ABS newb: what do I need to know?

[sambaman]

Well the new RR arrived today and I wish I could tell you that the problem is solved, but alas no! It seems the wiring or a bad connection is to blame. I was wrong.

Before I changed it, I re-tested the standby draw:

With stator & RR connected 1.1mA
Stator unplugged 1.1mA
RR unplugged 0.6mA

So no change. But with the new RR connected: 1.8mA!!

When I started the bike I was getting 14V at fast idle but very soon this fell to 13.5V. Once the bike had warmed up I got similar results as before changing the RR.

Low beam no accessories:
12.5V at idle rising to 13.8V at 1500rpm then dropping to 13.6V as revs increase and holding steady.

Not feeling elated, I put the old RR back on and I can hopefully send the other one back. I guess the next step is to wire the RR direct to the battery and see if bypassing the loom does the trick?

 

[Art]

Not good

Remember to fit an inline 30A fuse at the battery end of the positive cable, the negative cable can go direct to the negative battery terminal. That has to work because there's nowt more to replace.

[jm2]

Okay so nothing untoward having the stator plugged up (still 1.1mA).
That is good.

Next I'd be checking back along each lead (the three yellows from the stator coils) and the +ve (R) and -ve (Gn?) output from the RR to their connection points (I think the red goes to the main fuse at the starter solenoid  -is that nice and clean?) and the -ve to a ground point (always favourite for dodgy electrics!).
For the yellows you want to be able to read quite low resistance (generic multimeters aren't brilliant), you want really good connections on the pins and measure 1-2 and 2-3 and 3-1.  Stable readings are the key (no iffy joints/connections).  If these test good when cold, try warming the motor and see if hot oil makes a difference.

You are looking for a less than perfect connection/joint/terminal/fuse, even a fractured wire (or maybe trapped/crushed one for the stator output).

- Old 'ondas with a 3-pin plug in the stator to RR loom often had overheated connectors there that could be remidied once found.

N.B. The real main fuse, not the 'spare' !

[sambaman]

Thanks for all the advice, I'll see what I can do and keep you posted. At times like this a garage would be handy. I used to be able to get my bikes in the front room of our house but we live in a first floor flat now 

[sambaman]

Sorry for the delay, I was waiting for a fuse holder to arrive.

Finally connected the RR direct to the battery and all seems fine now 

14.1V at idle increasing to about 14.25V with revs and no further. All seems good to me.

Turning the main beam on had no impact so I'll connect the heated grips tomorrow and test again.

Thanks for all the time you guys took to reply and help me with this one. Phew!

Chris

[jm2]

This is with the original RR back in ?

So the poor circuit is between the RR and the battery; for the +ve these are the leads via the starter soleniod connections and for the -ve the (two) frame leads/connections.

Good news you have proved this so far - but you could do with finding the fault; any poor frame connection will only get worse and may affect something else later and (I know, mkII) a duff/doggy solenoid is a possible cause of fire - why the mkIIs had a recall in for a bad batch of solenoids used throughout the Honda range over particular months/years.

It may be really simple (like the RR connector plug's pin) but you know now where to look.

[Art]

Happy Days

[sambaman]

Originally Posted by jm2

You could do with finding the fault; any poor frame connection will only get worse and may affect something else later and (I know, mkII) a duff/doggy solenoid is a possible cause of fire - why the mkIIs had a recall in for a bad batch of solenoids used throughout the Honda range over particular months/years

I'll have a poke around in there asap but just happy it's charging for now.

Also need to prioritise getting the heated grips on!

I'll let you know if I find the gremlin.

Thanks again