3 times battery failure

[Jack Klarich]

I used a multimeter in the diode function to check them and they bench check ok. if I hook a cheap analog volt meter like in a car to the battery and run the bike will I see a the needle jump around if the diode is bad?

Probably not, a diode is a one way switch so to speak, in automotive field they can be bad and still show enough voltage to fool you, but under charge or kill a battery

 

[03ultra45385]

What voltage are you getting at the battery at idle and what do you get as the rpms are encreased? I think it should max out under 14 volts If it goes higher I would suspect a bad regulator. And it is cooking your battery. I used to have an simple Amp Meter (from NAPA many years ago)that you simply held against the positive battery cable (at the battery) and it would give a quick ballpark indication of what the charging system is doing. It should charge at a higher rate when bike is first started but should drop back to barely charging. Placing it aginst the positive cable anywhere between the regulator and the main circuit breaker should show a higher amp reading as it is charging the battery and all the other loads (ignition, lights ect.)

 

[03ultra45385]

I checked and NAPA auto parts still sell the amp meter. It runs about $22 and you can use it on any wire to check the approximate load it is carrying. it will also check starter amps.