stator/regulator distress?

[03svrider]

i have an 81 gs450l that just got a recent complete carb rebuild by a journeyman motorcycle mechanic. the bike is running like a clock so far and it's scary how easily/instantly it starts when the battery is charged but lo and behold the battery isn't charging. i put it on a trickle so it can get me to and from work (why i bought it, to laugh as i drive pass the gas stations) but i want to get this straightened out before i start taking longer trips on it with my girl. i printed out the very thorough page on troubleshooting this issue and plan on tackling it soon but i wanted some opinions based on the 12000 or so miles on the bike whether anyone thinks it's the stator or the rectifier. i can do the work but obvously the rectifier swap would be less of a pain than the stator. thanks for any input. electrosport here i come!

[SqDancerLynn1]

How old is the battery ? I would begin by checking all of the stator connections & stator grounding. Then go to the stator papers

[Steve]

It is hard to guess intelligently without doing any tests. As Lynn said, make sure you have clean, tight connections, then start with the volt meter. The Stator Papers IV give a good troubleshooting tree to follow. It assumes that you are starting with a fully-charged battery and clean connections, then walks you through to find the problem.


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[swrupert83]

well don't take too much advice from me till i figure out what i did wrong on my bike (electrics (horn, lights, starter button) are out right now , but stator replacement is fairly easy, just do yourself a favor (if it comes to replacement) just order the bolts and gasket for the stator case from suzuki (or where-ever just make sure they are the right one) before hand ....also drain the oil

i think all together (plus oil filter gasket and a gasket for the timing advance/sending unit cover) it cost me 17 bucks.

i ended up having to drill the heads off 4 bolts... (get a good drill bit))
when the cover comes off there is about a inch of bolt stickin out and by then could practically take them out by hand

stator replacement isn't rocket science, just a few screws and four wire connections. costs about $120 for a new one

http://www.electrosport.com/shopping_stators/prod_esg010.html

(on a side note i believe i messed up somewhere in the reg/rectifier replacement)