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1 hour ago, Cogswell said:

 Some people wire their voltmeters with a manual switch so there isn't a constant (thought tiny) draw while the bike is off.  The manual switch is a version of a relay, it just uses human power to throw the switch instead of electrical power.

Ok, you roped me into it... . I'm a manual switch guy for voltmeters.... 

Another keep it simple stupid method is to wire direct to battery... positive side with 1 amp or less fuse holder... like

https://www.amazon.com/DIGITEN-5x20mm-Holder-Inline-screw/dp/B00VLBAF84/ref=sr_1_14?crid=JK6TJXIXY494&dchild=1&keywords=inline+fuse+holder+16+gauge&qid=1588213962&sprefix=in+line+fuse+%2Caps%2C195&sr=8-14

 

Then stick a switch in the circuit,  -- there must be 100 choices... example....   (I mounted one under the seat)

 

Example...... 

https://www.amazon.com/Toggle-Switch-Wires-Metal-Automotive/dp/B078825ZQH/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=automotive+mini+toggle+switch&qid=1588214338&sr=8-1

 

I did this one quite a while ago, I would probably do something different now..... 

20190907_235204-Th.jpg

 

Ground you can just add an eyelet go direct to battery or ground it to frame... 

 

I find Autozone has a good electrical wire 'em up parts section for ideas.... 

 

So the idea is...... flip the switch on --- before you power the bike key on.... then you know right away if your battery is good or... hosed..... before you start the bike.

 

A relay is a good way to go too.. either way is personal taste... 

 

For grins, my voltmeter mounted.... 

assembled-Th.jpg

 

Another good motorcycle targeted electrical source.... 

http://www.cycleterminal.com/index.html

 

Cheerz :beer:

 

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Fans won't stop a reg/rec going duff.  They don't burn out because they get hot, do they?  No, they get hot because they've burned out! 

 

At least you've had fun wiring up a whole bunch of electrical stuff!

 

Ciao,

 

JZH

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14 hours ago, JZH said:

Fans won't stop a reg/rec going duff.  They don't burn out because they get hot, do they?  No, they get hot because they've burned out! 

 Wait. Is that true? That can't be exactly right. I'd been thinking they got hot because they were bleeding off energy from the stator that wasn't being used to power the electrics on the bike. That's why they have cooling fins. But that was just my hunch. My R/R seems to work okay, and it gets pretty hot even with the fins.  Of course, they may get even hotter when they're burned out.

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There's "hot" and then there's burned out.  When they fail they get so hot the potting melts.  (The OEM ones on these bikes had no cooling fins; they were supposed to use the bike's subframe as a means of cooling, hence the heat sink paste you're supposed to use when installing them.)

 

Ciao,

 

JZH

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I would not mess around with the OEM style regulator, just replace with something more modern.  I got a used one off an FZ-09 and a harness off ebay for under $50 delivered.

Heat usually shortens the life of electronic components, yes some components fail as a dead short and make a lot of heat but running them hot might kill them early.  But for the good of your battery and to avoid a tow or a long push might as well replace the OEM regulator now and avoid that tediousness.

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

FYI - My replacement stator still hasnt arrived - but the bits and pieces for the voltmeter mod showed up so I had:

 

1m of blue wire

1m of black wire

1m of red wire

1 fused relay

1 set of crimpers with assorted ends

1 bag of wire-tap connectors

1 voltmeter!

 

I got to work -

1) - tested the brown wire I could find at the tail light to check that between it and battery negative was 0V with key off and ~12V with ignition on

2) - Tested voltage across battery terminals and saw it was >12V (i.e. tail light voltage would not be a 'true' reading)

3) - Stuck volmeter on dash and fed cable downunder side of tank

4) - Used connectors to add more length to red and black cable from voltmeter

5) - Crimped the blue wire with a spade at one end and spliced the other with a tap connector to the brown wire at the tail light

6) - Made up a short length of red wire with a ring connector at one end and a spade on the other

7) - Made a short black wire with ring connector at one end and spliced in with the black from the voltmeter extension to a spade at the other end

😎 - Plugged the blue cable space to '86' on the relay

9)  - Plugged the red cable spade from voltmeter to '87' on relay

10) - Plugged the spade with the two black cables to '85' on relay

11) - Plugged the red spade cable to '30' on relay

12) - Connected the red and black ring connectors to appropriate battery terminals

13) - Stuffed the relay and any excess wire into the cavity to the right side of the frame (opposite the battery)

14) - Observe meter nice and dark with key off

15) - Observe meter firing up with ignition and reading exactly the same as multimeter over battery terminals!

 

Thats a win!!!!! (shame photobucket watermark obscures it a bit - but you get the idea)

 

 

spacer.png

 

 

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Hello, fellow 5th Geners. I would like to ask a question with a little back story added to it. I have a '98 vfr with 37K miles on the odometer. For six months now (it is now 16 May 2020) on occasion I would use my key to switch from 'steering lock' to 'off' to 'ignition on' and my vfr. Then I press the start button and all of the power drops off. No lights, no numbers on the right lcd screen. No power to anything. Even turning the key off and on has no effect. The warning lights (red and green) turn off also. The engine kill switch is always on. I rarely use it to turn the engine off, but sometimes I do use it. Sometimes this happens, Sometimes not. Mostly not. I don't know if this is an R/R issue. I don't want to get stuck on the side of the road waiting for somebody or my wife to help me get the bike back home. There are several important things to note here:

1. I rarely use the 'engine kill' switch on the right handle bar to stop the engine.

2. I normally just turn off the engine with the key.

3. I live in the Pacific Northwest.

4. there is a computer fan sitting on top of the R/R, I did not install it. The previous owner did and it comes on with the key.

5. there are grip heaters installed, but only the clutch grip heater works now. throttle grip heater stopped working a year ago.

6. there is a battery monitor installed too. I'll add photos to this thread. It was also not installed by me.

 

I bought the bike in 2015 and rode the bike with the battery that was in it when I bought the bike and only changed the battery this January (2020). Never had to replace the R/R either.

Maybe I need to clean the contacts of the kill switch.

Any ideas would be helpful. Thanks.

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2 hours ago, pdx650 said:

Hello, fellow 5th Geners. I would like to ask a question with a little back story added to it. I have a '98 vfr with 37K miles on the odometer. For six months now (it is now 16 May 2020) on occasion I would use my key to switch from 'steering lock' to 'off' to 'ignition on' and my vfr. Then I press the start button and all of the power drops off. No lights, no numbers on the right lcd screen. No power to anything. Even turning the key off and on has no effect. The warning lights (red and green) turn off also. The engine kill switch is always on. I rarely use it to turn the engine off, but sometimes I do use it. Sometimes this happens, Sometimes not. Mostly not. I don't know if this is an R/R issue. I don't want to get stuck on the side of the road waiting for somebody or my wife to help me get the bike back home. There are several important things to note here:

1. I rarely use the 'engine kill' switch on the right handle bar to stop the engine.

2. I normally just turn off the engine with the key.

3. I live in the Pacific Northwest.

4. there is a computer fan sitting on top of the R/R, I did not install it. The previous owner did and it comes on with the key.

5. there are grip heaters installed, but only the clutch grip heater works now. throttle grip heater stopped working a year ago.

6. there is a battery monitor installed too. I'll add photos to this thread. It was also not installed by me.

 

I bought the bike in 2015 and rode the bike with the battery that was in it when I bought the bike and only changed the battery this January (2020). Never had to replace the R/R either.

Maybe I need to clean the contacts of the kill switch.

Any ideas would be helpful. Thanks.

Think you can forget the Kill Switch as it has no effect on Instrument Displays or headlights.

 

Check the state of your two Main 30amp Fuses A and B.

Have a very close look for stressed/overheated/burnt wiring associated with the Fuses. Remove a check the fuses for heat stress and make sure their connections are clean and good.

 

Lets know how you go.

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Grum and joelF, thank you for your time and advice. I will let you know what happens when I can get to it. It sounds like I may need to get more fuses soon and check the wiring too. I do not have a great mind for electricity. The three part  aviation electricity classes I took taught me something and some left my mind. I was about to dig into the throttle grip control cluster and clean it up, but maybe I don’t need to now.

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27 minutes ago, pdx650 said:

Grum and joelF, thank you for your time and advice. I will let you know what happens when I can get to it. It sounds like I may need to get more fuses soon and check the wiring too. I do not have a great mind for electricity. The three part  aviation electricity classes I took taught me something and some left my mind. I was about to dig into the throttle grip control cluster and clean it up, but maybe I don’t need to now.

JoelF makes a very good point and something I overlooked, that is to make sure your battery connections are clean and tight, that's the easiest thing to check first. Then move on to the Fuses and wiring I mentioned. You can download the Service Manual from this site if you don't already have one.

Keep us posted.

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Grum, thanks again. I certainly would like to download a service manual. I do have a paper clymer manual, but sometimes digital forms are nice to have also. I’ll check on the cables and wires too.

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Why did you replace the battery in January?  Given that this is a VFR of a certain era, it probably has charging issues, which can damage a battery. 

 

Unfortunately, replacing the battery won't solve the problem if there is a problem.  I once destroyed a week-old battery by taking it on a high speed trip in a bike with a bad reg/rec...

 

Ciao,

 

JZH

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JZH, the battery was already an old one and the electrical problems had not yet begun when I replaced it. Thanks for letting me know about the possibility that the battery can be damaged by replacing it with these problems it is having. The weather in the part of Oregon I live in has not been good enough to ride a lot yet. I will read up on this problem, check the wiring, and , if need be, replace fuses....or harnesses.

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