TQ..."--hog wild..." and "--swinging volt meters" sounds like a real party here??!! :bigsmiley20:
Swinging Volt Meter
- Thread starter cowjammer
- Start date
jims87flh
Banned
Yes, I'll Private message you with his site, Call he already has the pattern programmed, just have to send a picture (high quality) for him to engrave. If you need help with that, I'll be happy to help.
Bubbaglide
Member
Jim
I dug into my 95 Ultra on staurday, dismantling about everything. I found that the power going to my switch was as it is from the battery but the power returning from the switch was a volt or so lower. I went in and cleaned every connection and taped or repaired every chafe or frayed area I could find. Additionally, I checked and cleaned my grounds and looked for any source of leakage. When I checked everything after that, the voltages matched. I had never gotten 13.8 on my meter, never had gotten over 12.8. and when turning on more and more things, the voltage would drop. I believe this low voltage contributed to the failure of my ignition module as well.
Removing the fairing and stripping the front of the bike is not for the faint of heart. I took my shop manual and just devoted a day to it. It took most of the day to do it but my preoblem is fixed. Hope this helps.
Ride safe
Bubba
I dug into my 95 Ultra on staurday, dismantling about everything. I found that the power going to my switch was as it is from the battery but the power returning from the switch was a volt or so lower. I went in and cleaned every connection and taped or repaired every chafe or frayed area I could find. Additionally, I checked and cleaned my grounds and looked for any source of leakage. When I checked everything after that, the voltages matched. I had never gotten 13.8 on my meter, never had gotten over 12.8. and when turning on more and more things, the voltage would drop. I believe this low voltage contributed to the failure of my ignition module as well.
Removing the fairing and stripping the front of the bike is not for the faint of heart. I took my shop manual and just devoted a day to it. It took most of the day to do it but my preoblem is fixed. Hope this helps.
Ride safe
Bubba
Way to go Bubbaglide...sometimes you have to roll up the sleeves and dig in going from battery, starter and alternator/regulator primary side to the fuseblock and out to all the peripheral branches and do a "shake down", especially if you have been troubleshooting a problem with little or no sucess AND your ride is greater than 5-7 years old and never has had this done. Use dielectric grease (HD for $10 or Kragens for $7) to coat the metal to metal connections (like primary & ground cables, fuse terminals, bulb sockets and connector mating terminations) and you will be good to go for another 10 or 15 years at least.
my 91 electraglide has always done this. at a stop with the brake lights on it goes to 10. as soon as i get moving it goes back to 12.5 - 13. i've replaced the regulator and stator in the course of owning this bike and it's been like that from first day i got it. i just think the electrical system on those bikes was grossly underpowered. i f i had it to do over (which sooner or later i probably will) i'd replace it with a higher amp system.
Locutus, you may have to do as BubbaG did...go over everything from primary battery cables and ground connections, double insulate areas of contact in main harness, up to and including all mating connectors, fuses/relays connections, fuse block, also the main fuse/breaker may need to be changed from 35A to 40-50A one...check any service bulletins just to be sure. Also check areas where mods have been done, common places are the handlebars and control group, many installers forget to chamfer the drilled out holes to prevent cutting wire insulation, as well as the tail light under fender wiring where an improperly routed wire can snag on the tires or get cut by routing clips.
84 FLHTC - new stator last year (32 amp) and another new regulator this year. The volmeter jumps around a lot when I touch anything drawing current but it only moves .5 to 1 volt with the turn signals.
I recently used the link in the message just above and it was very helpful. Very.
I recently used the link in the message just above and it was very helpful. Very.
Bubbaglide
Member
Locutus
Before you spend 3-400 on a higher amp system, first as suggested, replace the circuit breaker. Then using your shop manual, start at the battery and go forward with your system. Your first check should be the 3 wire main harness under the fairing. The red wire will be the one supplying the power to the bike. If the voltage there matches the battery voltage, check on downstream. Soon after the 3 wire connector, the red wire will have a splice, follow both ends and check voltage at every connection. remember to check voltage at the battery before checking at the connection so that you can be sure to get accurate readings.
I checked mine all the way to the switch with the results agreeing with the battery voltage. Coming off the switch the voltage was good to the first connection. It had dropped there so I knew the switch wasn't the culprit but probably a short or wire chafe after the switch. I repaired everything and taped places it could chafe or used shrink wrap to provide extra protection. Just slit it lengthwise and then put it on the wire and tape it with good electrical tape. Check your grounds, especially, for me, at the headlight harness where several grounds were spliced into the ground to the headlight. That seemed to make the biggest diffference.
A little elbow grease, patience and a Volt ohm meter did the trick for me. I'll bet it will for you too and all you've invested is some time. If your problem is ground or wire chafed short, a new higher amp system will not fix your problem. Come on, if I can do it, you can too
Bubba
Before you spend 3-400 on a higher amp system, first as suggested, replace the circuit breaker. Then using your shop manual, start at the battery and go forward with your system. Your first check should be the 3 wire main harness under the fairing. The red wire will be the one supplying the power to the bike. If the voltage there matches the battery voltage, check on downstream. Soon after the 3 wire connector, the red wire will have a splice, follow both ends and check voltage at every connection. remember to check voltage at the battery before checking at the connection so that you can be sure to get accurate readings.
I checked mine all the way to the switch with the results agreeing with the battery voltage. Coming off the switch the voltage was good to the first connection. It had dropped there so I knew the switch wasn't the culprit but probably a short or wire chafe after the switch. I repaired everything and taped places it could chafe or used shrink wrap to provide extra protection. Just slit it lengthwise and then put it on the wire and tape it with good electrical tape. Check your grounds, especially, for me, at the headlight harness where several grounds were spliced into the ground to the headlight. That seemed to make the biggest diffference.
A little elbow grease, patience and a Volt ohm meter did the trick for me. I'll bet it will for you too and all you've invested is some time. If your problem is ground or wire chafed short, a new higher amp system will not fix your problem. Come on, if I can do it, you can too
Bubba
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