Imminent Stator or R/R failure????

[bakalorz]

Ok so now I am cornfuzzed. I get 22 volts between each pair. Three possible "pairs" total 66v no? Stock components by the way.

I also did the red lead from the R/R to the battery test and came out at about .5 v so that's not good. I tried to clean up the contacts but I couldn't do anything with the fuse block as its one of the sealed type. So short of changing out the fuse block and leads I think I've done all I can with that.

It is charging to 13.9 v at around 5000 rpm so while not ideal, it is at least charging.

So if I'm not getting what I should out of the stator and the fuse block and or wires are putting up resistance I guess I could be having a couple of compounding problems

For the time being, I'll keep an eye on it and as long as its showing charging for most of the ride I won't have a panic attack.

Thanks for your interest and input.

cheers,
spyug

The 22 volts is too low.
Assuming that the test was done correctly, that would indicate problems with the stator ( I'll guess degrading insulation, allowing arcing to occur)

The insulation degrades by getting cracks in it and flaking off.
where cracks on adjacent coils are near enough it can then short across the coils, effectively taking them out of the circuit.
If it hasn't degraded too much yet (and I'll guess it hasn't since it still charges some) you might be able to "fix" your existing stator for fairly cheap and easy.

The insulation on the wires is a type of varnish. Stator winding wire comes with a layer of varnish on it, but after the stator is wound, it is supposed to be dipped (or possibly painted) with additional varnish.

There are a series of procedures on how to clean, dry, revarnish, and then bake windings. I don't know the details, but a motor winding shop would.

I would call around to them and see how much it would be to either have them revarnish, or for the varnish to do it yourself.

I would assume this would be much less $ than a new stator or even having it rewound (certainly less effort than a rewind).

I have no actual experience with doing it, but it possibly an option to look into.

[flyingace]

I had intermittant charging problems recently. Turns out the wires from the stator to the R/R had fried in the starter motor housing where they are routed. It is worthwhile to make sure your wires and connections are intact thru the entire charging system before buying any replacement parts.

[spyug]

Thanks guys. More things to think about.

I bought a small 6 position fuse block today and i'm thinking about putting that in and taking out the old stocker which seems to be giving some resistance.

The connector from the stator to the RR uses spade connectors. I cleaned them as best I could but without junking the old plastic connector and putting fresh spades in place I guess i may not have the best & cleanest connections. I would have liked to keep the stock bits and pieces in place but that might not be feasible.

I'm going to do the stator test again tonight and see where that leads me.

I'll let you know how it works out.

Cheers,
spyug

[spyug]

Well I had another go at testing the stator wires and to my horror I found I couldn't get any voltage from them. Lots of head scratching. Plug the connector back on and sure enough I'm getting charging as before. Take off the connector and try again, nada, nothing. This is bizzare. I was getting 22V yesterday, nothing showing today and yet still charging????

Nuts, that connector is coming off. Snip it off and attache new spades. Plug them on and now I have charging at 14.8v around 1500rpm to about 3500 rpm dropping to 14.1 up to and past 5000 rpm. It never drops under 14v right up to almost redline. Had to stop working then ( making too much racket says the boss) so didn't get a chance to test the stator legs nor time to wire in the new fuse block.

It is still definitely not right but it seems to be going in the right direction.
I'll have another go at testing tomorrow and will maybe wire in the new fuse block.

Cheers all,

Spyug

[posplayr]

further evidence there is noting wrong with the stator. Instead it sounds like there is no regulation. If you have a Honda R/R, check the voltage at the sense point relative to the R/R ground with lights on. If it is below 14.5v then you will overcharge. If the overcharging persists following the voltage drop measurements, it is probably not regulating and requires being changed.

As mentioned before, get al connections so that the voltages are are required. Nothing may need changing other than connectors.

Pos

[Matchless]

The stator output of 22V AC is definitely a problem (see stator papers and workshop manual) and I am familiar with that voltage as per my own GS. I had a similar voltage which did charge the battery in a way. When removing the stator I found 6 out of the 18 poles adjacent each other were burnt and effectively short circuit. A proper rewind later I had nearly 80V AC at 5000 RPM.

I then found that my regulator was not regulating and pushing everything spare to the battery, which was not a problem with the low voltage output, but was not good with the new stator! A Honda unit solved that.

If you want to rewind your own stator I have a rather wordy document I drew up on the process. It is not difficult and can save you some money.
Just PM me if interested.

[spyug]

I am now pleased to report that my stator definitely is ok and putting out tons of voltage on each leg. Better than 40V at a tich above idle and close to 90v at 5000. The connector was definitely part of the problem and it helps when you set the multimeter to the right scale when checking the stator....dooh.

There is likely still an issue still with the R/R as the charging voltage is still high just above idle (14.8V) but drops to 14.1v or so at about 3500 up to and beyond 5000 rpm. I'm thinking of trying out one of the Honda ones to see if it changes anything.

I was going to change out the fuse block as well but I'll wait on that until I swap the R/R.

Things are looking up and don't seem so grim

Thank s for all the interest and input folks as always it helps to keep you on track.

Cheers,
Spyug