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Anybody ever go battery-less?

  • Thread starter Thread starter wkmpt
  • Start date Start date
a battery eliminator is just a great big capacitor


are you going to for go the lighting system too??

ok then you need to look for a 4 post magneto!! belt drive it off of the crank where the TPI system used to be. sheeve pulley, belt, and mount plate

very common and 50K ++ volts is great fun in the rain
 
wkmpt sent me a PM asking for advice. I've decided to reprint my reply here:

Worth it is kind of subjective. I like it, but I can see how some people might not. The way I did it was by wiring a series of capacitors together and using them in place of a battery. They help even out the charge on the bike, absorbing electricity when your charging system is putting out over twelve volts and releasing it when it is less.

I wired my own from ones I bought off ebay (can't remember the specs now, but if you want I can dig the info out and tell you the ratings). There are off the shelf capacitors for motorcycles. I think they are called battery eliminators, Harley guys use them. They are about the same cost as a battery. I think I spent $10 wiring my own.

Here are some thoughts:


  1. Make sure your charging system is in good order before trying this.
  2. You are going to want a really reliable wiring harness, because chasing shorts without a battery can be tough.
  3. Make sure your bike is tuned up well, because you are going to be starting it with your kicker from now on.
  4. I kept my starter motor, and hid the cable. When times are tough I can still jump it if I need to, but it is a pain to do so (no relay or starter button).
  5. You will probably need to crank the kickstart a few times before turning the key to start to charge up the coils.
  6. You are going to want to wire in an off switch for you headlight. The bike will have a hard time starting if this is also draining power while you are kicking it over.
One thing I can tell you for sure, is that it definitely makes people interested in your ride. I have had more than a handful of people walk away inmpressed with the work.
 
TheCafeKid said:
...But I will say that unless you do some work to the frame IE welding some extra bracing in places, and do the hardtail CORRECTLY, you are headed for disaster. These frames are mass produced mild steel tube, NOT designed to have a rigid suspension. READ: IT WILL FAIL EVENTUALLY if its not braced and set up correctly...
Click to expand...

Thanks for the insight and concern; that's very cool of you. I think when I go about the frame work I'll be in good hands, though. My uncle's a frikkin' zen buddhist master welder with a great deal of experience with cycles (it's not his main bag, but he has worked with/for several custom shops in Indy), so I'll definitely be working with him, and playing on his experience, and most likely a bunch of his experienced co-workers as well.

That being said, I'm also completely open to frames fabricated from the start to be hardtails, and fitting my engine/drive train to that. One way or the other, I want to build the bike right, so I can enjoy it for years to come.
 
trippivot said:
...are you going to forgo the lighting system too??
Click to expand...

At the risk of sounding like a total noob, what do you mean by 'forgo the lighting system'? Isn't the voltage produced by the charging system enough to power head and tail lights? On a stock bike, what stops the lighting system from draining the battery to zero if the charging system isn't enough to compensate for them?

ok then you need to look for a 4 post magneto!! belt drive it off of the crank where the TPI system used to be. sheeve pulley, belt, and mount plate
Click to expand...

In all seriousness, do you know where I can get all of this stuff for a GS? I'd be all over that like white on rice.

very common and 50K ++ volts is great fun in the rain
Click to expand...

Are you suggesting I'm going to zap my jewels when I hit a puddle? That doesn't sound like a whole lot of fun... :(
 
My headlight is a little dim at idle, but brightens up immediately once RPMs increase.
 
Rigid frames handle just fine. One of my brothers had a '56 panhead with a rigid frame and a VL springer up front. Once while riding his bike with a friend on his suspended Harley we hit a turn that had a big dip in it that took us by a little surprise. The rigid bike I was on went around the turn and through the dip without a hint of instability. My friend's bike floundered through the turn and he nearly lost it.
 
Beergood, Id love to see your setup or atleast a drawing. Im going to pick up an older 2 cyl. sometime soon and would like to set this system up. I had an old 66' Thrump that was running a Joe Hunt mag but was running an old 12v cap, off of some old car. The PO had set it up for me since I was just 18 and dumbas dirt about this kinda stuff. That bike cranked first kick EVERY time and never left me stranded. Im still kicking myself letting it go.
 
I think if I made a bobber I'd get the biggest, fattest, tires I could get to cushion the blow and get a springer front end. I have seen many a bobber with them. I'd also make sure the tires were the same size front and rear, it really makes the bobber look.
 
Properly designed hardtail frames will flex and absorb bumps to some degree - and they will handle fine for how they are ridden.

Swingarm frames with struts in place of the shocks are a completely different kettle of fish....:rolleyes:
 
It sounds like you know what you want and have put some serious thought into the build. I already want to see pictures!
 
wkmpt said:
On a stock bike, what stops the lighting system from draining the battery to zero if the charging system isn't enough to compensate for them?
Click to expand...
What keeps the battery going for a while is ... RESERVE CAPACITY.

How long it keeps going will depend on the load and the condition of the battery, but it should go several minutes to half an hour or so with the engine running, putting out at least a minimal amount of juice. With the engine off, it might only take 5 or 10 minutes to drain the battery far enough that it won't run the bike, if the lights are left on. With a capacitor (battery eliminator), I have a sneaking hunch that time would be less than 5 to 10 seconds to drain the capacitor, but I have absolutely no experience with them.

If I was working with you on this project, I would really try to convince you to keep the stock charging system, but clean up the locations to your preference, and hide a smaller sealed AGM battery in the tail section where it won't be seen.

.
 
Zooks said:
Search for the original 'cafe racer build' thread that Beergood wrote. He went battery-less.
Click to expand...

I think this is it...

http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/showthread.php?t=102475

podfilters11.jpg


But it's not rigid.


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff
 
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