Battery Charging System

[babella]

I've run into a problem with my 1989 XLH. Seems according to my voltmeter the battery is not getting a charge. Do any of you know the best way to trouble shoot this? I can keep the 4 month old battery up with a tender, but it's only good for 3-4 starts if i don't run lights. Thanks for your time.

Babella

 

[solanki]

Got a fxdl but sounds like what happened to me.. Whats up with your bike ?? Battery goin dead?? Mine did..got a new one ...thought it was the battery but 5 day's later it went dead also. Went and bought a new regulator at the dealer and was about to split when i figured i'd go and talk to the guy's in service..They said for $30.00 they would check the charging system out ..as it turned out it was the stator that was bad not the regulator ..cost me 3 bills to get it fixed .but was able to return the $90.00 regulator.

Solanki

 

[hdlover]

Babella,

Fist thing I'd check is the stator. You can check it without opening anything up. Just under the transmission you should see the plug for the wires from the regulator. A large lump in a wire about the size of your thumb. May have to cut a couple wire ties to get it down to unplug. The half that heads towards the front of the bike go to the regulator. The other half goes to the stator.

First check is to see if there is continuity between the two terminals. Book calls for .2 to .4 ohms, hard to get an accurate reading this low but should show something.

Next thing is to check for continuity from each terminal to ground, any bare metal on engine is fine. Do this for both terminals in the plug. Should not have any continuity on either one.

If those check out, or seem to, set the volt meter to AC volts and connect one test lead to each of the terminals. Now start bike. You should get a reading of 12 to 18 volts for each 1,000 rpm. So 2,000 RPM would give you 24 to 36 volts.

If this checks out, the regulator would be suspect. However before condemning it make sure you remove it and clean the mounting points good. This is very important as it is the only ground for the system.

Next would be to check the wire from the regulator to the circuit breaker and from the breaker to the battery.

HDLover

 

[boabs]

The best way is to order and have on hand the following Harley Part, it is part number 99484-90. It will have all the information you seek, I dont have a scanner or I could send you the pictues on how to hook up a meter for testing the charging system

 

[earsha]

Well, you may have the dreaded 'Stator vs clutch housing/magnet' failure. Common for many of the 4 speed Sportsters (pre '91). I ride a 1990 with a 1250 Nallin kit and other mods and I've gone through 3 stators and 3 clutch housings. First failure was due to the adhesive failing on the original housing. That was back in 1991 and the factory wouldn't admit this was a design problem. The changed the layout of the charging system by moving the stator to the crank and the problem went away. Problem is that the trap door housing and bearing that supports all the weight of the clutch pack is too narrow and doesn't hold up to the job. Ultimate cure is to go with a Zipper's trap door with the wider bearing which will hold up to the job even with modified motors. There is also a resin encased set of magnets that was made by Milwaukee Iron (I think) that held the magnet in place. An expensive upgrade, but one that is the permanent fix. I started having another charging problem this year at Hollister during the 'Un Rally' during the July 4th weekend. My fix.... I bought a 2002 M2 Buell as a 'back up' bike later that month LOL! The repair/replacement of the stock parts is pretty easy. Get a clutch spring compression tool and a couple of inside/outside split ring tools and you're good to go. Good luck.

Earsha

 

[nando]

ooo my gosh thank you.....im going to do the test....same thing happend to me but i suspected the battery because i was losing voltage even running it would keep going down in voltage... so i changed the battery, nope still droping, i then bought a new voltage reg and installed it, nope still droping.....last guest was stator? took it to harley they said yup fixed it and it ran great for about a week, then today i noticed a slight hesitation upon starting the bike. when i went to leave my destination it made a clicking sound , i got a push start home and i noticed that my headlight was dim. i had to keep up the throttle or the idle would die.....made it about 10 miles home shut it down and tried to start it again and click click click click...??????? could i have went through another stator? is the new battery i installed now bad.....?

 

[widman1963]

Does anyone know how to get the battery out of an '04 v-rod.It's located right up front behind where the frame and triple tree bolts together.I have the air cleaner cover off and it looks like it should come out toward the rear of the bike.Just how much needs to be taken apart to get it out?

 

[glider]

Just pull off the air box cover and you can charge the battery without removing it.
To remove the battery you have to remove the down draft tubes and then the whole air box. Takes about 10 min. and a bunch of parts. Really wasn't designed to be easy to change.