Point One: Over the weekend, I replaced the stator in the Triumph. The Speed Four is, once again, Triumphant. I'll try to post some more details about that fun process later.
Point Two: November first is tomorrow, which means it's time for National Novel Writing Month. And, once again, I'll be posting each chapter as I write them straight to a novel blog. If you've dug the Holy Rollers stories in the past, you'll probably like this one too. You can get to it here: http://winkingatdeath.blogspot.com/
Senin, 31 Oktober 2011
Jumat, 28 Oktober 2011
A Bit Of Wisdom We Can Borrow From Sailors
There is a poorly kept secret among sailors that rarely makes it into the awareness of folks who don't sail: One is safest in the deepest and most remote waters, and most at risk close to shore and near other boats. A smart sailor tries to ensure he/she has plenty of sea room at any given time. Sailors get a bit anxious when something gets inside their personal bubble. A sailor's personal bubble, by the way, is a lot bigger than you'd think. In fact, prior to GPS, the general wisdom was to go around obstructions marked on the chart by a mile or more, just in case you weren't where you thought you were. This is still good advice, by the way. More than one sailor has trusted the GPS a bit too much and ended up on a reef.
The reason a sailor likes a lot of sea room is because there is only so much he/she can control. A sailor can control which way the boat is pointing, sail trim and... that's about it. Really, he/she can only control how the boat moves through the water - which is also moving most of the time. The water's current, waves, and the wind have a constant impact on the boat and where it ends up. In the wrong conditions, a sailor can do everything in his/her power, and still get pushed into a nearby obstruction. Because of this, maintaining as much sea room as possible is vital. Even when racing, sailors give the other boats plenty of room, because it's embarrassing to smash up another sailor's boat when a wave pushes you into them.
How does this apply to motorcycles?
I think we can agree the safest places to ride are those places where other people are not operating their vehicles, and there aren't a lot of things to run into. A square mile of blacktop with no obstructions would be a pretty safe place to ride.
Of course, it would also be impossibly boring after an hour or so, and such a place doesn't exist anyway. Here in the real world, we spend most of our time riding in areas where there is traffic and/or plenty of obstacles to avoid.
Motorcycles are uniquely nimble, in terms of motorized vehicles. They accelerate quickly, require little space to maneuver, and modern motorcycles have effective brakes. This leads, I suspect, to a bit of overconfidence on the road. I regularly see motorcyclists tailgating, sneaking into tiny gaps in traffic, and generally using as little space on the road as possible.
I'm not going to say that finding the opening isn't a heck of a lot of fun, but the cost of playing in small spaces is a lack of a cushion if things go wrong.
There are roads here in Phoenix where traffic bunches up on itself. Everyone is driving roughly the speed limit, but crammed right next to one another, and right on the bumper of the car ahead. I shudder to think of the pileup that is going to occur one day when something goes wrong and no one can stop or evade in time.
The only we can control is how we move through traffic. When I find myself in situations where I don't have enough space for evasive maneuvers, I do whatever is necessary to give myself a safety cushion. If I have to slow down and annoy the S.U.V. behind me, so be it. I can be patient. If I can pass or change lanes, I will. The more space between me and that distracted driver in a Lexus, the better.
Seek out and maintain ample "sea room" while you're riding. I guarantee you'll find your rides more relaxing and enjoyable, and you'll have increased your margin of safety.
The reason a sailor likes a lot of sea room is because there is only so much he/she can control. A sailor can control which way the boat is pointing, sail trim and... that's about it. Really, he/she can only control how the boat moves through the water - which is also moving most of the time. The water's current, waves, and the wind have a constant impact on the boat and where it ends up. In the wrong conditions, a sailor can do everything in his/her power, and still get pushed into a nearby obstruction. Because of this, maintaining as much sea room as possible is vital. Even when racing, sailors give the other boats plenty of room, because it's embarrassing to smash up another sailor's boat when a wave pushes you into them.
How does this apply to motorcycles?
I think we can agree the safest places to ride are those places where other people are not operating their vehicles, and there aren't a lot of things to run into. A square mile of blacktop with no obstructions would be a pretty safe place to ride.
Of course, it would also be impossibly boring after an hour or so, and such a place doesn't exist anyway. Here in the real world, we spend most of our time riding in areas where there is traffic and/or plenty of obstacles to avoid.
Motorcycles are uniquely nimble, in terms of motorized vehicles. They accelerate quickly, require little space to maneuver, and modern motorcycles have effective brakes. This leads, I suspect, to a bit of overconfidence on the road. I regularly see motorcyclists tailgating, sneaking into tiny gaps in traffic, and generally using as little space on the road as possible.
I'm not going to say that finding the opening isn't a heck of a lot of fun, but the cost of playing in small spaces is a lack of a cushion if things go wrong.
There are roads here in Phoenix where traffic bunches up on itself. Everyone is driving roughly the speed limit, but crammed right next to one another, and right on the bumper of the car ahead. I shudder to think of the pileup that is going to occur one day when something goes wrong and no one can stop or evade in time.
The only we can control is how we move through traffic. When I find myself in situations where I don't have enough space for evasive maneuvers, I do whatever is necessary to give myself a safety cushion. If I have to slow down and annoy the S.U.V. behind me, so be it. I can be patient. If I can pass or change lanes, I will. The more space between me and that distracted driver in a Lexus, the better.
Seek out and maintain ample "sea room" while you're riding. I guarantee you'll find your rides more relaxing and enjoyable, and you'll have increased your margin of safety.
Senin, 24 Oktober 2011
Rabu, 19 Oktober 2011
How To Determine The Cause Of Your Charging Problem
I'm no stranger to tracking down electrical issues. My first bike, the VX800, developed a charging problem within three days of bringing it home. It turned out to be a bad rectifier, and replacing it was an absolute nightmare of back-ordered parts, and then contending with getting the old rectifier off the bike. Suzuki, in their infinite wisdom, located it on the back of the motor, just in front of the exhaust crossover tube. And the bolts holding it in place, for no understandable reason, had stripped Philips heads.
I'm still recovering from the trauma of that repair.
So now the Triumph is having charging issues. Here's a quick guide on how to go about figuring out the cause of the problem if you've got a bike with a stator and regulator/rectifier (You probably do. If you're not sure, find out before proceeding.). In yesterday's post, I mentioned the value of a multimeter. Have you got one yet? You're going to need it, so go get one. I'll wait until you get back.
Step One: check your fuses. It's probably not a bad fuse, but it would be embarrassing to pull everything apart only to find the problem was a fuse.
Step Two: Set your multimeter to test DC voltages. I'd set it to at least 20 volts. Start your bike, and put the red probe on the positive battery terminal, and the black probe on the negative battery terminal. Rev the motor to 2500 RPM. If the voltage is less than 13.5 volts, there's a problem. If it's higher than 13.5 volts, rev the motor to 5000 RPM. If the voltage is more than 14.8 volts, there's a problem. Go ahead and shut off your bike for now.
In my case, the voltage was about 12.5, and didn't change at all when I revved the motor. At this point, I guessed the stator was bad, but it's best to be sure, so I continued on.
Step Three: Pull all the plastics and other parts off your bike keeping you from the connectors for the stator and regulator/rectifier (RR). On the VX800, the connectors were hidden under the gas tank and were a real drag to get to. On the other hand, the connectors were super easy to get to on the Speed Four, just tucked under the rear plastic on the chain side of the bike.
Disconnect the RR from the stator and battery.
If you don't know what a RR looks like, it's the finned, octagonal hunk of aluminum with wires coming out of it in the photo to the left.
Step Four: Set your meter to read resistance. Test from each of the three yellow wires coming from the RR to each of the red / black wires. If one of the readings indicates a short (zero resistance), you need a new rectifier.
The rectifier on the Triumph is fine.
Step Five: Check the resistance between all combinations of the three yellow wires coming from the Stator. It should be a very low resistance, probably less than 1 ohm, but it should absolutely not be a short circuit. Also check from one of the yellow wires to engine ground. This should read maximum resistance (an open circuit). Again, if you've got a short, the stator is bad.
My stator appeared good here.
Step Six: Leave the stator and RR disconnected. Set your meter to read AC voltage. Start the bike, and check the voltage coming from all combinations of the three stator wires. The three voltages should all be the same. If one is significantly different, your stator is bad. At idle, you can expect the voltage to be around 20 volts, and it should go up to about 70 volts at 5000 RPM. These voltages can, of course, vary depending on the bike.
On the Triumph, at idle, the voltages read 24, 24, 4. Bad stator. The good news is, the stator on the Speed Four looks exceptionally easy to replace.
So now for the fun part: The OEM stator for the Speed Four runs about $600, and there appears to only be one company making aftermarket replacement stators for my bike right now. Hopefully, this one company will prove easy to work with.
If you followed the previous steps, found nothing, and are still having trouble, chances are you've got a bad connection somewhere. I am not jealous of you.
For a really, really thorough troubleshooting guide, check out this fault-finding chart provided by Electrosport.
I also found this thread provided by the Triumph Rat forum most helpful.
I'm still recovering from the trauma of that repair.
So now the Triumph is having charging issues. Here's a quick guide on how to go about figuring out the cause of the problem if you've got a bike with a stator and regulator/rectifier (You probably do. If you're not sure, find out before proceeding.). In yesterday's post, I mentioned the value of a multimeter. Have you got one yet? You're going to need it, so go get one. I'll wait until you get back.
Step One: check your fuses. It's probably not a bad fuse, but it would be embarrassing to pull everything apart only to find the problem was a fuse.
Step Two: Set your multimeter to test DC voltages. I'd set it to at least 20 volts. Start your bike, and put the red probe on the positive battery terminal, and the black probe on the negative battery terminal. Rev the motor to 2500 RPM. If the voltage is less than 13.5 volts, there's a problem. If it's higher than 13.5 volts, rev the motor to 5000 RPM. If the voltage is more than 14.8 volts, there's a problem. Go ahead and shut off your bike for now.
In my case, the voltage was about 12.5, and didn't change at all when I revved the motor. At this point, I guessed the stator was bad, but it's best to be sure, so I continued on.
Disconnect the RR from the stator and battery.
If you don't know what a RR looks like, it's the finned, octagonal hunk of aluminum with wires coming out of it in the photo to the left.
Step Four: Set your meter to read resistance. Test from each of the three yellow wires coming from the RR to each of the red / black wires. If one of the readings indicates a short (zero resistance), you need a new rectifier.
The rectifier on the Triumph is fine.
Step Five: Check the resistance between all combinations of the three yellow wires coming from the Stator. It should be a very low resistance, probably less than 1 ohm, but it should absolutely not be a short circuit. Also check from one of the yellow wires to engine ground. This should read maximum resistance (an open circuit). Again, if you've got a short, the stator is bad.
My stator appeared good here.
Step Six: Leave the stator and RR disconnected. Set your meter to read AC voltage. Start the bike, and check the voltage coming from all combinations of the three stator wires. The three voltages should all be the same. If one is significantly different, your stator is bad. At idle, you can expect the voltage to be around 20 volts, and it should go up to about 70 volts at 5000 RPM. These voltages can, of course, vary depending on the bike.
On the Triumph, at idle, the voltages read 24, 24, 4. Bad stator. The good news is, the stator on the Speed Four looks exceptionally easy to replace.
So now for the fun part: The OEM stator for the Speed Four runs about $600, and there appears to only be one company making aftermarket replacement stators for my bike right now. Hopefully, this one company will prove easy to work with.
If you followed the previous steps, found nothing, and are still having trouble, chances are you've got a bad connection somewhere. I am not jealous of you.
For a really, really thorough troubleshooting guide, check out this fault-finding chart provided by Electrosport.
I also found this thread provided by the Triumph Rat forum most helpful.
Selasa, 18 Oktober 2011
Fun With Batteries, or, How to Load Test Your Battery In The Comfort of Your Garage.
Since the Triumph is currently on time out for being naughty and not charging it's battery like a good motorcycle, I thought I might ride the Vespa to work today.
Last night I went out the the garage to make sure the Vespa was still healthy and happy and likely to start come this morning. Sadly, it was not. The battery has caught a nasty case of "dead."
Incidentally, you can be certain that your battery is dead and not just very, very sleepy by doing an impromptu load test with your multimeter. You have a multimeter, right? If not, get one. Especially if you like European bikes. You can get a cheap one for practically free, and you will use it a lot once you realize how awesome it is.
Start with a fully charged battery. If you battery isn't charged, attempt to charge it. You have a battery charger, right?
Set the voltage test on your multimeter to 20 volts and turn it on. With the fully charged battery in your bike, connect the red multimeter probe to the positive battery terminal, and the black probe to the negative terminal. It should probably read somewhere over 12 volts. If it's less than that, and you just charged the battery, that's bad.
Anyway, turn on your ignition and see how much the voltage drops. It might go down a little, but shouldn't go down more than maybe one volt. Hit the starter button. If the voltage drops dramatically, you've got yourself a dead battery.
Of course, if you don't have a multimeter, and for some reason you aren't willing to shell out $5 to get one, you could also do the following: Try to charge the battery, and when it's done charging, attempt to start your bike. If the starter blows a raspberry at you, your battery is toast.
Now when you go to get your battery replaced because it's still under warranty, you can tell the helpful employee that you load-tested the battery and it is dead, so please make with the free replacement.
Last night I went out the the garage to make sure the Vespa was still healthy and happy and likely to start come this morning. Sadly, it was not. The battery has caught a nasty case of "dead."
Incidentally, you can be certain that your battery is dead and not just very, very sleepy by doing an impromptu load test with your multimeter. You have a multimeter, right? If not, get one. Especially if you like European bikes. You can get a cheap one for practically free, and you will use it a lot once you realize how awesome it is.
Start with a fully charged battery. If you battery isn't charged, attempt to charge it. You have a battery charger, right?
Set the voltage test on your multimeter to 20 volts and turn it on. With the fully charged battery in your bike, connect the red multimeter probe to the positive battery terminal, and the black probe to the negative terminal. It should probably read somewhere over 12 volts. If it's less than that, and you just charged the battery, that's bad.
Anyway, turn on your ignition and see how much the voltage drops. It might go down a little, but shouldn't go down more than maybe one volt. Hit the starter button. If the voltage drops dramatically, you've got yourself a dead battery.
Of course, if you don't have a multimeter, and for some reason you aren't willing to shell out $5 to get one, you could also do the following: Try to charge the battery, and when it's done charging, attempt to start your bike. If the starter blows a raspberry at you, your battery is toast.
Now when you go to get your battery replaced because it's still under warranty, you can tell the helpful employee that you load-tested the battery and it is dead, so please make with the free replacement.
Sabtu, 15 Oktober 2011
Turns Out It's A Triumph After All
Electrical issues and oil leaks. Yep, a modern Triumph is still a Triumph.
OK, so it took until the bike reached 40,000 miles for these issues to come up. And if you show me a motorcycle that doesn't leak oil and develop electrical issues, I'll show you a bike that's never been ridden.
Still, kind of a pain in the butt. My battery isn't charging. I've stuck the multimeter on the battery, and I can rev the motor to my heart's content with no increase in voltage. I'll have to figure out if it's a problem with the rectifier or the stator.
Fun times!
OK, so it took until the bike reached 40,000 miles for these issues to come up. And if you show me a motorcycle that doesn't leak oil and develop electrical issues, I'll show you a bike that's never been ridden.
Still, kind of a pain in the butt. My battery isn't charging. I've stuck the multimeter on the battery, and I can rev the motor to my heart's content with no increase in voltage. I'll have to figure out if it's a problem with the rectifier or the stator.
Fun times!
Langganan:
Postingan (Atom)