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Upgrade Regulator Rectifier Install

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76K views 68 replies 30 participants last post by  DaveM  
W
#1 · (Edited)
Greetings All Y’all,

I decided to upgrade my factory voltage regulator/ rectifier to the better cool running MOSFET type unit.

Here are my install pictures. The donor RR was from a late model Kawasaki. The mounting holes do not line up, thus one must fabricate a bracket. This is the most time consuming part of the drill. Time wise, it was about a two 42-ring cigar project. Not too difficult.

Our friend DEcosse helped me locate the used RR. He also introduced me to Jim at Eastern Beaver motorcycle stuff. Jim fabricated a factory type wiring harness with the waterproof Furakawa plugs for the new RR and the Yazaki factory plug for the Triumph end of the stator wire. In other words, every bikers dream…. just Plug-N-Play!

The upgrade also includes running the voltage supply wires directly from the RR to the bike’s battery. In other words, you bypass the voltage drop of the factory wiring harness and factory fuse box. This will give more juice to the battery.

Jim is a great guy and charged me less than $40 USD for the wiring harness delivered! Ya can’t beat that!

http://www.easternbeaver.com/

My Arai is off to Decosse and Jim. Many thanks, y’all are good-ole-boys!

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#4 ·
Nice!!! Thanks for posting!

Does this eliminate/reduce the need for the charging system upgrade?

Any idea how different this is for the pre-'05 bikes?

Cheers,
-Kit
 
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W
#5 · (Edited)
W
#9 ·
evilted said:
Nice write-up, Warden.

Is Jim going to offer the harness as a standard thing, or will he make more upon request? I have been dealing with him on my PC-8 and he's a class act!
Click to expand...
He has the components, so I'm sure he will offer it "over the counter". Now that we have the correct wiring lengths, he may install the fuse holder nearer the battery.

I cannot brag enough about the quality of Jim's work. The components and wiring are of the highest quality. His finished product is better than the original motorcycle manufacturers (I have a background in Avionics).
 
W
#10 ·
Thanks for your kind words Dave and OnD,

Please feel free to "comment and criticize" the work and/or the images. I need the feedback. You won't offend me in the least.

This project wore me out as I was working in 95 degree, 95% humidity. I'm also too old to be rolling around the concrete floor. Gotta buy a bike lift!

I'm very slow at something like this as I test fit and install then re-install the fairing and all, before I make my final decisions.

Shooting and editing the pix, along with five beers and three or four Dominican cigars, I'm sure I made an error somewhere. I know, it ain't rocket science, but we all have different levels of competence. Or is it incompetence? Ha!
:Darn
 
#11 ·
Warden, I'm impressed. I will be doing the R/R upgrade once work picks up (soon I hope).

The wiring is perfect because nothing drives me crazier than patched together electrical work.

I'll be saving this page to my favorites list so it doesn't get lost.

Bravo!
 
C
#12 ·
One concern I have with this...

The factory configuration has the R/R output dumping into the vehicle harness directly, unfused. There is a 30 Amp fuse between the harness and battery that sees charging current but not vehicle draw. The individual circuits are then fused at the main fuse block.

This approach sends charging current plus vehicle current through a 30A fuse. The bottom line is that the fuse is more likely to blow. I don't know if this will actually happen but I suggest that users of this harness carry a couple extra 30A fuses.
 
C
#14 ·
Typing on my cell phone in a bouncing SUV. Lets see how I do.

I received a pm pointing out the similarity between this harness and the pre 05 factory wiring.
I want to point out that system currents are higher with pm alternators in 05+ bikes.

Shunt regulated PM alternator systems have high RMS battery current regardless of the state of charge of the battery. This is caused by the R/R switching between shunt and rectify modes. Delivered current toggles between 0 and about 35 amps. The battery averages or filters the current to provide steady vehicle current.

Exanple
Fully charged battery
35A alternator
17.5A vehicle load

The R/R will be operating in rectify mode at 50% duty. Output current will be 35A half the time and 0 half the time. The RMS conve sion of that waveform yields about 25 Amps.

The battery sees the difference between alternator output and vehicle draw. In this case that is a square wave of 17.5Apk or 35App. The RMS current is 17.5A even though the dc average is zero.
After all the battery is fully charged right?
This ac current a;so causes heating and wears out batteries faster than on pre 05 bikes.

The pre 05 rotating field alternators play nicer and source relatively steady current.

Bottom line?
Carry spare fuses. With luck you'll never need them.
Or... Wire to the OEM harness location to stress the OOM fuse at 17.5A vs the added harness fuse at 25A. Actual currents will differ per vehicle load.

Your friend and mine,
CLB
 
J
#17 ·
I have done part of the mod on my Tiger that is wired the existing RR to the battery with a short thick bit of wire. This gave a great improvement. I used an inline 30A fuse which doesn't blow it just melts? It takes some miles but eventually the plastic part will melt and the legs will deform and it will go open circuit. Unfortunately I have only found bigger fuses (45A) in the next physical size up. SO I have to keep a stack of 30Amps and check it often and when it deforms enough change it!
 
W
#22 · (Edited)
Cam said:
. Was that an R/R from a Kawi ZX14? Thanks, Cameron.
Click to expand...
Cam,

Sorry this is late...I posted a reply, but it didn't save for some reason!?!?!

I purchased a used RR from an '04 Kaw Z10R. It is the older MOSFET model and cheaper. I'm told it works the same.

Be sure to follow this post for any RR information that you may need!

http://www.triumphrat.net/speed-tri...riple-forum/104504-charging-system-diagnostics-rectifier-regulator-upgrade.html

Let me know if you need any assistance.
 
#23 ·
That is the one I got off of an 05 10. They listed it to fit a ZX14 as well but looks like the ZX R/R is different. Seems to happen that a cheap-o OEM part fails and takes the whole bike with it on long trips. Hoping an overhaul of the bike with mods like these will keep me running a couple thousand miles into my next trip.

Thanks for the detailed instructions and links.
 
W
#24 · (Edited)
Update

Howdy,

I have put about 500 miles on my Sprinty after the R/R upgrade.

I decided to strip the bike down and check to see how everything looked.

I went ahead and relocated the 30 amp fuse holder to the left side of the new R/R.

Now, God forbid, if I should have the fuse blow, I can easily replace it without having to remove the right side fairing assembly. The fuse is now easily accessible.

I will keep an extra 30 amp fuse taped to the holder....jusss-in-case!

The wiring all looked very good. No weak spots, or apparent heat damage. Looks like a winner of an upgrade so far!

Here is an updated pix of where I moved the fuse holder.

Image


I also rewired my dash volt meter, directly to the battery, so I can monitor my exact charging voltage.

Again, I would like to thank our friend DEcosse for his assistance and guidance. DEcoose, you're a good-ole-boy!

:ScotlandFlag
 
W
#30 ·
The Facts

I. The Triumph Sprint is equipped with a low-cost SCR shunt type Regulator/Rectifier.
a. These devices are prone to excessive heat and failure.
b. My bike was one of these victims.

II. Shindengen manufactures a superior Regulator/Rectifier.
a. It is a MOSFET type.
b. It regulates more efficiently.
c. It does not produce excessive heat.
d. It is more dependable.

II. Both Regulator/Rectifiers do virtually the same job.
a. They both regulate the stator’s voltage to the bike.
b. They are designed to work in this system.

III. The only real question.
a. How does one install the superior Shindengen Regulator/Rectifier?
b. Does one duplicate the factory install and use the factory wiring?
c. Does one modify the factory install and run larger wires directly to the battery?

This is the end of the argument.

Here is our practical application. Members of this group, myself included, have decided to experiment with the install and have modified the wiring directly to the battery. We have spent our own finances and are willing to experiment with this mod to see if it actually works in the real world. If it fails, we will be caught sitting on the side of the road or walking home.

At no point have we been trying to sell this idea for any personal gain. We have been willing to share our experiment and its results.

I have about 500 miles with this mod and it is working perfectly so far. It appears to be a great success and has corrected a serious problem with the Sprint’s faulty charging system.

You should be grateful that members are willing to share this information and their experiences to help us achieve a better more reliable charging system.

I find it difficult to “bite my tongue” as you make negative comments about our results when you have no personal experiences to validate your statement.

This Rectifier/Regulator upgrade is good news to us that ride everyday.

It is a personal choice.
 
#29 ·
Excellent supporting documentation. It provides further explanation of what many members have been trying to explain for quite some time now, both as regards batteries and charger types.

Unfortunately, I have to ask if you have actually read it yourself because it does not back up your contention that the R/R Mod is "one way to cook your battery".

Most vehicles with good charging systems will measure between 13.8 and 14.8 volts on a warm day, depending on the battery type that the charging system was designed for.

Some automotive charging system designers prefer lower absorption voltages, for example 13.8 VDC, to reduce water consumption and wet Low Maintenance (Sb/Ca) starting batteries to reduce cost.

Note: Over time, this combination tends to undercharge the battery and to cause electrolyte stratification which causes the battery to gradually loose capacity due to an accumulation of lead-sulfate or premature failures.

Indeed, you should have AT LEAST 14.1V for the absorption charge of an AGM battery
http://jgdarden.com/batteryfaq/carfaq9.htm

But, as regards your contention, I cannot find any reference in your supporting documentation that says exceeding 13.5V will 'cook' a battery.

Conversely, anything lower that 13.8V will cause undercharging issues (see note).

So, unless you can reference an authority other than your "co-worker", I have to think that your original statement has no basis in fact.

BTW, the R/R in question is rated at 14.1 vdc min, 14.5 typ, and 14.9 max. It has been used for about three or four years on several model bikes without "cooking" their batteries.

Right now there is a television commercial running that shows some babies discussing on line stock market financing. One of them mentions a tip he got from a "co-worker" whereupon all of the others burst out laughing. This sort of reminds me of that. :D

Guess I'll keep thinking that unless you can point out where I misread/misstated anything.
 
#33 ·
Thanks O&D, Warden, and DEcosse - Found Lots of FH012AA

My 03 ST has the same anemic charging behavior. I just got back from the Dealer with a new battery, and was amazed when I measured how poorly the bike charges.

Thank you DEccosse, OldNDumb, and Warden for the amazing write ups and detailed instructions. :D

I just found a NC supplier that has the FH012AA's for $45 + $6 shipping. Check EBay item #250493369632 - he's got over 40 of them right now for those looking for a good supply of the regulators.
 
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