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[Daiwiskers]

Have to admit it but this is a good forum with some very knowledgeable people on board

[Adrian]

@ Dai, sorry, the Electra-X runs all its lights off the 12V DC. They have a three-phase alternator which ought to put out enough power when all is well. Looking for AC headlight info won't help here.

@ Enelectra-X. if the ammeter will show sudden drain it can only be down to wiring or component faults, I think we can rule out phases of the moon, yes? Silly question, but did you check the headlight bulb, if not try another one. Otherwise, if you've checked the wiring thoroughly (did you check inside the handlebar switch gear?) your two main suspects IMHO are the battery and the reg/rectifier. I checked the on-line parts books and out hosts are out of stock of Electra-X wiring harnesses, Price Part Motorcycles might have something if that's where the fault lies. You've already looked at batteries, I see, for the reg/rectifier any decent three-phase job will do.

Since you mentioned the New Forest it sounds like you're potentially not far from me, whereabouts are you?

Despite my old Electra-X falling foul of most of the mechanical gremlins and a few electrical ones, I still liked the concept enough to have a custom engine built, with all the Electra-X good bits fitted to a set of iron barrel Bullet crankcases, which let me fit a magneto, BTH electronic in this case, so even if all the OTHER electrics go belly-up, the engine will still run! That's probably not the route you want to go down, but I'll leave that thought there.

A.

[Enelectrax]

Hi, Just thought I would share my latest findings with my ongoing electrical saga.

Went back to my bike where I had to leave it yesterday to collect the battery as not convinced yet that it is non functioning and wanted to test it and potentially charge it.

Voltage test from picking up today is showing 12.74 so getting the impression that isn't to shabby and shouldn't have brought every thing to a stand still yesterday.

But I had some break through findings after a heads up about the regulator rectifier from Adrian and came across some severe melted exposed wire damage on the exit side wiring that would head to the battery not wiring from the stator to the regulator, looked a right mess, how I missed this awhile back is abit concerning, just good I don't look after airliners. It didn't look freshly exposed or burnt and the copper was oxidised, just was well hidden and camouflaged against the frame

So I whipped the regulator off to to bring back home and test, took some guidance from Youtube on how to do this forward and back bias test, got these readings:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2jWIkhy1fo

Forward bias flow 561 for each connection (3 of them) is that a normal reading for a functioning enfield regulator.
Backward bias (3 of them) no reading

Not sure what's going on with all this, but may need to hard wire the regulator exit wiring if the regulator its self is still fine going by those readings as the wiring for a few inches ruined right into the male connector.

Regulator is still nicely intact.

In the pics black male connector with exposed copper went into the white positive / negative regulator connector. The copper wire was just still intact but looking a mess so have since pulled that apart and will hardwire.

Generally feeling this isn't a battery problem after all so holding off getting another just yet?


Appreciate your views.

Thanks
Geoff

[Enelectrax]

...these two pics also.

[Daiwiskers]

That definitely (spelin) looks like a problem area

I'm not up on the standard wiring colours or the Reading's you should get when testing the reg/rec but someone here will know

Looking at that mess I would buy a new MOSFET reg/rec and do some rewiring

As I have pointed out many times I am no expert on Enfield's but have been turning spanner's for over 50 years

Cheers Dai

[Adrian]

The fact that the bike didn't incinerate itself by starting an electrical fire near the tank is a bonus. My guess is that chafed/cracked insulation will have caused that little fry-up, but in such a way as not to blow the fuses, which is odd. If the reg-rectifier itself shows no signs of having cooked you might have got off this one fairly lightly, and a pleasant evening's re-wiring of the affected area should sort this out. I'd STILL be tempted to fit a new reg/rectifier, though.

Make sure you use some decent gauge multi-strand wire with a good amp rating, it shouldn't be too hard to improve on the stuff the factory used! I'm just to the west of Southampton if you want to bring it round.

A.

[Daiwiskers]

Now that's a offer too good too miss

[Enelectrax]

Hi Adrian, yes the wiring is looking a right old mess at the moment, situation now for me is i'm heading back round to the bike tomorrow (Thursday) with the battery that I've charged up though it really hadn't dipped much anyway and my regulator but I will re fashion some wiring that has disintegrated, priority tomorrow if it will fire up is limping it back home luckily not to far.

So where abouts west of Southampton are you based if you don't mind me asking, I used to live in Totton but now I'm Nr Downton, Salisbury.

Two things at the moment, thanks for the offer of me bringing the bike round to you, trouble is the way the bike is behaving right now makes me want to avoid busy traffic (depending where you are) and breaking down on busier roads and if I do get it sorted and more confident with where I'll take it then I suppose its fixed, but I do like the idea of a more professional job if its something that wouldn't take alot of time, is it something you have a fair amount of experience of doing, getting the impression you know your way round the Enfields, this forum has been really beneficial to join but I also don't want to take up to much of your time.

Going to see how I get on Tommorrow though not much has changed, just hoping it starts to get me home.

Those numbers that I have in the multimeter for the regulator unfortunately don't mean much to me, not sure if that's good bad. Reckon the Battery voltage numbers look quite healthy, been off charge majority of the day and it hasn't dipped.

Cheers
Geoff

[Enelectrax]

Thanks Dai for your suggestions regards the Mosfet regulator, I'll look into it,sure my problems are in this area but judging by those numbers from the multimeter I don't know if that's good or bad. I need to get that out there think its got abit lost in the thread.

Cheers
Geoff

[Daiwiskers]

If your not too far from home you could disconnect the alternator and wiring from the positive terminal (tape up the end of wiring) then run a wire from the battery positive to the positive side of the coil

You won't have lights or indicators But it should get you 15 or so miles possibly more before the battery goes flat

Too stop it just disconnect the wire you fitted

Hope this helps Dai