charging

[Anonymous]

i have read the staor papers and just want to make sure im understanding it. when i read the voltage at idle i have 13.5 and the highest reading i get is 13.9 so i would think there is no need for me to worry about replacing the rec/reg and stator. am i correct?im making a long trip this spring and would like to know even if it is ok should i change them anyway for reliability reasons only. also does the electrex system offer more current to be able to use electric gloves and or vests.

thanks matt

[SqDancerLynn1]

readings sound good. I would just clean the all the connections related to the Reg/Rec. Also I would add an extra ground wire from the case of the reg direct to the (-) of the battery with maybe a 10 ga wire. Most electrical problems start with bad connections. Addition of ground wire added 1/2 volt to readings on my GS

[earlfor]

Re: charging

NO, it improves the reliability of the charging system, but the output remains the same. I would be surprised if the charging system is capable of supporting the added load of an electric vest and gloves. Do you know how much the current draw is for those items?

Earl

also does the electrex system offer more current to be able to use electric gloves and or vests.

thanks matt

[Anonymous]

Now that we are on the topic of output, why doesn't electrex sell higher output stators? I've seen a company at a bike show that offered to rewind stators for more power.

Steve

[saaz]

I don't know how much more power you can get reliably. The stator would heat up more, but the tighter windings on the stator would not allow as good a cooling. I rewound mine years ago using slighlty bigger wire, got a bot more power, but I found fixing up the wiring with relays replacing some of the swithches gave better results for the power you generate (ie more efficient transmission of the power to the end use)

[Anonymous]

so basically unless i want to rebuild my own stator and get deep into ohms law dont plan on using extra load devices. and at the level my system is charging and given the fact i cleaned all wire connections i should not need to change the rr and stator but simply make sure my oil level remains toped off being it helps the stator not to over heat. right?

[saaz]

Yep!

If it tests ok, you have done the basic maintenance, things should be quite ok. Failure can happen on any vehicle at any time, but is less likely when you can learn about what keeps these gremlins away!

I have made it back from trips with some problems, once one of my coils (an aftermakert one..standard ones have never given any problem!) decide to split an melt, blowing fuses all the time..I got back in hot weather two up with camping gear on...

Do the basic maintenace, watch for any emerging problems learning from all the experince on here..then just ride and enjoy the experince!!!

[earlfor]

Yep Matt, youve pretty well covered it. There isnt much excess electrical capacity on these old gals, you have enough to run what you must have and thats about it. Forget about dual headlamps, extra running lights etc etc. You might have enough to charge your cell phone battery though. :-) :-) :-)

Earl

so basically unless i want to rebuild my own stator and get deep into ohms law dont plan on using extra load devices. and at the level my system is charging and given the fact i cleaned all wire connections i should not need to change the rr and stator but simply make sure my oil level remains toped off being it helps the stator not to over heat. right?

[Hap Call]

E-mail Electrex and ask them what output increase you may get if you replace BOTH the R/R and the stator. I believe that you can experience a little more load capacity with the new Electrex stuff. The problem with the old stuff was that the insulation system on the stator was intolerant of any current increases. Any increase in current caused the stator to over heat and the insulation system to break down. The new insulation systems can handle the heat much better.

As far as the R/R is concerned, Electrex is using an entirely different voltage control scheme (I don't think they use a Zener diode in the new stuff) and higher quality components than the old Suzuki stuff so they can also handle the increased load.

I believe you may be able to expect a 15% increase in current capability. Check with Electrex first.

SqDancerLynn1's advice is something you really should follow, no matter if you have the - stock junk or the Electrex stuff. Earl is on the money about duel headlights and other stuff. Saaz also gives some good advice on the relays.

Step-by-step do this:
1. Clean all electrical connections that you can, paying the most attention to the ones between the stator and the R/R and the wire going to the battery.
2. Clean all your grounds - to the frame and to the motor.
3. Add additional grounds from the negative side of your battery to the frame, motor, mounting plate for your fuse box and to the R/R case.
4. Call Electrex and ask them what the load capacity of the stator and R/R are. If they give it to you in watts, ask them at what voltage are they measuring wattage - there is a big difference between 12V and 14.2V when it comes to the power/current relationship. If they give it to you in current (that is what I would prefer) you are good to go.
5. Optional - replace as many of the bulbs as you can with LED lights. They pull less current - current that you could use elsewhere.
6. Optional - install relays in circuits that will allow you to unload current going to one circuit so that it can be used in another - for example, have a relay that turns off the headlight while you are starting the motor thus allowing more current capacity to be available to turn the motor over.

I am not sure what the output on the GS650 is but on the GS1100, the stator is designed for 280 watts (at 12 volts that would be 23.3 amps and at 14.2 volts that would be 19.7A - higher voltage means less current to do the same job which means less heat thus stator and R/R last longer.) I believe the design for the Electrex system is 330 watts (at 12V that is 27.5A and at 14.2V that is 23.2A). That is about a 15% increase in current capacity.

One other thing... you need to get a shop manual and find out what the output of the R/R should be. On the GS1100 the minimum is 14V. Below that Suzuki says the R/R is bad. If your system is close to the 1100 (I would guess it would be) then it sounds like you may have a R/R or a stator that is going bad.

Hap

[Anonymous]

The weather is bad and I think I will stir the pot a little...
Cruise rpm = 75v 3 phase stator.
I estimate a 4-5amp load on the stator if the Electrx R/R is using all three phases at 400watts 12v.
The heat load seems low and moving this energy ino the engine oil looks like no problem. 8O

[Hap Call]

The weather is bad and I think I will stir the pot a little...
Cruise rpm = 75v 3 phase stator.
I estimate a 4-5amp load on the stator if the Electrx R/R is using all three phases at 400watts 12v.
The heat load seems low and moving this energy ino the engine oil looks like no problem. 8O

I am trying to figure out what you mean here...to determine the amp load at the stator requires either direct measurement of the amperage or by calculating PF or power factor. To calculate that you would need to know inductance, resistance, and capacitance. To measure the AC amperage with most ammeters would require that you run the motor at a speed so that the output frequency would be 60 Hz.

The heat that you are putting into the oil...is this from windings loss, hysteresis, and/or eddy current loss? I may be looking at this a little too deep.

Hap

[focus frenzy]

the rated output in watts is known for our bikes, what is not known is how mutch is used while running, I have the equipment to test it and will, that way I/we will know for sure what is left for accesories.

I currently have a brake light intergrator, auxilary brake light, and front side marker lights for a load above the stock draw of about 60 watts, and I still have over 14 volts at idle.
if these bikes could not handle any added draw on the charging system, why did suzuki equip them with a 10 amp accesory fuse?