• Required reading for all forum users!!!

    Welcome!
    Register to access the full functionality of the GSResources forum. Until you register and activate your account you will not have full forum access, nor will you be able to post or reply to messages.

    A note to new registrants...
    All new forum registrations must be activated via email before you have full access to the forum.

    A Special Note about Email accounts!
    DO NOT SIGN UP USING hotmail, outlook, gmx, sbcglobal, att, bellsouth or email.com. They delete our forum signup emails.

    A note to old forum members...
    I receive numerous requests from people who can no longer log in because their accounts were deleted. As mentioned in the forum FAQ, user accounts are deleted if you haven't logged in for the past 6 months. If you can't log in, then create a new forum account. If you don't get an error message, then check your email account for an activation message. If you get a message stating that the email address is already in use, then your account still exists so follow the instructions in the forum FAQ for resetting your password.

    Have you forgotten your password or have a new email address? Then read the forum FAQ for details on how to reset it.

    Any email requests for "can't log in anymore" problems or "lost my password" problems will be deleted. Read the forum FAQ and follow the instructions there - that's what we have one for...

  • Returning Visitors

    If you are a returning visitor who never received your confirmation email, then odds are your email provider is blockinig emails from our server. The only thing that can be done to get around this is you will have to try creating another forum account using an email address from another domain.

    If you are a returning visitor to the forum and can't log in using your old forum name and password but used to be able to then chances are your account is deleted. Purges of the databases are done regularly. You will have to create a new forum account and you should be all set.

5 DAYS TO FIX - electrical gremlins - HELP!!!

  • Thread starter Thread starter BobberDave
  • Start date Start date
B

BobberDave

Guest
History:
1980 GS 850G

Battery - New
Regulator - not new, not sure if fried (i have a honda one and OEM one)
Stator - unsure as of yet.


ISSUES:
Brand new battery installed. Rode bike.... died once stopped and RPM's dropped low. Had to jump start. Did that all in about a 50 mile stretch a 1/2 dozen times.

ONLY thing drawing anthing is headlight/brake light. I have ZERO gauges. It's a rat bike I built. I'm just SUCKY at electrical.

I'm thinking my stator is fried and PRAYING my regulator isn't or that one of the two will work.

Hook me up guys, I have a BIG ride i gotta make on Friday. And need this bad boy fixed.

Going to remove cover today and view stator. If it's nasty I'll overnight one to me. Replace. Hook to current regulator and pray......

Once I do that I should be able to hook my voltmeter up to battery, run bike and the battery should NEVER drop below about 12.00 correct????
 
The first thing to do, (before you take anything apart), is check the stator output. Just simply unplug it while the bike is running and check output with your multimeter. I can't quote the procedure offhand, but it is that easy to check stator output. It's more likely that you're gonna find a bad connection somewhere. Don't mess with the stator unless you can prove that it is bad.
 
Last edited:
BobberDave said:
History:
1980 GS 850G

Battery - New
Regulator - not new, not sure if fried (i have a honda one and OEM one)
Stator - unsure as of yet.


ISSUES:
Brand new battery installed. Rode bike.... died once stopped and RPM's dropped low. Had to jump start. Did that all in about a 50 mile stretch a 1/2 dozen times.

ONLY thing drawing anthing is headlight/brake light. I have ZERO gauges. It's a rat bike I built. I'm just SUCKY at electrical.

I'm thinking my stator is fried and PRAYING my regulator isn't or that one of the two will work.

Hook me up guys, I have a BIG ride i gotta make on Friday. And need this bad boy fixed.

Going to remove cover today and view stator. If it's nasty I'll overnight one to me. Replace. Hook to current regulator and pray......

Once I do that I should be able to hook my voltmeter up to battery, run bike and the battery should NEVER drop below about 12.00 correct????
Click to expand...

You wanna fix it fast. Replace the stator with a new one and purchase a series RR. Compufire or a SH-775 and be done with it.
 
A rat bike with no electrical loads and a shunt r/r probably fried the stator.
 
Appreciate it guys for the fast response. I was on the right track. Just second guessing myself due to time constraints.

Then again, electrical is NOT my forte'
 
Crap and more crap....

Someone let me borrow $150 buck and I'll gladly have this thing fixed in no time.

I can't find CRAP... .was hopeing I could get both for relatively inexpensive.

Compufire and/or SH-775 is like $100.00 and a brand new stator is little more than that.

JESUS I'm screwed.
 
BobberDave said:
Crap and more crap....

Someone let me borrow $150 buck and I'll gladly have this thing fixed in no time.

I can't find CRAP... .was hopeing I could get both for relatively inexpensive.

Compufire and/or SH-775 is like $100.00 and a brand new stator is little more than that.

JESUS I'm screwed.
Click to expand...

buy a $85 stator from Steve, use your existing R/R and only wire in two legs of the stator. Depending on what you striped out (for loads) that might work.
 
BobberDave said:
Compufire and/or SH-775 is like $100.00 and a brand new stator is little more than that.
Click to expand...
Last Compufire I saw was about $150, but the Polaris SH-775 is about $75, shipped.
posplayr said:
buy a $85 stator from Steve, use your existing R/R and only wire in two legs of the stator. Depending on what you striped out (for loads) that might work.
Click to expand...
Let me know, I can get a stator out this evening.

.
 
Replacing all that stuff won't help one bit if he has other problems. Bad grounds, dead shorts, etc. He could spend all the money in the world and still have the same problem. I say figure out what's wrong first, then do the upgrades.
 
To test the stator you set the volt meter on AC VOLTS..simply unplug the 3 leads where they hook into the harness. start he bike and put the NEG into one of the plugs and the the POS into each of the others and run the RPMS up to around 4500 and see what the two legs with the POS lead are putting out. Switch the NEG to the next lead in line and repeat the process till youve move thru all 3 leads.


Record what your getting from all 3 leads and report back.

Charge the battery before starting so theres some power to keep it running when you unplug the stator leads.
 
Last edited:
chuck hahn said:
To test the stator you set the volt meter on AC VOLTS..simply unplug the 3 leads where they hook into the harness. start he bike and put the NEG into one of the plugs and the the POS into each of the others and run the RPMS up to around 4500 and see what the two legs with the POS lead are putting out. Switch the NEG to the next lead in line and repeat the process till youve move thru all 3 leads.


Record what your getting from all 3 leads and report back.

Charge the battery before starting so theres some power to keep it running when you unplug the stator leads.
Click to expand...
That test is necessary but not sufficient. An additional test will improve the odds of proper diagnosis. Test all legs to ground at 5k rpm. There should be no ac relative to ground. This kind of like a built in legged test at 80 vac.
 
FLHGSRay said:
Replacing all that stuff won't help one bit if he has other problems. Bad grounds, dead shorts, etc. He could spend all the money in the world and still have the same problem. I say figure out what's wrong first, then do the upgrades.
Click to expand...

We have to hope he has done a Quick Test by now.
 
Jim..I am trying to take him ONE STEP at a time so we can see what hes got from the stator..then move on. Like he said he isnt a guru at electrical trouble shooting.

If the stator quick test shows promising numbers then he can do the next thing in line..and so on and so on. But this will for sure eliminate the stator right out of the schute.
 
There's no question that you guys know these GS's better than me. I just hate to see a guy wasting money and chasing his tail. All those upgrades can be wiped away by a single bad ground.
 
Exactly why i said to do the stator check first to eliminate that. Then you move on to other things if all 3 legs are within the service manuals perameters.
 
Will do tonight, buddy took my damn voltmeter.

chuck hahn said:
To test the stator you set the volt meter on AC VOLTS..simply unplug the 3 leads where they hook into the harness. start he bike and put the NEG into one of the plugs and the the POS into each of the others and run the RPMS up to around 4500 and see what the two legs with the POS lead are putting out. Switch the NEG to the next lead in line and repeat the process till youve move thru all 3 leads.


Record what your getting from all 3 leads and report back.

Charge the battery before starting so theres some power to keep it running when you unplug the stator leads.
Click to expand...
 
I hit up Steve with a few questions and I'll probably be calling him tonight. It's funny, I've completely gone from frame up on this entire bike (bought used and had issues) rebuilt everything but electrical is getting the better of me.


Buddy of mine has my voltmetere (i forgot). So tonight I'm getting it back and going from the stator back and testing everything. I will have everything tested prior to purchasing anything for sure. That much I'm sure of and like most have made that mistake before.

Somethign I told steve.

Low and behold battery that I have WAS new as I thought from Advanced Auto when I bought in March. Took it in to them today and they replaced it for free because it was a 3 year old battery!!!!! SO.... .now I have a perfect and brand new battery. Would that have been the issue to begin with?

Man wish I one of you guys that lives near wilmington, NC to come go through this crap with me.
 
BobberDave said:
I hit up Steve with a few questions and I'll probably be calling him tonight.
Click to expand...
:confused:

Have not seen a PM. :-k

Have not received any e-mail. :-k :-k

Please call after 5, but DEFINITELY before 9.
icon_shrug.gif


.
 
Don't wanna hijack thread but I have a 78 GS750 that I just recently bought,
It has a new battery, a new Mosfet R/R but the original Stator. I'm still waiting for my Dyna S in the mail,
Do the original stators have a shelf life? I'm in the middle of getting the bike up and going and am wondering if I should replace the original Stator just so I know that everything has been covered for the charging system, including all the bullet connections.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top