Charging Issue

[Arkaloid]

Seem to have a charging issue with Suzi. Couple weeks ago coming back from out of state, I notice the voltmeter not where it usually is, instead of 14V, it was jsut over 12. come to a stop, with idle, goes down to just under 12, in other words, on teh battery voltage. Engine running, rpm 1200, all lights on, etc. Did the stator test, only had 18V, 16V and 4V. So...$132 bucks later, this Ricks stator arrives and I install it. Put teh battery on the tender overnight, checks good, crank her up and ride. charging goes back up to its 14 volts, and all is well. Fast forward to today. Ride 25 miles, gcome to a light, engine idling, voltage goes down to batter level slowly, rev up engine, voltage goes back up. Idle again, goes back on battery only. Now, before all this happened, normally at idle, I would never see it go below 13v, been like that for teh 5 years I have had bike. Now, this. Seems to be charging, as long as I am moving, but this is not right, and I am wondering if maybe My regulator is deciding to go south. Anybody else ever have this situation? I have another trip coming up and I sure don't want it crapping out on me in the middle of BF Egypt..

BTW, all connections are hard-wired. 1983 Gs1100GK

[Boondocks]

If battery voltage drops as low as 12.0V on idle, there is probably a problem. Even with a healthy charging system, the charging capability at idle is marginal. For example, if your bike is idling at 1,000 rpm the voltage might dip to 12.6-12.8V. If it's idling at 1,200 the voltage might be over 13.0V.

As long as the battery is charging in the correct range when the engine is at speed, I wouldn't worry about it. There are no charging tests for idle speeds, and a slightly low reading at idle speed is not an indication of R/R failure.

[Arkaloid]

I am just curious why the new stator charges like that, the original one never dipped to only running off the battery when idling.

[dpep]

Personally I have installed a new regulator without installing a new stator. But I have never installed a new stator without installing a new regulator.

[Arkaloid]

Well Don, the reason I didnt was because the failure wasn't electrically related, as much as it was the winding insulation going down on the stator ( epoxy)