Hughs PMA Regulator Overheating?

[Punkskalar]

Green wire from regulator to ground and negative battery to ground, that sounds right.

I didn't get a chance to check the stator hot yet but I'm pretty convinced that it is the problem. I'll try to check it tonight though.

Hugh, do you have new stators in stock? How much do they run?

I do have New 200 Watt Stators in stock, they are $119 shipped in the US.

I wish I could be of more help in trouble shooting this for ya, but that contact on the rotor should not be happening... Double check the outside of the rotor for any dents/dings from previous installs or removal. You may have some broken up magnets inside the rotor if that is the case.

 

[Robhall]

No damage at all on the rotor. And the magnets inside seem to be fine, at least testing with a wrench. What contact on the rotor do you mean? The back wall, or the inner area with the magnets? IIRC the rubbing on the back wall was there when I bought it.

 

[Robhall]

On a closer look, I found 3 small dents on the thin inner part of the rotor over the magnets. All the magnets seem to work fine, at least they will all hold a wrench the same. And I'm assuming they were there the whole time, as nothing seems to be missing inside and don't see how anything could get in there with the covers on.
More pics:

This is the worst one, look right under the hole.

This one is a little harder to see, it's also a little bit under the hole

 

[Robhall]

Well I just tried isolating the regulator by running the ignition off a battery and checking voltage directly out of the regulator without it hooked to anything as mentioned above. Idling I got around 12.7 or so, but with nearly any acceleration from idle whatsoever it just drops to around 1.2-1.8. The stator did test good on all circuits hot and cold and I can't find any damage on it either. My rotor has a touch of damage, but that may have been there when I put it on. Besides, all the magnets seem to have good pull...

 

[trainwreck13]

Those are the exact readings that I am getting. Are you running a one of hughs 200 watt stators also?

I do have New 200 Watt Stators in stock, they are $119 shipped in the US.

I wish I could be of more help in trouble shooting this for ya, but that contact on the rotor should not be happening... Double check the outside of the rotor for any dents/dings from previous installs or removal. You may have some broken up magnets inside the rotor if that is the case.

So $119 to replace a brand new stator that is failing with the same kind. What's to say the new one won't fail just like the one I have now? At this point I feel like it would be cheaper and less of a headache to just go back to the original charging system.

 

[Robhall]

No, I got the stator from a small bike junkyard here in Daytona. No idea what it's from, he had a back room full of random stators and I dug around for a few hours until I found one that fit.

 

[Robhall]

Those are the exact readings that I am getting. Are you running a one of hughs 200 watt stators also?



So $119 to replace a brand new stator that is failing with the same kind. What's to say the new one won't fail just like the one I have now? At this point I feel like it would be cheaper and less of a headache to just go back to the original charging system.

So when you did the swap did you use all new parts from Hugh?

 

[trainwreck13]

Yeah I bought the complete kit from hugh and an Accel battery eliminator so I'm dealing with all new components and wiring.

 

[Robhall]

Yeah I bought the complete kit from hugh and an Accel battery eliminator so I'm dealing with all new components and wiring.

Well this is interesting. Same problem even though you have all new parts and mine are used... I seem to remember testing stator output on an old SV1000 a few years back by unplugging the whole stator harness and testing voltage idling and under throttle between all three poles. think that would hurt this type of system? IIRC it was the preferred way to do it on that bike.

 

[Punkskalar]

Those are the exact readings that I am getting. Are you running a one of hughs 200 watt stators also?



So $119 to replace a brand new stator that is failing with the same kind. What's to say the new one won't fail just like the one I have now? At this point I feel like it would be cheaper and less of a headache to just go back to the original charging system.

NO, if you bought a stator from me, and it is failing, I will replace it. I have had 700 or more of these stators sold, with less than a handful having an issue, but with any electrical part, you can have an issue right out of the box.

Let me read this whole thread again tonight, while I'm not distracted at the shop, and we'll go from there

 

[Punkskalar]

So I just had another customer have some similar issues as you folks are having. I finally convinced him to get a good charged battery, and run it to the bike, with the Charging System completely disabled ( leave the charging system completely out of the equation)

Then do the same tests, without any charging system at all on the bike, see if you are getting a large voltage / lights dimming/ ignition cutting out / etc... when revving the engine or at idle.

As it turned out for that particular customer, the PMA was working fine, but something else on his bike was causing a major draw as removing the charging system completely from the equation the bike still had the same problematic symptoms. I have not heard back from that person yet to see what the problem was. Others have had issues with poor ignition switches, just a thought...

So try that and let me know what happens, in the mean time, I am ready to ship you another stator should you feel you want to send yours in for me to test...

Hugh

 

[Robhall]

I hooked up a freshly charged different battery directly to my coil and unhooked the regulator from the battery and tested it. The voltage was fine at idle but less than 2 volts while revving directly out of the regulator. No lights or anything else were hooked up.

 

[pamcopete]

Sounds like the regulator is over reacting and trying to shunt the voltage below 12 Volts. The fact that the reg/rect overheats would indicate to me that the alternator itself is obviously producing power.

One way to test for this possibility is to disconnect the regulator part of the reg/rect and very carefully increase the engine revs while checking the voltage from the alternator. Don't let it go above 15 Volts and have the headlight on high beam to use some of the power.

 

[Punkskalar]

Yeah, I am trying to get you to isolate the issue. IF you are running the PMA system as a stand alone, you will have to run it to a battery/capacitor to see if the system is operating properly, Otherwise you wouldn't even need a battery/cap in the first place.. Just checking voltage at the end of the regulator wires will do you no good, it needs to be hooked to something...

 

[Robhall]

Ok so I need to run the reg/rec to the battery ONLY then hook up my spare battery to the ignition and test the voltage from the battery while idling and revving?

 

[trainwreck13]

Yeah, I am trying to get you to isolate the issue. IF you are running the PMA system as a stand alone, you will have to run it to a battery/capacitor to see if the system is operating properly, Otherwise you wouldn't even need a battery/cap in the first place.. Just checking voltage at the end of the regulator wires will do you no good, it needs to be hooked to something...

I checked the voltage right out of the regulator with nothing else connected to it like I thought you asked me to. It was dropping to 1 volt above idle straight out of the reg and I tried two regulators with the same result...

What else could it be? I feel like I've eliminated every other variable unless I'm somehow missing something altogether which is a possibility.

 

[XSLeo]

I think what Punkskalar is tring to get you to do is hook up the ignition to one battery so the bike will run with out the reg/rec effecting the way it runs. Now unhook the red wire to the battery or cap and hook it to a second battery and of course hook up the ground from the reg/rec to the second battery, so the charging system is charging the second battery.
This will bypass any problems in your bikes electrical system.
Now as the bike idles check voltage on the second battery. Check voltage as you rev the bike.
If you are using a cap and no battery use a cap instead of the second battery
Does it act right? Is so then your bikes electrics have a problem. If it still acts up then it's in the reg/rec or stator. Thats the inlything hooked to the second battery/cap.
Punkskalar, I hope I haven't confused the issue. If I have just ignore this post.
Leo

 

[pamcopete]

trainwreck,

You have to have either a battery or a capacitor connected to the output of the regulator else the regulator will go nuts because it needs the battery or capacitor to stabilize the voltage. Think of having springs on the back of the bike with no shocks. The battery or capacitor is the equivalent of shocks.

 

[Robhall]

Ok gotcha, I'll try it like that in the morning. I'm assuming both batterys should be fully charged for the test? My normal battery is down to about 10.7 or so so I'll throw it on the charger first

 

[trainwreck13]

trainwreck,

You have to have either a battery or a capacitor connected to the output of the regulator else the regulator will go nuts because it needs the battery or capacitor to stabilize the voltage. Think of having springs on the back of the bike with no shocks. The battery or capacitor is the equivalent of shocks.

Understood.

I've checked voltage with the capacitor connected and disconnected with the same results. Even with just the regulator connected to the stator and nothing else, there is no reason why the voltage should drop off out of the regulator when rpms are increased.