The drill, please help.

Discussion in 'Mechanics Garage' started by bobdigi88, Nov 23, 2014.

  1. bobdigi88

    bobdigi88 New Member

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    I was wondering if someone could help. I recently posted a thread on this topic a couple of weeks ago. But i feel i need to start fresh.
    My bike is a 2001 5th gen i believe, VFR 800fi. Bought about 6 months ago.

    Here's what happened.

    1. Bike completely died while riding it. Just cut out dead.
    2. Suspected battery. phoned local mechanic. He prepared battery for me.
    3. Picked it up. He told me i should pop bike in to check rectifier.
    4. Did so. Rode the bike 5 miles to shop. Rectifier had fried. Replaced rectifier.
    5. All good.
    6. 6-8 weeks later bike cut out. This time the bike didn't die the same. I filled up with petrol. Sat on bike and the bike wouldn't start. But this time the bike tried to turn over. But could't quite do it.
    7. Walked it to parents house.
    8. Uncle took battery home and tested it. It was low and needed charging.
    9. My uncle advised me to buy an optimiser. He thought the bike wasn't being used for distances long enough to charge battery properly. I do about 5-7 miles at a time.

    Now as i understand it. And i am happy to be corrected. The battery powers the bike, the stator feeds back charge to battery via the rectifier which changes the current from AC to DC or vise versa?

    So i understand i could have a faulty Stator. And i need to find out. And this is what the drill will determine The optimiser being used every night is just a band aid as someone called it.

    Now thanks to Skimad 4x4 and normk i realize i need to perform the drill. Now i live in the UK. And if it's simple i'd like to do the drill myself. Now here are my questions. Any advise is well appreciated.

    1. Can i perform the drill myself? Now i can change battery, do an oil filter change, coolant change and general maintenance. But that's about it.
    What do i need to perform a drill. Just a voltmeter? obviously i have spanners and screwdrivers. But is there anything else i need?
    3. Could someone please help me with the figures i am hoping for? I will find out but i don't even know what a battery is meant to read. Stupid i know.
    The drill needs performing hot and cold. Should the results be the same hot and cold?
    4. Can just using a optimiser for now do any damage to any parts?
    5. The low light on my Honda heated grips flashes when i have my lights on. Is this normal or is it connected to my problem. It can't be telling me the battery's low. because it happens when optimiser has completely charged battery.
    6. Would this voltmeter be correct? http://www.amazon.co.uk/Compact-Dig...UTF8&qid=1416773397&sr=8-2&keywords=voltmeter
    Thanks for any help. All posts will be read and appreciated.

    Oh and 7. Does anyone live on the south coast of England who can help me. Long shot but you never know.
     
  2. mello dude

    mello dude Administrator

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    Hi Bob,
    First take a breath and relax. The drill is easy, if you can put two fingers together, your qualified. - You will need to go get a digital multi- meter. I dont know where to buy in Britain, but here we get them at any auto parts store, Harbor Freight or hardware stores.

    Then - next -- -for the very first thing to test the charging system, you need to know for a fact that your battery is good. Charge it over night and take it to a auto parts store or a battery store and have it load tested. That will tell you if you need to buy new or the old one is fine. The rule is -- -good battery first!
    - Next you need to inspect the connections, especially the stator connections. Pull apart and take a look.
    --- The rest--- The rest of the drill should be easy, ask away for questions.
     
  3. V4toTour

    V4toTour New Member

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    Checking the stator is easy. remove your tail plastic and look at the regulator rectifier on the left side. The plug with the 3 yellow wires go to the stator. Disconnect this plug and make sure the innards aren't burned to a crisp.

    get yourself a digital multimeter and set to resistance (Ohms). touch one lead to the bike frame (ground) and the other to each of the 3 pins (stator plug end obviously, not the half hanging off the regulator.). You should see no continuity.

    Part of the "drill" is also checking resistance between the windings of the stator, by touching the meter leads to 2 of the plug pins at a time, checking combination of all 3 together. This is a complete waste of time IMO. I've had a failed stator pass the ohm check in spec.

    Instead move on to a voltage check. With the plug still disconnected and a charged battery, fire up the bike. Set your meter to AC voltage. Touch the leads to two pins in the plug. Rev the bike up over 3k- up towards cruising rpm maybe around 6 or 7K rpm. You should see the voltage climb from around 50-80VAC. Do this check for the remaining combination of the pins, two at a time. If you see voltage below 20 for example, your stator is toast.
     
  4. NormK

    NormK New Member

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    I'm tipping the stator is putting out a bit of voltage but not enough, battery would have died much earlier that the 6/8 weeks it took to run down, not that that helps much because it sounds like the stator it the problem
     
  5. bobdigi88

    bobdigi88 New Member

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    Thanks. does it matter what colour lead goes to what. I haven't bought one yet but it looks like one lead is red and the other black.
     
  6. bobdigi88

    bobdigi88 New Member

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    Sorry for being a dumbass. What do you mean no continuity?
     
  7. bobdigi88

    bobdigi88 New Member

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    So if I need a new stator I gather that it's expensive, and that their is something I have to do to make sure this doesn't happen again?
     
  8. V4toTour

    V4toTour New Member

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    No, the color of the leads is really just for checking DC voltage (negative being black, red positive). For resistance (ohms) and checking AC this doesn't matter. You don't need a fancy meter, a 10 dollar one from your discount hardware store will work fine.

    by checking continuity (resistance) you are seeing if the stator windings have shorted to ground. when I say no continuity, that means there should be no measurable reading between the bike's ground and the pins on the plug. If all is well your meter screen should read like the two leads are touching nothing.

    stators are not terribly expensive, in the same neighborhood as the rectifier if you go aftermarket. To prolong stator life, you want to go with a MOSFET style regulator/rectifier (they run cooler than the OEM style). I personally cut out the plug between the stator and the rectifier and direct solder the wires together. This eliminates any resistance that may build up in the plug which essentially turns it into a little heating element. This is how they get crispy, also puts strain on the stator windings.
     
  9. bobdigi88

    bobdigi88 New Member

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  10. NormK

    NormK New Member

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    Set the meter to ohms and touch the 2 test probes (the red and the black) and that will give you a continuity reading on the meter, so if it doesn't read anything when you are testing the stator pins in the plug, it means no continuity. A cheap meter is all you need, out here you get them for about $10
     
  11. V4toTour

    V4toTour New Member

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    lol, you're going to confuse him.

    When checking Ohms between the pins on the plug you SHOULD see a reading. The range you should see is provided in the service manual, however like I said before I've had a stator ohm within spec but still bad. Why I suggested moving on to just do the voltage check.

    Between the plug pins and bike ground you SHOULD NOT see a reading.
     
  12. V4toTour

    V4toTour New Member

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    Here, just watch this video:


    [video=youtube;5v2LtHlvcqI]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5v2LtHlvcqI[/video]
     
  13. NormK

    NormK New Member

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    picture is worth a thousand words
     
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