[GMslave]

the regulator/rectifier is going bad ? Does it just puke out, or is there some sign ? Suddenly, this year I have had the bike just cough up and die while idling. I know I prolly need to change the plugs again, but other than that I'm at a loss. :?

 

[Northwind]

How do you know when ....?

Reg/rec failure would affect charging... Does the bike restart after it stalls out? If so, it's probably not your reg/rec, but if you're finding it's hard to start or you get a lot of flat batteries that's a sign that the reg/rec is done.

 

[donniej]

How do you know when ....?

Yea... the R/R won't effect running unless your battery is dead. A good test is the horn, it draws alot of power and if it blows then the bike has enough power to run (but not necessarily crank the starter).

I'd start with the plugs and air filter.

 

[RichDesmond]

How do you know when ....?

Yea... the R/R won't effect running unless your battery is dead...

Not true, you still need to provide 12VDC to the coils. We had a R/R get flaky at our last endurance race at Texas World. Bike started cutting out 3-4 times a lap, acted like you'd hit the kill switch and then flipped it back on. In turn 1, cranked all the way over at 120, it was not fun. :shock: Battery still had plenty of juice. Replaced the CDI box first, no joy. Then plugged in a new R/R, problem solved.

 

[Northwind]

How do you know when ....?

Yup... But generally speaking you'd also see the low charge symptoms. When my Virago's reg/rec went it generally showed itself by a refusal to run at below 3000rpm, since it needed a pretty quick engine to generate anything like enough charge... But then it was also hard to start and generaly wouldn't restart after it bummed out this way.

 

[Guest]

How do you know when ....?

it can also overcharge.voltage will keep going up untill something overheats and shots down or burns up.battery and cdi box are first thing that will burn.
when this happens bike will stop running.if you lucky you can plug another one and go,if not you end up replacing cdi,regulator and battery.

 

[GMslave]

How do you know when ....?

Well I rode it today and it ran just fine. No stalls or nothing, although I did run the idle up a little higher than normal (12-1300 rpm). BTW, it starts right back up when it stalls. No hard starting, no starting issues at all really. I guess I better do the plugs ASAP before I go any farther. :evil:

 

[zip650]

How do you know when ....?

Derek, when is the last time you synced your carbs? I had some stalling issues/ idle issues before I synced mine up (they were way out)

 

[Northwind]

How do you know when ....?

Well I rode it today and it ran just fine. No stalls or nothing, although I did run the idle up a little higher than normal (12-1300 rpm).

Hmm, where did you have it previously? The manual states 1200-1400 when warm, if it was below that then that alone could have been giving you stalling issues (though that'd also probably have symptoms of bad pick-up from idle as well)

 

[Nimbus]

Re: How do you know when ....?

the regulator/rectifier is going bad ? Does it just puke out, or is there some sign ? Suddenly, this year I have had the bike just cough up and die while idling. I know I prolly need to change the plugs again, but other than that I'm at a loss. :?

When my R/R went bad, there was almost no warning. I did a 60 mile loop and was having a good old time. I stoped at the intersection of the road that leads to my neighborhood and (while still running) all the gauges quit. The tach dropped dead, the lights went off, nothing. I pulled out, hit 3rd gear and my tach and everything worked normally. At the next stoplight as soon as I stopped the tach died again and then the bike shut off. Boom. Nothing. Not even a click from the starter. Dead. Pushed it home 1 mile.

 

[SV650S Rider]

Re: How do you know when ....?

the regulator/rectifier is going bad ? Does it just puke out, or is there some sign ? Suddenly, this year I have had the bike just cough up and die while idling. I know I prolly need to change the plugs again, but other than that I'm at a loss. :?

To answer your question about the reculator rectifier, yes, sometimes they do fail suddenly and without warning, but other times they can fail less subtly, ie: undercharging the battery or overcharging the battery.

The first item of business is to troubleshoot this and determine if you're dealing with a battery/charging problem. Start with a know good and fully charged battery and fresh spark plugs. The ignition system is dependent on a good battery to induce the high secondary voltage necessay to fire the plugs. Remember that most bikes are not charging at idle and it's for this reason that the bike have a strong battery. It's possible that a battery with low voltage could cause the plugs to foul by not being capable of supporting the high secondary voltage necessary to fire the plugs. If the battery is fully charged and accepts a load ( take it to your dealer and have it load tested), then your problem lies elsewhere. If the bike sat all winter long with fuel in the carbureters, I suspect that the slow speed circuit is blocked.

Unfortunately it's very difficult to troubleshoot a bike online. There's too many variables to take into account. Be as pecific as you can about the problem and when it happens, ie:, does it stall when hot? Does it restart right away or does it take several minutes? Is this just an occasional occurance? Is the bike stock? If not what mods? When did it the problem begin? Was it sitting for a long period before so?

To test the charging system, grab a multi-tester and set it to DC 20V Voltage. Place the probes across the positive and negative terminals of the battery. At around ( I don't know the actual break even speed) 1500 RPM the battery voltage should increase to between 14-15 Volts. If it's more, the regualtor is bad, if it's less, it could be the regulator/ rectifier or the stator itself. Again, this testing is only accurate with a known good battery, fully charged.

 

[SV650S Rider]

How do you know when ....?

Well I rode it today and it ran just fine. No stalls or nothing, although I did run the idle up a little higher than normal (12-1300 rpm). BTW, it starts right back up when it stalls. No hard starting, no starting issues at all really. I guess I better do the plugs ASAP before I go any farther. :evil:

That's within spec. Perhaps you had the idle turned down too low ( temperature changes can affect the idle speed). Still, it doesn't hurt to check the charging system.

 

[Peazy580]

Re: How do you know when the rectifier goes bad?

If I ride on the weekend only, should my battery drain out if not started over 1 week 1/2? I bought a new battery and when I went out for a ride and stopped on the light my bike went completely dead. Do you think I need to change the rectifier? If so how much do they usually cost?

 

[doxiedog]

Re: How do you know when the rectifier goes bad?

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