Battery goes dead

[dhiemenz]

I bought a 1983 GL1100 aspencade about 7 years ago and almost each year I have to replace the battery ,even then I have to charge it if it sits a week with out starting it, when I drive it the volt meter stays at 12 to 14 until i get up in speed 45 or more with radio on then it drops to 8 to9 at 55 or more , can it be the rectifier or what ,another Myth i heard was that this was the first year of the digital dash and theres thoughts to that draining the battery ?any suggestions

[Big Blue UK]

I found this. I remember a Wing that had a external alternator fitted but was a long time ago.

The voltage with a good battery should read 13-14 volts at 3000 rpm.
If not, try disconnecting the black wire on the regulator and see if it goes up.
If it does, the regulator may be faulty.

The problem is sometimes the connectors under the left side cover. These can be cut and soldered if bad.

Just left of the battery is a connector with 3 yellow wires in it. This is the stator output.
Unplug it and check the the 3 yellows for continuity between all 3 wires.
There should be no connection to ground on any of them.
While unplugged and running the "AC" voltage between these wires is over 50 volts (multimeter set on "AC")

The engine has to be removed to change the stator coil. It can be done but a shop manual is needed.
If you look around on the internet some people have converted these bikes to using a small external
alternator.

[WingAdmin]

I used to have to replace my 1100's battery every single year. On others' advice, I bought a Battery Tender Jr., and left it hooked up to the bike whenever it was parked. I never bought a new battery again after that. An excellent $25 investment.

[virgilmobile]

Your battery should not drop to 8-9 volts at highway speed.
This needs to be investigated further than just replacing the battery.
Your charging volts should stay between 13 volts and 14.6 volts all the time.

NO EXCEPTIONS.

Use a DVM ATTACHED directly the battery posts.
Run the bike at least 5 minutes at 1500 RPM and increase the RPM to 3500 and hold.
The charging system should peak in this area and be between 14.1 and 14.6 volts.

Let us know your findings.

[WingAdmin]

Your battery should not drop to 8-9 volts at highway speed.
This needs to be investigated further than just replacing the battery.
Your charging volts should stay between 13 volts and 14.6 volts all the time.

NO EXCEPTIONS.

Use a DVM ATTACHED directly the battery posts.
Run the bike at least 5 minutes at 1500 RPM and increase the RPM to 3500 and hold.
The charging system should peak in this area and be between 14.1 and 14.6 volts.

Let us know your findings.

Whoa, I didn't read far enough into his message - comes from skimming messages too quickly, I guess. Virgil is right, you should never see that voltage when the engine is at cruising speed.