Regulator/Rectifier replacement

[AOD]

Okay, here is where I'm at now with the seperate reg and rec removed:

3 stator wires (W/blue, W/green, Yellow)

3 wires at harness (Red, W/red, W/green)

1 red wire that goes to a thicker red wire with a ring terminal on it coming from the main fuse. This was 'grounded' to the body of the original voltage regulator.

If I plug the W/red into the W/green at the harness this will delete the headlight switch?

If that is okay to do, then I have an open red wire at the harness, and the open red wire from the main fuse with the ring terminal. (This wire really confuses me, if it's positive, why is it grounded to the regulator?)

I take my three stator wires into the 3 matching NEW R/R wires. I take the black ground w/ring terminal to the negative battery. I have 1 red wire open now on the R/R.

What's the next step?

~Adam

[earlfor]

Connect the three Stator AC output wires to the three (usually yellow) AC input wires on the R/R. Black is DC ground and connects to the battery negative terminal. Red is DC positive output from your R/R and connects to the battery positive terminal, or it can be connected to the 12v positive input terminal on your starter solenoid. (The 12v positive input terminal on the solenoid is the terminal that is connected directly to the positive terminal on the battery with a heavy guage (about 4 guage) wire.)


When I made the change over on my 79 750 from separate reculator and rectifier to a combined R/R and wired all three phases of the stator directly to the R/R, I did not have to make any changes to the headlight switch wiring. You should be able to cap off all the left over wires.

I would not connect any red wires to a ground without checking polarity first. Red is normally positive.


Earl



I take my three stator wires into the 3 matching NEW R/R wires. I take the black ground w/ring terminal to the negative battery. I have 1 red wire open now on the R/R.

What's the next step?

~Adam[/quote]

[AOD]

I guess I need to take a picture to better show what I have, because I can't understand how I could leave that wire with the ring terminal alone especially since it's off the main fuse. It has to go SOMEWHERE...

Earl, the new R/R didn't come with a ring terminal on the red wire, it's a bullet connector. What would happen if I plugged that red wire into the open red wire on my wire-harness (old Rec used to plug into it)??

[earlfor]

If you are referring to a thick red wire that cmes FROM the fuse block and ends with a ring connector, that is the power supply (input) to the fuse block.
That wire connects to either battery positive or the input/supply positive terminal of your starter solenoid. That is normally the rear terminal.

The red wire on your R/R is 12 DC positive output. Connect it to the battery positive terminal

Earl

I guess I need to take a picture to better show what I have, because I can't understand how I could leave that wire with the ring terminal alone especially since it's off the main fuse. It has to go SOMEWHERE...

Earl, the new R/R didn't come with a ring terminal on the red wire, it's a bullet connector. What would happen if I plugged that red wire into the open red wire on my wire-harness (old Rec used to plug into it)??

[AOD]

If you are referring to a thick red wire that comes FROM the fuse block and ends with a ring connector, that is the power supply (input) to the fuse block.
That wire connects to either battery positive or the input/supply positive terminal of your starter solenoid. That is normally the rear terminal.

The red wire on your R/R is 12 DC positive output. Connect it to the battery positive terminal

Earl

Earl, yes, I'm talking about the thick red wire coming from the SINGLE fuse box with the ring terminal. On my bike it went to body of the voltage regulator, and the screw that holds the regulator to the airbox was what the ring terminal was through. Like I said, this confused me.

1. So hook that ring terminal thick red wire up to the back side of the starter relay.

2. Cut the bullet connector off the new R/R red wire, solder a longer wire and ring terminal on, run it to the positive side of the battery.

3. Tape off the existing solid red wire at the wire harness, where the old rectifier used to plug into.

Does this sound correct?

If so, the only question left is, if I hooked up that solid red wire from the new R/R into the red wire at the harness where the old rectifier plugged in, would that do the same thing as running it to the batttery?

Thanks a ton for the help Earl,

~Adam

[AOD]

One other question. When I spoke with the guy on the phone from CRC2, he said it is sometimes not good to run the new R/R ground to the battery because it may not be a good ground. Obviously you've had no problem in doing that, but I wanted to bring it up because others may question it.

This post will be a good tool for many others in the future.

~Adam

[earlfor]

Earl, yes, I'm talking about the thick red wire coming from the SINGLE fuse box with the ring terminal. On my bike it went to body of the voltage regulator, and the screw that holds the regulator to the airbox was what the ring terminal was through. Like I said, this confused me.
**************************........................ ... That is confusing to me also. You see, fuse boxes are DC positive input only. There is no reason to input a ground to a fuse because devices when switched, complete to load and to ground. Its not possible to light a bulb with two grounds. LOL Besides, a ground connected to positve is a short. eh eh
The red wire can only be to supply 12v positive to the fuse block.



1. So hook that ring terminal thick red wire up to the back side of the starter relay.
*********************........... Yes, it will be the terminal on the solenoid that is always hot.



2. Cut the bullet connector off the new R/R red wire, solder a longer wire and ring terminal on, run it to the positive side of the battery.
****************...............yes.

3. Tape off the existing solid red wire at the wire harness, where the old rectifier used to plug into.
****************************...........yes.

Does this sound correct?

If so, the only question left is, if I hooked up that solid red wire from the new R/R into the red wire at the harness where the old rectifier plugged in, would that do the same thing as running it to the batttery?
******************** Lets put it this way.............you live in Dallas and I live in Ft Worth. If I want to come to your house, I can go either of two ways. I can drive directly to Dallas, or I can go to San Francisco first and then to your house in Dallas. Either way, I get to your house. :-)

Earl

Thanks a ton for the help Earl,

~Adam[/quote]

[AOD]

Makes sense now.

To avoid hacking it to bits, I could 'drive to San Francisco' first and see how the output is to the battery.......

Thanks Earl.

~Adam

[earlfor]

I would hook up San Francisco temporarily and check voltage to the battery.
Then hook up direct and check voltage to the battery. I would expect the old way to have increased resistance and a lower charge rate due to that loss.

Sometimes though, you dont get what you expect. LOL

Earl

Makes sense now.

To avoid hacking it to bits, I could 'drive to San Francisco' first and see how the output is to the battery.......

Thanks Earl.

~Adam

[AOD]

If it's anything higher than 11.59 we're off to a good start.

[earlfor]

Usually, at 5k rpm, you would expect to see something between 14.2 and 14.8 with the headlight on high.
14.7-14.8 is about perfect. If its greater than 14.9 volts, the R/R is faulty.

Earl

If it's anything higher than 11.59 we're off to a good start.

[Sandy]

For some reason I wasn't getting updated on this thread. Sounds like you had some weird wiring going on there but Earl has it under control. Let us know how it works when you get San Francisco. ](*,)

[AOD]

Welp...it's alive again. Battery reads 12.75 hooked up to the bike. At idle (1500-2000) it charges at roughly 13.4 volts and at 4500-5000 RPM it charges at 13.10 volts.

This is with the 'San Franscisco' wiring, W/green and W/pink tied together (eliminating the headlight switch). It's an improvement...

Not sure where I want to go next, but I'm going to sync the carbs.

~Adam

[AOD]

Oh, and I didn't blow any fuses hooking that 'grounded' ring terminal red wire up to the positive side of the starter relay.

I did notice the new R/R was warm to the touch after running ~2 minutes, this is common i'm sure though, doing it's job. I need to find a place to install the new R/R.

~Adam

[AOD]

TTT for Earl.