Electrical problem? 96 Trident

[TimT]

Here is a problem I haven't yet been able to find in any of the many threads I have looked at so far. Wonder if anyone can help. I have a 96 trident. Bike starts and idles ok, but as you slowly increase the revs the lights start to flicker and the engine starts to surge slightly. Have tried replacing the regulator, made no difference. Voltmeter on battery reads ok. Mechanic thinks it might be a bad electrical connection but reckons it could be very difficult to find, he hasn't had a go at it yet as he is booked out for the next couple of weeks. Has anyone got any clues?
Thanks in advance.

[alfacliff]

on the yamaha xs650's, it is a sign that the brushes in the alternator are going bad. the brushes to the rotor.
cliff

[sailfish]

How many miles on the bike?

Off the cuff it sounds like alternator output. The only alternator problems that I've heard of is the brushes wear out. You might give your battery a full charge with an external charger and see if the symptoms disappear for a few minutes until the voltage is depleted which would indicate charging system.

Also, read this weak charging system post.

http://www.triumphrat.net/modificati...-solution.html

[KitNYC]

The main ground is on the frame cross member directly behind the battery. Can't hurt to clean that connection.

Cheers,
-Kit

[TimT]

Thanks alfacliff & sailfish,
alfacliff - Have checked the brushes and slip rings, seem ok to the eye, might have another look.
sailfish - 128,000 K's. I will definately give your suggestion a go.

[TimT]

Update,
I have checked the brushes and slip rings, look ok, brush length more than min spec. I gave the area a good clean and gave the slip rings a light sand with some fine sand paper. Also cleaned ground cable as suggested. Went over as much of the wiring as I could get at easily with engine running, wiggling and jiggling etc. Also removed bottom of ignition switch, cleaned contacts and replaced. Had to drill 4 mm screws and remove with screw extractor. Sailfish, I haven't done the battery charge thing yet as I rechecked amount of charge with meter, reading up to 15 volts. Battery is near new. Here is something else that may interest anyone reading, I didn't mention it earlier as my mechanic doesn't think the regulator is at fault as volt reading would be up around 17-18 volts. When I first noticed this problem I immediately thought, regulator, so I removed it and tested resistance with multimeter according to instructions in genuine Triumph manual. I got no readings at all, which would indicate that it is completely stuffed. Even though I am far from an expert in electrical matters (or anything else for that matter) I though these readings were suss. So, before rushing out and buying a new regulator ($225.00), I took it, and my manual, to two different auto electricians, they both tested it, and one did an extra test using a variable DC power source. They both said it was stuffed. Still suss I got Triumph dealer to test, you guessed it, stuffed! So I ordered one. 6 weeks later put new regulator in, problem still same, no wonder I was suss. After fitting new reg I ran engine for only about a minute, long enough to see fault still there, stopped engine, removed reg and tested it with meter, guess what, stuffed!! There is several things that could be going on here. 1. Genuine Triumph manual wrong (not unheard of) and regulator is not the problem 2. New regulator arrived stuffed (what's the chances of that) 3. When I fitted new reg to alternator and started it some other fault in system stuffed it immediately ( I thought of testing it before fitting it but I thought nah, wish I did) 4. I dreamt all this and none of it really happened.
Anyhoo, sorry for being so long winded, hope your eyes aren't sore.
Next plan, mechanic in a couple of weeks.
Thanks,
Tim
P.S. I will try not to use the word " stuffed " in any following posts, I'm sick of it too.

[MotT3]

Electrics...! smoke & mirrors..black magic..scary stuff I tell ya..

Good luck with your eliminations though & and non use of the "S" word..;-)

Mot

[TimT]

You're not wrong Mot, it's still st, whoops, broken.
Tim