*** ESG130 Stator - SALVATION!!!!! ***

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Warchild

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Well, well, well....... that big-ass 8-page stator thread I started a couple weeks ago, all the angst and worrying... all for NOTHING! :glare:

Recall the initial issue:

I start the bike up, no additional electrical accessories engage (just the motor running with low-beams on). THe Datel starts off at 13.8v, but within about 10-15 seconds, the Datel readout starts to swing all over the place constantly..... it goes from 13.8 to 12.9 to 13.3 to 13.1 to 13.9 to 12.8 to 13.2 to 13.5 to 12.7 to 13.1 to 13.7..... it never stops wildly fluctuating, and the highest reading never climbs higher than 13.8v, even though I have not engaged any of the electrical accessories.
While I suspected some sort of stator issue at first, any number of items could explain this wild fluctuation. It could be a bad R/R, damaged wire harness, loose/corroded connectors, etc, etc

So I finally got a chance this weekend to pull all the necessary fairings off the bike for a close, thorough inspection of the entire whole system. And I found what appears to have been the problem all along.

It is NOT the stator that was the problem, per say.... it was the stator CONNECTORS! Specifically, the middle connector you see pointed to by the yellow arrow below:

badconnector.jpg


When I went to pull off these three connectors to inspect for corrosion, etc, the outside two connectors were *very* tight, and it took a fair amount of effort to pull them off. Inspection under a big magnifying glass showed that they were in excellent shape, clean and dry, not even a hint of corrosion.

However, when I reached for the middle connector, I barely toughed it and it fell right off the R/R! :( OBVIOUSLY, this connector had not been making a very good contact with it's R/R terminal! Otherwise, it was in fine shape also; clean, dry, no corrosion, etc.

So I took this opportunity to finally make use of a set of Craftsman micro-pliers I got for Christmas last year. Using the small needle-nose pliers, I re-tensioned the female connector so it would be an extremely tight fit on the R/R terminal, just as the outside two had been.

Re-installed the three terminals, and broke out my Calterm digital multimeter, and started taking readings. I am please to report the voltmeter now displays the **EXACT** behavior I always expected it to have!!!

With the engine running at 2000 RPM, low-beams only, and no other electrical accessories running here is the voltmeter reading.... ~ 14.2v, exactly where it should be under these conditions!

14_19v.jpg


Now with the bike running as above (except now I'm running at my typical underway engine speed of 5000RPM), I fire up the PHIDs, and watch the voltmeter momentarily dipped to ~ 13.3v before climbing back up to this reading within about 5-8 seconds:

13_88v.jpg


This is *exactly* the behavior I was expecting to see all along (and in fact, I did observe this same exact behavior when the stator was first installed back in April.)

To continue the testing, I then turned on the Widder electroinic controller on FULL BLAST to light up my watt-sucking Warm-n-Safe electric jacket liner (which consumes 100-watts of power). Now I have it all.... I have the PHIDs burning so I can spot the deer, and I have electric clothing to keep me warm enough to stay in control of the bike.

And here is what the voltmeter shows when running like this at 5000 RPM!

13_5v.jpg


With the PHIDs still lit off, I decide to turn down the electronic controller to 50% to see how much I can save.... and it appears to give me back a couple tenths:

13_70v.jpg


At this point, I am most definitely back to being a proponent of this new stator! B) B) B)

Obviously, until/unless the factory Regulator/Rectifier connector can be supplied, one needs to ensure the simple female spade connectors used by the ESG130 stator remain tight and in good shape. Arguments could be made for cutting off your factory harness and use the OEM connector. That's an option you could consider if you want; I decided to keep my OEM factory stator and it's wire harness intact until I am absolutely done with all my long-term testing.

If the stator output is still behaving as advertised after some hard-core use this upcoming winter (and I have no reason to believe it won't), I'm calling it good.

 
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Elecetricalosis diagnostics Step 1)Check connectors. Step 2)Check 'em agin :D

 
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Elecetricalosis diagnostics Step 1)Check connectors. Step 2)Check 'em agin :D
Obviously. Yet I wasn't going to start ripping plastic off the bike immediately before departing to Denver. Can't reach the R/R to remove it without removing panels.... oh, well....
 
Good job chasing down the problem....and manning up to correct your mistaken inference. I think everybody on this forum wants this stator to work and to your evaluations on products as thorough.

By adding the extra time and documentation to compensate for the funky Yamaha connector shows your usual attention to great detail.

Thanks much.

 
This is why I cut the factory connector off on my install. It is hard to beat Moma yama wiring connections. There tite, weather proof, and snap in place. You can always put it back on, plus makes removing the stocker a snap.. Glad it worked out for you ....Smitty :p

 
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Obviously. Yet I wasn't going to start ripping plastic off the bike immediately before departing to Denver. Can't reach the R/R to remove it without removing panels.... oh, well....
And I don't blame ya, don't get me wrong. I just meant to illustrate that all too often, when I've delved into a problem expecting major headache/cost/difficulty, it's often turned out to be a fairly minor fix, but required I think more than just replace. I don't doubt that early in my repair career I replaced many good components, but in the process fixed the real problem accidently, most certainly true with electrical. Nice to see that it still holds true now and then.

 
Obviously. Yet I wasn't going to start ripping plastic off the bike immediately before departing to Denver. Can't reach the R/R to remove it without removing panels.... oh, well....
And I don't blame ya, don't get me wrong. I just meant to illustrate that all too often, when I've delved into a problem expecting major headache/cost/difficulty, it's often turned out to be a fairly minor fix
I am quite pleased it did turn out to be something this minor, because I really need this stator to work as advertised, and it appears to be doing just that.

Still, even after all these years of electrical troubleshooting, it still never ceases to amaze me how a little corrosion, or loose connector, etc. can cause all manner of wierd symptoms to be displayed.... :unsure:

 
This is really great news for now (pending future long term eval)

will have to wait until after EOM for install but glad I have one new in the box at home to go in before this winter

:clapping:

once again thanks for being the test subject WC

Toophast

 
That is good stuff. See? Every weirdness has reasons. Even UFOs. Well, maybe not UFOs, but everything else. :alien:

Why not just solder that **** right on? (Carefully of course, you don't know what's going to sink the heat on the other side of the R/R).

Actually, ordering a replacement connector and pinning it seems most prudent.

Where are you measuring the voltage? Before or in parallel with loads?

Good luck with the extra juice!

-BD

 
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Well, well, well....... that big-ass 8-page stator thread I started a couple weeks ago, all the angst and worrying... all for NOTHING! :glare:
[SIZE=8pt]drama queen[/SIZE]

 
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