well 5th altenator in a year.gone UPDATE

[3W-lonerider]

i'm beginning to trust this bike about as far as i could throw it..this altenator problem is becoming a real joke..thinking about selling it and moving on.

[Novavalker]

Whats repeatedly failing on the alternators? Is is a broken wire on the core rotor?

[Smokinjoe-VRCCDS#0005]

Just curious are you buying new / used / re-man ? Did they all come from the same place ?( MARS ? )  Have you bought one new from a dealer thats made for the Valkyrie and not the Wing where you have to turn the housing ?

[3W-lonerider]

1st. altenator original. broken winding
2nd altenator a ken hemming H.O. first time it quit it was the armiture fried, second  time it quit it was the voltage regulator, third time it quit was the broken wire in the stator.
3rd altenator lasted about a month. 300 miles. then the windings broke.
4th altenator which went today i think it's the voltage regulator, it would keep the battery at 12volt with the headlight fuse pulled.
i know some of you might say..well thats only 4. ..but keep in mind i had 1 fail 3 times.

[3W-lonerider]

Just curious are you buying new / used / re-man ? Did they all come from the same place ?( MARS ? )  Have you bought one new from a dealer thats made for the Valkyrie and not the Wing where you have to turn the housing ?

one from MARS. and 2 goldwing altenators. the one i'm going to install later today is one from the japan hitachi plant and not from china.

[Smokinjoe-VRCCDS#0005]

Just curious are you buying new / used / re-man ? Did they all come from the same place ?( MARS ? )  Have you bought one new from a dealer thats made for the Valkyrie and not the Wing where you have to turn the housing ?

one from MARS. and 2 goldwing altenators. the one i'm going to install later today is one from the japan hitachi plant and not from china.

Hope it does the trick sure would hate to hear you selling the trike.

[big d]

rick, sorry to hear about the continued bad luck. will keep my fingers crossed on this one lasting. both deb and i are pulling for ya.

[Lyn-Del]

This is what is keeping me nervous about mine, though we just installed a used alternator from a running bike.  We have a new spare as well, but Wizard had more faith in the "experienced" one.

[Thunderbolt]

I think I would check the 30A main fuse harness and the ground wire at the frame.  Your battery might be flakey enough that the load is changing to the alternator and causing damage.  As many times as you have changed the alternator, I would put a new battery in this time around.  Check the connections at the 55A charge fuse too.

[BigAl]

Old GM cars had two grounds, one on the battery ground side to the frame and one to the frame. One small one and one large.

DOn't know why, but since this is a automotive style alternator, the ground is worth looking at.

It's hard on any alternator to charge a battery from cold to hot.

I think I am plus one on another battery, to take the load off the charging system.

Sounds like you are gonna hang in there at this point.

Al

[Karen]

Sorry to hear this, Rick, you're my trike hero idol. I agree with the ground (but I don't know much). No spare parts here.

[Bobbo]

What electrical accessories are you running most of the time?  I suggest you measure your total amperage the alternator is putting out while riding.  if it's 40 amps or more, you could be overheating the alternator and causing premature failures.

[3W-lonerider]

i'm not running any more assesories than a normal interstate..and the battery is brand new..installed it before the last altenator failure 2 months ago.also installed a new 55 amp fuse as well have already pulled the plug off the starter solenoid..no corrosion at all to be seen..i'm going to install a ground wire from the engine mounted ground to the altenator plus the frame. i know aluminum isn't the best for ground.. so we'll see what happens..done told the wife..one more altenator and there will be a brand new victory trike sitting in the shed in place of the valk..i'm sick of it.

[Warlock]

i'm not running any more assesories than a normal interstate..and the battery is brand new..installed it before the last altenator failure 2 months ago.also installed a new 55 amp fuse as well have already pulled the plug off the starter solenoid..no corrosion at all to be seen..i'm going to install a ground wire from the engine mounted ground to the altenator plus the frame. i know aluminum isn't the best for ground.. so we'll see what happens..done told the wife..one more altenator and there will be a brand new victory trike sitting in the shed in place of the valk..i'm sick of it.

Well when you get ready to get ready for that no good Valkyrie trike let me know .
David

[dalai-lama]

Sorry to hear this, Rick, you're my trike hero idol. I agree with the ground (but I don't know much). No spare parts here.

You have your trike hero and I have mine and you are it    Although, Rick did make quite an impression on a sport bike rider a few years ago in App Gap in VT.

the dalai

[Jabba]

With that many failures... it ALMOST has to be a symptom of something else.  You keep fixing the symptom, but have not fixed the PROBLEM.   Not trying to bash you bro... these bikes are simply too reliable for what you have been seeing to be coincidence.  There HAS to be another root cause of the alternator getting fried.



Jabba

[MP]

With that many failures... it ALMOST has to be a symptom of something else.  You keep fixing the symptom, but have not fixed the PROBLEM.   Not trying to bash you bro... these bikes are simply too reliable for what you have been seeing to be coincidence.  There HAS to be another root cause of the alternator getting fried.



Jabba

+1.  Totally agree.

One time, OK.  Twice in a row, maybe.  Three or more?  You are looking at a symptom, not the cause.  SOMETHING is causing the alternator to fail.  Failure rate on alternators is way too low for 5 failure to be a coincidence.   Until you find the CAUSE, you will continue to lose alternators.

MP

[Bobbo]

i'm not running any more assesories than a normal interstate..and the battery is brand new..installed it before the last altenator failure 2 months ago.also installed a new 55 amp fuse as well have already pulled the plug off the starter solenoid..no corrosion at all to be seen..i'm going to install a ground wire from the engine mounted ground to the altenator plus the frame. i know aluminum isn't the best for ground.. so we'll see what happens..done told the wife..one more altenator and there will be a brand new victory trike sitting in the shed in place of the valk..i'm sick of it.

The ground wires sound like a good place to look.  Aluminum conducts electricity much better than steel, so don't worry about that, just make sure the connections are clean and tight.  Let us know what you find.

[Fudd]

Speaking of conducting electricity.  With the kind of luck you've had, I would not go outside during thunderstorms.

Seriously, I have read over this thread twice and I am amazed and dumbfounded (no biggie, happens all the time).

I'm like you, after one more try, if it fails again, I'd shoot it and drag it out back.

Good luck

[BigAl]

Electrical Problems are the worst kind.

Joe has a Buick, he has spent 800 bucks on and still has trouble with the darn thing.

Now I am hearing the new can am spyders are having some sort of electrical thingamajig giving trouble.

You will conquer the problem I am sure of it.

AL

[3W-lonerider]

ok..took the altenator to the shop that does all of our altenators and starters at work..we tore it apart, could not find any broken windings..so we're convinced the voltage regulator gave up..his opinion is that something is creating a voltage spike and knocking my altenators out... now the altenators that has went out on me that experienced broken windings are a different matter..thats just shoody workmanship. mainly china junk. with the exception of the MARS one..which i called him and told him it was'nt right from the very beginning..but thats another story that i'm not going to go into.the altenator thats at the shop the windings on the altenator especially the rotor looks like it was done by a 3 year old..by hand..so we're going to have it totally rewound with a new voltage regulator installed. i'm going to run the ground wires i spoke of earlier..also going to run a diode between ground and the feed input for the altenator to take care of any voltage spikes. guess we'll see what happens..
thank you all for your suggestions and support..sometimes 2 heads are better than 1..especially when the first one is stumped or over looking something.

[RoadKill]

ever checked for n overcharge of over 14.2 volts ? if regulator is not receiving good voltage input it will not shut down an constantly over charge/over work. any battery longevity issues?

[3W-lonerider]

ever checked for n overcharge of over 14.2 volts ? if regulator is not receiving good voltage input it will not shut down an constantly over charge/over work. any battery longevity issues?

i look at my voltage guage constantly..thets how i can catch it early enough to pull the headlight fuse and make it home when i'm 50 miles from home..as far as an overcharge. i've never seen my guage at anything over 14.1.

[Bobbo]

A blown regulator is often caused by voltage spikes due to an intermittent ground.  I think you are on the right track checking them out.  A diode in series will not absorb a voltage spike.  You will need a high power transorb or TVS.  This is a fast response zener diode that is connected between the power wire and ground.  It helps to have a ceramic capacitor across it, too.  You shouldn't need either if you have a good ground connection.

[Stanley Steamer]

My rebuilt alternator from MARS has made a whirring noise from the first moment we crunk the bike up after replacing it....Here was what I was told.....

"Sometimes the air diverter inside bends a little, it is very close tolerance and it makes contact with the cooling fan blades, it will wear down. No serious problem."

There are a few Old Boys here with "Loose Wires"!!......

[3W-lonerider]

My rebuilt alternator from MARS has made a whirring noise from the first moment we crunk the bike up after replacing it....Here was what I was told.....

"Sometimes the air diverter inside bends a little, it is very close tolerance and it makes contact with the cooling fan blades, it will wear down. No serious problem."

There are a few Old Boys here with "Loose Wires"!!......

well stanley..the altenator i got from MARS the dip coating was so thick i could'nt turn it by hand..kept binding up, i was told to run it, it would wear down..it wore down alright. damaged everything in the altenator..not going to say his responce when i called him and told him what happened because of running it..

[Novavalker]

Could the problem be associated with the hidden splice block connector located in the main wiring harness?

[3W-lonerider]

Could the problem be associated with the hidden splice block connector located in the main wiring harness?

i'd have to look at the scimatics.to see if the feed wire for this altenator goes threw that plug..deffinatly worth a look.

[Rams]

I don't pretend to be a mechanic, I do turn wrenches on my other passion but not much on my Valk.  Regardless, I'm learning and this is a great thread to learn from.  Sorry about the alternator issues but, I agree with the people above, there's something else going on.  I'll be following this thread to learn what you finally determine was the issue. 

Sometimes, you can't see the forest for all the trees.   

[Jess Tolbirt]

A diode between the hot and ground? I don't think i would do that because if you get a big enough spike you will have a direct short to ground from the hot,,,,that's a recipe for another alternator...
Run a new ground wire, #10 from the alt. case to the neg. on the battery and another one from the neg to another ground on the frame..,,,,
not from the alt to the frame then to the batt,,as that will give you another place for trouble...

[Bobbo]

A diode between the hot and ground? I don't think i would do that because if you get a big enough spike you will have a direct short to ground from the hot,,,,that's a recipe for another alternator...
Run a new ground wire, #10 from the alt. case to the neg. on the battery and another one from the neg to another ground on the frame..,,,,
not from the alt to the frame then to the batt,,as that will give you another place for trouble...

That's the idea behind a TVS.  It is used universally for this condition.  A zener diode conducts current only when the zener voltage is exceeded.  If you have an 18 volt zener, any spike above 18 volts is clamped to ground.  It essentially keeps the "hot" wire from exceeding 18 volts.  Less than 18 volts, and the zener doesn't conduct.  The ceramic capacitor is there to absorb high frequency spikes, since it takes a few nanoseconds for the zener to conduct.

There shouldn't be a need to run new ground wires, unless the originals are corroded or broken.

Maybe this should be moved to the tech section!

[Rocketman]

I blew up a bunch of alternators in a row, until I finally removed the offending audio amplifier.  You've said you have no extra accessories, but I agree that there's something else on the bike that is causing the problem, possibly a wiring problem.  Replacing the symptom isn't going to help.

[3W-lonerider]

ok gents..ran new ground wires tonight made sure the ground on the engine was clean and it was as clean as a whistle. monday evening when i installed this new altenator it would charge 14.0 at anything above 1 grand RPM..and only charge 12.9 at idle..tonight it was charging 14.2 at anything above 1 grand and 13.8 at idle..which is exactly where my last altenator was at..so we'll see what happens and i'll keep everyone updated..last altenator lasted 3000 miles so it may be awhile before a major update but i will continue this thread..instead of starting a new one..

[Fudd]

I'll keep my fingers crossed for you.

[MacDragon]

Good luck lonerider...

[Smokinjoe-VRCCDS#0005]

Hope this one works out for you Rick 

[fudgie]

Slap it with a big ol steak for good luck.

Always liked yous and Goodys trike. Watching you lay rubber at the hotel in G-burg a few years ago was impressive. 

[3W-lonerider]

ok gents..went out tonight and checked the trike out..took notice tonight. ( noticed it before but did'nt pay it no mind..just thought it was the way the voltmeter was supposed to react ). but here it is..i'm hoping i found the problem, as soon as i would turn my key on my volt meter would spike 17.5 volt. but only for a second then settle to 12.5. tonight for some reason it seems alittle odd mainly because others were refering to a voltage spike..no time while the bike was running was i ever getting anything over 14.2. so i started deleting circuts till i got rid of the spike. turns out..about a year ago i installed a ground loop isolator and an inline mini booster to boost the output from my XM to the aux port on the radio..( thank you FCC for making the satelite people depower the new radios so their worthless unless you puchase aftermarket products to put them back to where they used to be ) the power wire going into that mini booster rubbed threw onto a power wire going into a relay keeping the mini booster powered up all the time..when i would turn the key on the mini booster would throw a spike threw out the system. repaired the problem..now when i turn the key on the volt meter does not go above battery voltage..i'm crossing my fingers that, that was it. at least i had a good ending to an otherwise " day from hell "

[Oss]

How many times is it something we did to the bike that messes us up.

Crossin fingers here that you nailed the problem down   From what you posted it looks good.

Now are ya gonna call the Mars folks and tell em what really fried those alternators??

I wont tell if you dont

[Jess Tolbirt]

well the mars guy probably knows that his alternators were ok but being the nice person he is he wont care,,,all he wants is your bike fixed,,,,i hope this is your problem and its all fixed now,,,