in the mod.

[wsn03]

53 minutes ago, Crass said:

Original writeup now edited to include an inline fuse in the mod.

Really good. Thanks

[Captain Chaos]

New improved article here: http://oldskoolsuzuki.info/archives/2515

[Askamaskinservice]

Very good.

[370steve]

i am just fitting a Motogadget M-unit, where will the trigger wire go to? still to the ignition circuit ?  any help greatly received

 

Edited December 18, 2018 by 370steve

[jonny1bump]

A 12 volt feed when you turn ignition on. Check feed is same voltage as on battery directly.

[markfoggy]

Just a thought here, I have a new, very compact starter solenoid out of a recent R1. It has the usual 30A master fuse, plus a 10A circuit.

I guess that I know what i will be doing with it.

 

[Gixer1460]

This is soooooo way off the topic it's now just confusing! How did y'all get to starter soli's?

[jonny1bump]

12 hours ago, Gixer1460 said:

This is soooooo way off the topic it's now just confusing! How did y'all get to starter soli's?

I think Mark wants to use R1 solenoid as the relay for this charging mod, I presume.

Problem here starter Solenoids are not continuous rated they high current for short durations.

Edited December 28, 2018 by jonny1bump

[Captain Chaos]

I think he wants to use it because it has a 10A fuse built it.

 

[vizman]

foggy by name foggy by nature

[nlovien]

being a tight arsed Aberdonian things like relay's - fuse box's,  etc.. - generally find lurking inside scrap cars - in addition to this charging use, use for live feed direct to coils and for headlight where a 5 pin switching unit is handy ( dip is live on ignition, high beam is switched using the high beam handlebar switch = removes need for an on/off lights switch )

basically any high load use circuit, put the live feed direct to source via relay for the cleanest supply and use the mess via the switch gear etc. as the low load signal to relay where loss's are not an issue and thinner wires can be used

[alfiestorm]

i am lost as to why this mod is done can someone explain please. It has been an interesting read though.

[Gixer1460]

4 hours ago, alfiestorm said:

i am lost as to why this mod is done can someone explain please. It has been an interesting read though.

The alternator looks at the voltage that is applied to it from the ign. sw. to determine its output. The wiring from the battery to the ign. sw. and back to the alternator induces a voltage drop down to, say, 12.2 volts so the alternator ramps up its output potentially overcharging the battery. So with the relay, you are connecting the battery direct to the alternator with less voltage drop so less chance of over-charging.

[Solcambs]

Not wanting to put a spanner in the works - I have just had a rewire. Prior to rewiring the bike would charge at 15.4V and is now a perfect 14.3V. The old loom with all those poor connections vs a new loom is night an day. I hadn't realised quite how much corrosion, poor connections, and a failing loom can cause issues. So while the relay mechanism works, it might be masking an underlying issue. My reg/rec/alternator are good. Perhaps wires like this may be lurking about your loom and always worth a check first.

[jonny1bump]

Sol your totally right hence why I did my own wiring loom too, don't forget when I wrote this was about 15 years ago so looms had not aged as much as current bikes have. Also my loom was actually in good condition but was seeing voltage drop across ignition switch too.

It is a sticky plaster problem but not many people are going to rewire and to be fair, this worked for me for years until I finally pulled my finger out and did it properly.

But there is one big point you do have and you must strip loom as much as you can and find all easy wins first, as in block connectors, joints etc. Sort the basics out first. Im forgetting many peeps would not even think about this and jump straight in with the easy fix.

 

Edited February 28, 2019 by jonny1bump

[jonny1bump]

Had little thought on this again and my bike actually started playing up after only been 5 years old, when started touring and doing long journeys. The battery would cook itself and actually would expand in size. I remember been in Italy and having bump start dam thing and unable to get battery out of the cage. There is definitely design fault inherent as stated before.

The big difference now is the fact on top of design fault big majority of bikes have corrosion and lack of maintenance in this department, lets face it the fettled bikes on here are really good, but in reality most are old worn out nails in need of restoration.

Edited February 28, 2019 by jonny1bump

[Gammaboy]

I gather this wiring mod would be applicable to the watercooled bikes too?

[jonny1bump]

Not personally ever checked on water boilers simply check with voltmeter will determine.

[Kamikaze]

Mmmmm interesting.......

[Spirit]

Really very nicely explained except for one thing: what's the reason for doing it?

[Captain Chaos]

1 hour ago, Spirit said:

Really very nicely explained except for one thing: what's the reason for doing it?

It's explained in the article I mentionned several posts back. 
Basically the battery is overcharged and cooks. 

[Spirit]

I have read through this thread and am pretty sure I understand the reason for the mod. I have a fairly-low mileage '86 GSXR1100 and I have always run a voltmeter. What warning signs should I be aware of regarding this failure of the charging system?