Forum

[JTL]

Hi all and especially all the people contributed in previous threads on the subject... After reading and posting and even more reading I have now completed the ac/dc to full dc conversion. The hard work in this process has been to understand and sort out how things (wires etc.) have been working and how it should be designed for the final result. I have re-used some of the original wiring, but also cut all unnescessary wires. All ground wires are both relocated and new. Old wire connections are replaced with either new ones or soldered with heat shrink. I have added a relay for the headlight as described in another thread. I have connected the two different sets of alternator coils choosing the lowest voltage combination going into the new regulator/rectifier (it's an A Reg One). The lowest voltage combination of the wires also gives the highest charging voltage (14,26 Vdc at 1/4 throttle). All in all I done this very carefully according to all the information found in recent and old threads on the subject. After a test ride today I must say I'm very pleased by the result. It's like all the power is much stronger and the engine/spark is much more responsive. I know this is very subejctive and has nothing to do with facts, but it feels like this... Norm, you were right about the yellow wire as lead to the headlight. This way the switch works as supposed. With the yellow/red as lead the light is on all the time... Thanks to everybody helping me out on this one... all the best Jacob

[Norm]

Hi Jacob, glad to hear it all worked out, it certainly seems to work better doesn't it and the higher input to the battery can't do anything except improve the spark. This is why the CB 750/1100 boys have recently started modifying their bikes and fitting a relay to power the coils without running through miles of old wiring and old switch gear that all increases resistance and thus lower power to the coil. Anyway good luck with it

[JTL]

Well, unfortunately todays test ride was not a success. It was another experience. After 50 km today the reg/rect was warm (not hot); yesterday it had the same temperature as the rest of the environment in the LH toolbox. I could still touch it without getting burned. So, what was the difference between yesterday and today, and most important why this differences.

The first test ride all lights was working fine and as they should. The ammeter showed during most of the ride almost maximum on the plus side. Only during stops at red light with very low rpm the ammeter was on the minus side. An odd thing though: the ammeter had dew on the inside of the glass, but not just above the needle. It came when I started the engine. The second test ride started out as the first, but after a rest at 45 km (1/2 hour rest) things changed. Dew on the inside of the ammeter was gone and never came back. The needle was almost on maximum on the minus side. And after app. 4 km all light was gone (not enough power for working). I had some 45 km to go before I got home, but the engine was doing fine. The ammeter eventually stopped showing anything (needle in middle position). At home I meassured the battery (9,77 Vdc) and checked temp at the reg/rect (it was warm). I have to mention, that I used two different batteries (same type) during the two test rides. So after replacing the battery with a freshly re-charged all lights + horn worked fine and the ammeter needle was again moving during engine start, but the reg/rect got warm again.

What can have happened? Is anything wrong? Has the reg/rect been overloaded? Can I do some test with a multimeter to find out what is going on? Can I bypass the ammeter (remove it and just connect the two wires)? Is it the alternator producing too much/little power for the reg/rect to cope with?

Help most needed. Thanks in andvance.

all the best
Jacob

[Norm]

Jacob, my guess is the rec/reg is toast, I don't know of this A One type, this is why I use the Boyer I know it handles the output. As soon as you see max charge or discharge stop because something is wrong. The fact the second day it was in full discharge tells me it isn't charging. Did you initially test the A/C outputs to see what A/C volts you were getting. I see you mentioned the D/C volts but no mention of the A/C volts and just that you used the lower numbers

[Chris Tindal]

If you remove the ammeter then the wires need to be unconnected not joined together. Im having similar electrical nightmares with mine and Im slowly eliminating faults around the system. Yesterday I took off the ammeter and joined the wires and the bike was dead, with the wires free the bike started fine.

[another Allan]

That's bad luck, Jacob. I've been meaning to start work on getting rid of the ac lighting on my bike, having followed your thread and Norm's. I've delayed it because of a lack of understanding, I suppose! What I really need is a step-by-step guide, and a 'revised' circuit diagram to follow (or maybe I'll just leave it until the winter sets-in, so it won't matter if I keep c***ing the job up until I get it right!) ......Back to your symptoms - the ammeter should never show a full charge whilst the engine is running normally, assuming the meter itself is not faulty. There's too much current being passed, which has the short-term beneficial side-effect of drying-out the condensation!.....I've heard that the A Reg One is meant to be a good reliable unit, but yours definitely sounds like it's had it. Whether this is because it was faulty from new I couldn't say, but it does seem more likely that the wiring modifications could have killed it.........I'm sure that Norm's question about the voltages you were measuring from the alternator are the starting point... Good luck, and please keep us posted.

[JTL]

Hi Norm, Chris and Allan... Yes, this is really bad luck, but it is also bad science. I'm true believer in facts, so something or some parts somehow have to be wrong. I did meassure the Vac before connecting everything more permanently. It was done at app. 1/4 to 1/3 throttle. The two violet was 28,8 Vac. The orange and red was 27,2 Vac. The highest reading when combined was 29,1 Vac and the lowest reading when combined was 25,2 Vac. I know too little about electricity to analyse this correcly. I also have to doubble check this test. If the reg/rect is getting too much power into the system for consumption (ignition, lights, charging etc.) I read it's dumped as heat. The A Reg One is tested to be used with a 200 watt alternator. The first days ride the reg/rect had the same temp as the tool box metal meaning no surplus current (?), but the ammeter showing full charging. Can the battery (lead/acid type), the wires or the ammeter be culprits in this equation? And what have led to the sudden change on test ride 2, when after 45 km ride an 1/2 hour stop the ammeter shows almost full discharge... Chris, if I remove the ammeter without connecting the wires the lead back to the ignition switch will be disconnected. At least this is how my bike is wired... I still believe in doing the full dc conversion, but this is of course a major set back. It will be sorted, and hopefully not cost me a fortune, since money is not growing in my garden... all the best Jacob

[JTL]

Hi all... A new Vac reading is made. At app. 1/2 throttle the multimeter said 58,9 Vac. After starting the bike I disconnected the wires from the alternator going into the reg/rect. These two wires are the 4 wires hooked up in phase to 2 wires... Maybe I should also mention something about electricity comsumption. I run a Philips Motovision headlight bulb 55/60 watt, taillight 21/5 watt and pilot lights, warning/instrument lights and indicator lights are all LED (max 15 watt if all are on)... all the best Jacob

[Norm]

Hi Jacob, can you check what A/C voltage you are getting across the 2 purple wires. I have seen 60 volts A/C on one alt I have checked

[JTL]

Hi Norm... I did a test on the two violet wire at 1/2 throttle. It showed 48,5 Vac. May it's possible to use just one set of coils (either the two violet or the orange and the yellow) for feeding a reg/rect? By the way, Alan, if we could just get our host to do a tech note on the full dc conversion, I believe a lot more people would do it... all the best Jacob