125Viking Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 Hey, So i've had to replace the battery in the Dragstar as the other one was swollen, smelling of sulphur and flat. (figured none of these - or exploding for that matter- are good.) I've been left batteryless for 5-6 days and today as I fitted the new battery I accidently touch the allan key onto the negative terminal while tightening the + Stupid I know... From what I've gather sparks doesnt mean its dead, allan key was hot though! Anyway, fitted it and went to start, turned over but no catch. Even tried bumping it and it wouldnt fire up. It had some drive but VERY little, like it wanted to fire but wouldnt. Basically I could hold it going very slowly in first but the engine would stop as soon as I stopped. Like it was never really...on. Wondered if I'd yanked some charge outa the "no initial charge needed" battery so hooked charger up which said it needs charging. Is it a simple case of charge battery and go? Do I need to switch fuel reserve to prime? (seen that option floating around here) Looking not to have to spend money or strip things as I know so little to do with bike mechanics right now >< Was always a first time starter before the battery went. cheers, Luke. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
125Viking Posted August 30, 2011 Author Share Posted August 30, 2011 Sparks are also dry. look pretty clean too. Not entirely sure what I'll looking for though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
125Viking Posted August 30, 2011 Author Share Posted August 30, 2011 Update: Got the thing started using prime on the fuel cock. Sounded weak though. took a good few tries before it would idle. throttle is reallly sluggish and it misfired a couple of times under revs while idling. checked lights under revs and they dont dim so dont think its reg/rec. Any ideas? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ttaskmaster Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 Sounds like an electrical issue. I expect your reg/rec has gone, hence the swollen battery in the first place. Usually the selling is caused by overcharging, which teh reg/rec is supposed to prevent. First check for bad/loose connections, especially in the earthing. Then look at reg/rec itself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
125Viking Posted August 30, 2011 Author Share Posted August 30, 2011 What am I looking for? If Im honest I have no clue where to look for connection issues, dunno where the earthing is. and I know what the reg/rec looks like but dunno where it is on the bike. How can I tell if the connections on something is bad? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulwhite Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 yeah defo sounds like the reg/rect has gone! would cause an unstable power flow in the bike which possibly could cause a misfire. and was defo the reason why ur last battery went. its located behind the battery ......i think.... its either in the battery box or in the bit between the battery box and engine, either way i know its connected to the frame with a bolt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
125Viking Posted August 30, 2011 Author Share Posted August 30, 2011 Found it, in a nice inaccessible place... just been to start it up again/find the reg/rec. Started perfectly fine this time. throttle still sluggish to begin with, tested lights under revs and they actually got brighter visibly under revs. I dont have a volt meter and would rather not have to fork out for a reg/rec given they cost quite a bit, hence testing that and reporting back here. Defo some connection problem though as the throttle this time was stuttering and bogging down when revs applied this time, as if a loss of power. Checked tightness of battery connections. tight as I can get them. could be they are dirty? or you guys pretty much 100% its the reg/rec despite the brightness test (only thing Ive got to go on Im afraid) Was a slight noise coming from the area under the oil filler cap (not the filter under the yamaha sign, but the bigger circular part on the left of that) Have checked the oil a few days back and it was defo in the middle of the two points. will check again later. Cant remember which noises are normal from the engine anymore Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ttaskmaster Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 tested lights under revs and they actually got brighter visibly under revs. I dont have a volt meter Many bikes do this. Get a multimeter though (a tenner from Maplins). You will need this to check connections. Loose/faulty wiring is usually loose (obviously) or corroded. Sometimes the wires themselves will be damaged. Earthed wires are usually black and attach to the frame. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
125Viking Posted August 30, 2011 Author Share Posted August 30, 2011 So got me a multimeter. turns out just £6 from Maplin Anyway, readings were fine initially. 12.7V standing, similar while idling, only dipped to 11ish with ignition. Reving gave 13-14V Then it stopped being normal, the idling revs increase, started reading 17's with revs and turning the lights on made it lose power returned to sluggish throttle Im guessing this can be nothing other than reg/rec? which means £60 I dont have plus 4-7 days waiting on it. Anyone find me a better deal i'd be most happy. Gonna look myself as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KirriePete Posted August 31, 2011 Share Posted August 31, 2011 Aye, if you're getting 17v the the rectumfrier is most likely borked - here's one on Evilbay for a bit less than £60 - Clicky link. Get it replaced and see what the bike's like afterwards - could be that's all you need to do to get it going sweetly.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
125Viking Posted August 31, 2011 Author Share Posted August 31, 2011 Doesnt have my Bike as one of those it is for. Does that matter? It seems to be my luck these last two weeks that every part for my bike costs double that of ones for the 650's and 1100's This is the 5 I get on eBay, the one you show is there, but its for a 125 YFM rather than Dragstar. there is a chart further down on its page and 125 Dragstar isnt shown. it is also a different shape http://www.ebay.co.u...6.c0.m270.l1313 The only one of a similar price is a used one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neversaydie Posted August 31, 2011 Share Posted August 31, 2011 www.electrexworld.co.uk for electrical fault finding info, follow the links Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ttaskmaster Posted August 31, 2011 Share Posted August 31, 2011 I tried Electrexworld when my own reg/rec went and they sent me something that was NOTHING like what I asked for. Very nice people and great service, but not very good product/knowledge. I'd suggest Wemoto instead. They even put me through to their engineer to make damn sure I got the right part!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
125Viking Posted August 31, 2011 Author Share Posted August 31, 2011 They do seem to have a good test which I will try on the reg/rec, if I can manage to get to the reg/rec and disconnect like it says. The reg/rec they supply is however more expensive and looks to come with fixed wires, I believe mine has a terminal which can be taken off. Wemoto either don't stock the reg/rec for my bike or its on of the ones listed as a parts number which I've no idea how to wade through to find the correct one. Looks like ebay is actually my best bet. though I think I'll stick with a new part rather than the used one. Also just wanted to thank you guys for your help and advice with this. Its really been my main port of call for help on this problem so cheers for getting me to an actual conclusion rather than helpless and with a dead bike lol Any further help is welcome too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
125Viking Posted August 31, 2011 Author Share Posted August 31, 2011 Ok, a little stumped again >< been following this http://www.electrexworld.co.uk/pdfs/Troubleshooting-3P-PMG-&-RR.pdf The current on the battery seems fine. stands at 12.7 - 13.4V with engine off around 13.6V to 14.4V engine on and idle. no real difference in revving it now. Took the terminal off the Reg/rec and tested the pins in the reg/rec itself follow step 4 of this guide. got readings of around 550's on all of them. According to the guide that means it isnt a reg/rec problem (I would be relieved, given the cost and also the state of the bolts holding it in place...) This guide has further steps to find the problem which Im really not sure I have the ability to do. I wouldnt know where the generator is for one thing. The symptoms today seemed to be intermitent, It idled fine again, throttle was sluggish but picked up after running a while. I noticed that while revving it the neutral light would occasionally get brighter and this usually led to a stutter when revving from idle. An almost stall, and occasionally actually stalling. Turning the full beams on led to no power in the throttle at all. barely moved the revs. Tried to pull away with lights off and it wouldn't have it, just not power in the throttle once in first. Is this guide feeding me crap and this is still defo reg/rec? or is this a bad connection somewhere else. either way I think Im going to need someone to have a look at this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulwhite Posted August 31, 2011 Share Posted August 31, 2011 a reg/rect is a set of diodes that controlls the voltage comming from the stator, esentially they are all the same! the reg/rect has 5 wiers (3 of one colour and 2 diferant colours) so by rights you could fit one from another bike, you would need to chop the conector on the xvs (taking a note of what wires go where and re-wire the new connector too it. iv done it to my bike which has a honda cbr 125 engine but uses the xvs dragstar reg/rect! id recomend getting hold of the right part and only start chopping things as a last resort! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulwhite Posted August 31, 2011 Share Posted August 31, 2011 ok the generator is under the left hand engine casing, all the connectors for the bike are in the headlamp so take that off , and check every plug (undoo it then look for any green powder, clean and put back together) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KirriePete Posted August 31, 2011 Share Posted August 31, 2011 As Paul says, sounds like a bad connection somewhere - prime candidate is the main earth strap from the battery to the frame/engine, make sure the connections are clean, shiny and tight - a wee dob of Vaseline will help protect them from any future corrosion (that's the ONLY reason I have a jar of Vaseline in the shed - honest!). Then check every other electrical connector on the bike - should keep you from getting bored for a while...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
125Viking Posted September 1, 2011 Author Share Posted September 1, 2011 Had a mate round to have a look, another coming round saturday who had a thought: Valves! The slight noise I mentioned goes with the engine tick over while idling. There is a lack of compression (cant pull off, sluggish throttle, no throttle power with lights on) Strong smell of petrol and choke floods the engine and it can be started from cold without the choke on meaning its running rich. From what we can gather this all seems symptoms of the valves being out of whack. Check plugs again today, may need replacing, were black/brown and one was wet. Hopefully this check on the valves on saturday will provide some results! will keep you guys posted Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
125Viking Posted September 4, 2011 Author Share Posted September 4, 2011 Fixed! took a while of exploring and stripping the bike, pure hope that the petrol wouldnt come out the tank (who would have thought the "on" position is also "off"...) some rather fiddley business around the valve caps because of the tree of metal holding on all the plastic parts but we got there! Smell of petrol is light, throttle is responds bang on and no ticking! spark plugs will need replacing but it works as it should now, starts from cold with any throttle really or choke Only concern is it idles quite high and my idle screw knob is missing wire seems a little seized as well. but high idle should be a concern right? Thanks again for all your advice and help guys! couldnt have got through to the problem without other heads to bounce off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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