


Any help please will be appreciated.
Thank you Dan
WingAdmin wrote:It could be a number of things. If the main 30 amp fuse is intermittent, it will cause intermittent charging. Your stator plug (three yellow wires) could be bad, you should just cut that out and solder it if you haven't already. You could have a bad ground, check the ground cable from the battery to the frame, as well as the quality of the contact between it and the frame. The regulator or rectifier could be failing.
The 7 volt regulator controls only the temperature and fuel gauges - if only one is malfunctioning, then the problem is not the 7 volt regulator.
Whatever it is, it's too small, which is why you see overheating on them. I think they are 16 or 18 gauge. I used 14 gauge wire to "extend" mine when I cut out the connector, and that worked quite well. Make sure you cut back the yellow wires far enough that when stripped, the copper is bright and shiny, not black. If it's black, cut it back further and try again.unkle buckie wrote:WingAdmin wrote:It could be a number of things. If the main 30 amp fuse is intermittent, it will cause intermittent charging. Your stator plug (three yellow wires) could be bad, you should just cut that out and solder it if you haven't already. You could have a bad ground, check the ground cable from the battery to the frame, as well as the quality of the contact between it and the frame. The regulator or rectifier could be failing.
The 7 volt regulator controls only the temperature and fuel gauges - if only one is malfunctioning, then the problem is not the 7 volt regulator.
i've been trying to find out what gauge those three yellow wires are... if i remove the connection box i'll have a gap, so i need something to assist in the splicing/soldering/shrink wrap. any info for me?
thanks for the swift reply. i've been going through SEVERAL different threads on SEVERAL different forums and guess what: SEVERAL different answers... i've read everything from 10, 12, 14, 16, and 18 gauge. not being terribly experienced in this MacGyver department, i'm a tad hesitant as i don't want to turn a drama into a crisis...i note you reduced gauge size from a presumed 16 or 18 to 14. why was that, and would you reccommend i do something similar? your opinion is much appreciatedWingAdmin wrote:Whatever it is, it's too small, which is why you see overheating on them. I think they are 16 or 18 gauge. I used 14 gauge wire to "extend" mine when I cut out the connector, and that worked quite well. Make sure you cut back the yellow wires far enough that when stripped, the copper is bright and shiny, not black. If it's black, cut it back further and try again.unkle buckie wrote:WingAdmin wrote:It could be a number of things. If the main 30 amp fuse is intermittent, it will cause intermittent charging. Your stator plug (three yellow wires) could be bad, you should just cut that out and solder it if you haven't already. You could have a bad ground, check the ground cable from the battery to the frame, as well as the quality of the contact between it and the frame. The regulator or rectifier could be failing.
The 7 volt regulator controls only the temperature and fuel gauges - if only one is malfunctioning, then the problem is not the 7 volt regulator.
i've been trying to find out what gauge those three yellow wires are... if i remove the connection box i'll have a gap, so i need something to assist in the splicing/soldering/shrink wrap. any info for me?
I prefer to over-engineer things, to prevent future failure.unkle buckie wrote:thanks for the swift reply. i've been going through SEVERAL different threads on SEVERAL different forums and guess what: SEVERAL different answers... i've read everything from 10, 12, 14, 16, and 18 gauge. not being terribly experienced in this MacGyver department, i'm a tad hesitant as i don't want to turn a drama into a crisis...i note you reduced gauge size from a presumed 16 or 18 to 14. why was that, and would you reccommend i do something similar? your opinion is much appreciated
thanks for clearing that up. i agree with you on the over-engineering: may as well whilst you can. i've 2 further questions if i may... i've literally whittled away the connection block, leaving the male/female connectors exposed. whats to prevent me (if anything) from soldering and shrink wrapping around each individual connection? also re the 30amp dogbone fuse, could this be the reason why i'm not getting so much as a blip when i try and start 'er up?WingAdmin wrote:I prefer to over-engineer things, to prevent future failure.unkle buckie wrote:thanks for the swift reply. i've been going through SEVERAL different threads on SEVERAL different forums and guess what: SEVERAL different answers... i've read everything from 10, 12, 14, 16, and 18 gauge. not being terribly experienced in this MacGyver department, i'm a tad hesitant as i don't want to turn a drama into a crisis...i note you reduced gauge size from a presumed 16 or 18 to 14. why was that, and would you reccommend i do something similar? your opinion is much appreciated
Might I get away with a 16 gauge, or even an 18 gauge wire, without a problem? Perhaps, even probably. But rather than find out the hard way that I can't get away with it, when it melts and leaves me stranded 300 miles from home, I'd much rather use the 14 gauge, which I KNOW will work, and I know will never fail. I have lots of wire of all sizes, so I'll just pick the one I know will work, and will never fail. The difference in cost is so small as to be irrelevant.
10 and 12 is definitely overkill - ridiculous for something that is connected to wire that is 16 or 18 gauge.
As for the yellow wire connectors - if there was heat damage, I would recommend removing the connectors, stripping the wires back to clean copper, and soldering wire in place. The reason for this is that the connectors themselves are not soldered to the wires - they are still just crimped.unkle buckie wrote:thanks for clearing that up. i agree with you on the over-engineering: may as well whilst you can. i've 2 further questions if i may... i've literally whittled away the connection block, leaving the male/female connectors exposed. whats to prevent me (if anything) from soldering and shrink wrapping around each individual connection? also re the 30amp dogbone fuse, could this be the reason why i'm not getting so much as a blip when i try and start 'er up?
WingAdmin wrote:As for the yellow wire connectors - if there was heat damage, I would recommend removing the connectors, stripping the wires back to clean copper, and soldering wire in place. The reason for this is that the connectors themselves are not soldered to the wires - they are still just crimped.unkle buckie wrote:thanks for clearing that up. i agree with you on the over-engineering: may as well whilst you can. i've 2 further questions if i may... i've literally whittled away the connection block, leaving the male/female connectors exposed. whats to prevent me (if anything) from soldering and shrink wrapping around each individual connection? also re the 30amp dogbone fuse, could this be the reason why i'm not getting so much as a blip when i try and start 'er up?
If you can get solder to flow into the connector where the wire crimp is, then it would indicate that there is no oxidation on either the connector, or more importantly, the wire. If this is the case, then yes, you could likely safely plug the connectors together, solder them, and shrink wrap, and be done with it.
If solder does not flow into the connector where the wire is crimped, I would still cut the wire, strip back to clean shiny copper, and splice in wire to replace the connectors.
As for your dogbone fuse, it (and the fuse block) are in sad shape. I would remove the dogbone fuse and the screws. Soak the screws in vinegar for a few hours, and scrub off the rusty paste that results. Take some sandpaper and get rid of the corrosion on the contacts. Clean everything up with electrical contact cleaner, and install a 30 amp blade fuse holder in place of the dogbone fuse. You can find that procedure (and sources for the dogbone fuse) in many places on this site if you do a search.