'82 Rectifier/regulator question

[samson]

I am at the stage of putting all electrics/wiring back in place on my GS850GZ ('82). I have two questions.

First, does the regulator/rectifier (1 unit) mount under the battery box (dumb, I know, but I forget)? I can find no schematics that correspond to this item on my year/model. Honestly there doesn't seem to be any other logical place for it, considering wire length and connector.

Second, the off-white connector (from harness) the R/R plugs into has signs of melting, is this abnormal? The bike ran fine before I took it apart. I was just cleaning rust and painting (not fixing any electrical parts) and have noticed this slightly melted connector. The contacts inside look ok. Any experience here? Should I think about replacing the R/R?

[posplayr]

plastic melts from heat. There is resistance likely in the contact crimps and that will do two things.

1.) burn up your R/R
2.) Burn up your stator

You need a ohm meter to make sure that you are good to go after have you either cleaned or replaced them.

Read this sad story about everything replaced and apparently insufficent effort on insuring connections were good. then decide what to do.

http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/showthread.php?t=142090

[Steve]

As posplayr mentioned, melted connectors are definitely due to heat. The greatest cause of heat melting a connector is poor connections inside the connector. When there is enough oxidation to inhibit the connection, strange things happen. Current will build up a bit and jump across any little gap it can find to get to a good connection. The problem is that the arc is WAY hot, think ARC WELDING. Yep, same thing, smaller scale. Now that the arc has happened, that little area is coated with crud and it has to arc in a different location. When that happens, MORE HEAT. The absolute best thing you can to is replace the connector and all the wires inside it. Here is a good place to look for replacements.

By the way, yes, the r/r does go under the battery. Some have placed it where it can get more air, but under the battery is the stock location.

.

[samson]

Thank you. I have read thru some of your other posts as well as the link you sent. It sounds like you've got a good bit of experience here and have seen these problems. I am a logical person and can see the truth in what you say about faulty connections. It is easy to think that as long as current is flowing, the connection must be good. It's easy to ignore the resistance factor. And any time there is resistance, that is energy dissipating somewhere. It will also, I suppose, eventually affect the components from which it eminates. I was wondering how a plastic connector could sustain heat damage and actually melt without causing the system to fail or at least blow a fuse. Since my bike was running fine before tear down, I can assume that the stator and R/R are still functional. When I noticed the melted connector I knew I'd better check it out. I will go over the connections in detail, as this seems to be the most crucial factor in maintaining a healthy electrical / charging system.

I am still concerned about the mounting of the R/R. I want to make sure that it is gronded properly, and that it gets the airflow it needs to cool properly. Also, I have noticed that the part of the battery box where it seemingly was attached is more corroded than the rest of the box. This could be due to location, but I was was wondering if there might have been some kind of accellerated corrosion due to a stray electrical charge, perhaps acting like an anode (or cathode). Thanks for your reply.

[samson]

Excellent, thanks for your input, and for the web link. I will replace the connectors and verify all connections and grounds.

[BassCliff]

Hi Mr. samson,

The GS850G Shop Manual on my website has supplementary chapters in the back which point out the differences between the model years. You should be able to find diagrams for parts locations, cable routing, etc. I would think that your r/r does mount to the bottom of the battery box, but you can splice wire and put it just about anywhere you want to.

Be sure to clean every electrical connection and ground on the entire wiring harness, from headlight bucket to tail light, including the fuse box and ignition switch. I've collected quite a bit of information on my website. Please help yourself. Check the 'Odds and Ends' electrical page for cleanup suggestions.


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

[posplayr]

I was wondering how a plastic connector could sustain heat damage and actually melt without causing the system to fail or at least blow a fuse.

At least one example is:

the 3 phase current flowing between the stator and the R/R is not fused.

[rustybronco]

I am still concerned about the mounting of the R/R. I want to make sure that it is gronded properly, and that it gets the airflow it needs to cool properly. Also, I have noticed that the part of the battery box where it seemingly was attached is more corroded than the rest of the box. This could be due to location, but I was was wondering if there might have been some kind of accellerated corrosion due to a stray electrical charge, perhaps acting like an anode (or cathode). Thanks for your reply.

The R/R (Honda unit) on my GS850GZ is mounted under the battery tray and it works just fine in the stock location.

Take out the battery tray, clean it off well and repaint it. the corrosion is most likely caused from the corrosive effects of battery acid. which gets worse when the battery gets old, or if it's being charged at too high a voltage.

[samson]

Thank you all again. Rusty that's a great '82 you have. Mine will not be quite as original (blinkers, paint job), but I hope it looks (and is) as good as yours. It seems that just when you think you can live with something as is, it becomes a decision - do it now or risk failure/having to do it later anyway. I have already removed and painted the battery box and electrical bracket, as well as all the frame components I could access. My bike has 22,000 Miles and my goal was to do everything I could short of removing the engine. This coming winter I will remove the engine and do EVERYTHING, including engine internals. For now, I want to do as much as I can (and is reasonable) but still get a good bit of riding in. I have rebuilt the front end, forks, and calipers, painted all body items, cleaned the carbs, replaced stock air filter with KN, cleaned the engine as much as possible, tourqued all bolts, relpaced brake lines, painted any rusted items/surfaces, rebuilt cam chain tensioner, replaced seat, cleaned and painted bettery box and all accessible frame components, and some other odds and ends. But it is now the middle of May and I want to ride. Next season will be the big tear down. I just need to address this electrical system for now. Thanks again one and all!