stranded by an alternator....again EDIT

[Oss]

1st time was less than 20k under warranty in Connecticut  I am around 110000 now

This time I stopped for gas in Yorktown Heights and when I started up and put on the led fog lights I noticed the voltmeter was only reading yellow then orange

$hit 20 miles from home.  I made it onto the Taconic and rode south
As I passed over the reservoir bridge the dash lights went out
I knew I had minutes left and as I got to the exit for Rt 133 she died finally with nary a whimper.

I pushed it to the gas station 1/4 mile away and asked if they had an ac outlet which they did in back by the ice machine

Lucky I had the battery charger in the saddlebag (after texting Bigwolf I put it there) and called Bonnie.  She helped me push it around back and I plugged it in then took out the 15Amp fuse for headlights

Told the manager I would be back in an hour and he started freaking out so gave him phone #..  

Hopefully the hour or so charge at 1.25 amp will be enough to get the remaining 5 miles home

Cheap jap/american honda alternator, less than 100k  out of it what is the world coming to

Could have been much worse !  We are going to look at road service for mc now  Any recommendations?  I have 2 spare alts, but no idea how to remove install.  Oh well down to zero working bikes now

[fudgie]

Alts are a pain to replace.

I take mine out along with my starter every 50k and have it gone thru by a local guy.

[Valker]

We are going to look at road service for mc now  Any recommendations?  I have 2 spare alts, but no idea how to remove install.  Oh well down to zero working bikes now

I've had RVRoadHelp since 1995 I think. They have been great. It has become part of www.allstatemotorclub.com
They will tow any vehicle I own however far it takes. The plan I have is now called "Platinum Elite".

[scooperhsd]

If you have AAA, you can get their Plus RV extension and it covers MOTORCYCLES.

I have it .

[Oss]

EDIT
Scoop and Valker Thank you very much for the heads up on the towing services I have gold AAA for the cars and I just ordered it for the bikes
Funny but they never in all these years said I could get it and
for $11 addtl for the rest of the billing cycle I now have it


MADE IT HOME  unplugged the headlight fuse 1st ! BIKE ON CHARGER now but voltmeter was reading very low but dash lights stayed on whole way home  I turned on the led when I came to intersections to keep from having someone turn in front of me  
Will deal with alternator this week and also order brushes for the old one  Ordered 2 sets of part  Number: 31101-MN5-005  Any other parts that might need replacing ? rubber seal?

[Alberta Patriot]

If you have AAA, you can get their Plus RV extension and it covers MOTORCYCLES.

I have it .

I have the RV/Motorcycle plan through AMA (affiliated with AAA)
Aug, 2017 we were heading West out of Calgary, got about 25 miles and the Dash Screen went blank. I knew something was up with the charging. About 5 miles further at the first interchange the bike started to stutter. I managed to get the bike over to the East bound lane. I called AMA and when they found out it was a motorcycle, they told me it would be 4 hours...WTF. I ended up calling my next door neighbor...he was there in about half an hour. When I got home I went back for the bike with my trailer. A fat lot of good AMA was expecting me to wait beside the Hwy for 4 hours in 80 degree heat!!!

[Skinhead]

  We are going to look at road service for mc now  Any recommendations? 

Oss,

If you are a member of the AMA with automatic renewal, you get Free Towing for MCs and any vehicle you are in even if you don't own it.

[..]

  We are going to look at road service for mc now  Any recommendations? 

Oss,

If you are a member of the AMA with automatic renewal, you get Free Towing for MCs and any vehicle you are in even if you don't own it.

+1

[JimC]

Evan,
Here is a product that DDT uses to help in a situation like yours.

You disconnect the headlight fuse, and hook the Rugged Geek up to the battery, and it should get you quite a few miles before the power is deleted. (I'm guessing 25 to 50) Plus, it is an air compressor. I bought one and I am really impressed, I jump started my sons diesel bobcat in 15 degree weather with it.

Fits nicely in a saddlebag.

https://www.amazon.com/RG1000-Starter-INTELLIBOOST-Flashlight-COMPRESSOR/dp/B07HRYR7MF/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=rugged+geek&qid=1552783273&s=gateway&sr=8-3

Jim

[gordonv]

I've got my Road Side Assistance through my GWRRA membership. Membership, Roadside Plus for the whole family. $80 (?) USD per year. I've used it for my car once, and mc once

My CAA was $130 for one person, and an additional $40 for the mc. So I cancelled it.

[old2soon]

  We are going to look at road service for mc now  Any recommendations? 

Oss,

If you are a member of the AMA with automatic renewal, you get Free Towing for MCs and any vehicle you are in even if you don't own it.

          +2? I guess. Haven't used the towing-yet!  RIDE SAFE.

[Pappy!]

  We are going to look at road service for mc now  Any recommendations? 

Oss,

If you are a member of the AMA with automatic renewal, you get Free Towing for MCs and any vehicle you are in even if you don't own it.

+1

Ditto !!

[bentwrench]

I been with AMA motow for 20 years now.I've only needed it twice,but the service was excellent .
If you sign up for automatic membership renewal the motow is included at no extra charge.
http://www.americanmotorcyclist.com/For-Members/AMA-Roadside-Assistance

[vanavyman]

Hi OSS,
  Glad to hear you were able to get home without too many issues.  Could have been much worse.  This is one topic that has concerned me for a couple years.  I'm mechanically challenged but have started carrying an extra Alternator after watching Stan put the new Alternator in your Red / Silver Interstate at one of the Kentucky rides.  I think I'm just going to go have mine changed and then I wont't have to worry about it for a while.  Currently we only have GWRRA membership towing for our motorcycles.  Saved us once in the mountains around Charlottesville , VA.  Took about 90 minutes to get a flatbed to tow my 99 Interstate and Bushtec trailer to the Honda Dealer in Waynesboro.  Worked out well.  Some good info on other choices.  We may look at some of them too.  Mine now is limited to 50 miles.
Dan

[DGS65]

Sorry to hear you had issues but thank you for this post I will be looking into upgrading my AAA as well.

[Oss]

My friend Steve came up from the Bronx and we started to tackle the alternator

A quick call to Troutdude revealed that we did not HAVE to take off that pesky center cover and after some real Bronx words the old one came out

The problem was easy to see as the wire leading to the capacitor had broken.  I had a spare Hitachi and also a larger (perhaps the higher capacity model) one but we used the one that was the same size as before.  Replaced the rubbers and O ring.

Once more choice words were uttered the freshly soldered and taped  alternator was on and reading 14.6 volts. Replaced the 15 amp fuse and then we took a ride hither and yon stopping at the Dam as Steve had never seen the wonder of the world.  Let him ride the police bike which started up since I had charged that battery earlier in the week.  Then back home and now I can start my chores at mom's house 8 hrs late.

Thank you Troutdude and also Stan who called me back from the road after we finished

Both side cover pieces were damaged so I got some abs 2 piece glue and using a few staplegun staples the covers are now on and snug

All in all a great day to be a Valk owner   Steve brought the old alternator home after I put it in a box with new brushes and oil seal
He likes to play with that stuff. Lucky for me.

[Bigwolf]

Good that you have it running again!   

[DGS65]

Glad to hear you got it running! 
Hopefully we can go for a ride soon. 
I spent about a hour cleaning my bike this afternoon. I'm not happy with the wheels I can't seem to get them looking clean I don't want to have to remove the to polish them!

[the bull]

Glad to hear that everything worked out Oss.

[fudgie]

How do you do it with the center cover on? I always had to loosen it and move it out of the way a lot.

[The emperor has no clothes]

How do you do it with the center cover on? I always had to loosen it and move it out of the way a lot.

I’ve done it loosen and in place. Didn’t seem to be much difference to me.

[3fan4life]

This thread has gotten me to thinking..........

I have seen aftermarket alternators to fit our Phat Gurls for some very reasonable prices.

Does anyone have experience with and maybe a recommendation for a good place to get one?

The Valk that I'm planning on taking out west has about 60k on the clock so I'm tempted to replace it before I leave out as a preventive measure.

[The emperor has no clothes]

This thread has gotten me to thinking..........

I have seen aftermarket alternators to fit our Phat Gurls for some very reasonable prices.

Does anyone have experience with and maybe a recommendation for a good place to get one?

The Valk that I'm planning on taking out west has about 60k on the clock so I'm tempted to replace it before I leave out as a preventive measure.

I have experience with one. Do yourself a favor and pass. It was the one that the bearing failed on me going to Roanoke. I did get 50k out of it before I had it rebuilt in Amarillo. I recently bought a GoldWing alternator as a backup. They are not that much more. With 60k you are probably safe to just remove it, clean it up, and put in new brushes. (I will have a spare with me on long trips from now on)

[Oss]

This is the link to my friend Ratdog's alternator removal/repair
post
http://www.valkyrieriders.com/shoptalk/alternator/alternatorservice.htm

If I was handy I would say remove and check the brushes every 50000 or so miles   Also the total for the brushes/rubber/ o ring and oil seal is under 20 bucks so better safe than sorry

  As it is, I carry a spare and a small battery charger

I like the idea of that little gizmo to give yourself another 50 miles of riding (without a headlight of course)

We did loosen the center cover but did not remove it as that was the point when i called Troutdude.

[Smokinjoe-VRCCDS#0005]

This thread has gotten me to thinking..........

I have seen aftermarket alternators to fit our Phat Gurls for some very reasonable prices.

Does anyone have experience with and maybe a recommendation for a good place to get one?

The Valk that I'm planning on taking out west has about 60k on the clock so I'm tempted to replace it before I leave out as a preventive measure.

I wouldn't go cheap on this. Get a 1997 Goldwing alternator its much more affordable than buying one for a Valkyrie and its the same you just have to " clock " the bolt pattern to match.

[Bighead]

This thread has gotten me to thinking..........

I have seen aftermarket alternators to fit our Phat Gurls for some very reasonable prices.

Does anyone have experience with and maybe a recommendation for a good place to get one?

The Valk that I'm planning on taking out west has about 60k on the clock so I'm tempted to replace it before I leave out as a preventive measure.

I wouldn't go cheap on this. Get a 1997 Goldwing alternator its much more affordable than buying one for a Valkyrie and its the same you just have to " clock " the bolt pattern to match.

+1 this is what I did.

[JimC]

Great write up, thanks Evan
\
Jim

[MarkT]

Have a Escort Passport I have set to readout voltage.  On the return trip from Roanoke the volts steadily dropped down to 11.  Worried about making it back but I had put in a switch some time back to shut off the headlight and spots when needing to conserve power so that saved the battery enough to get me home. Plus all the other lights on the bike have been changed to LED's.  Next small rides the charge was up to normal 14.3v indicating the failure may have been heat related.  Anyway got one of those budget new alternators from Amazon for $132 which seems to be working OK yet the Escort indicates 14.0v not 14.3.  I'll run this one for now but I've ordered new brushes for the OEM one and will install them and bring it for longer trips.  The mileage of Jade just crossed 50k.  Changing the alternator I leave the center cover in but I've found turning the housing after backing it off the locator pins, inward a bit then tipping the back down provides just enough clearance to get it out. I disconnect the wire after moving it out a little.  Of course installing is same thing, order reversed.  Mines a little tougher than yours because of the big fuel solenoid in the way.