So how do ya think I did with my first Pamco/Hughs PMA setup?

[CDNTX650]

i could be fully misinformed bened. i was under the impression some of them hold enough charge to electric start.

You are fully mis-informed.

 

[badassjamie]

You are fully mis-informed.

There's a 105% (+/- 3%) chance that you are correct.

 

[pamcopete]

ember,

You have to have the regulator hooked up for the first fire because it is a combined regulator / rectifier. My suggestion to use a separate battery for the PAMCO was to protect the PAMCO from potentially high voltage or no voltage on the initial startup if you did not have the reg / rect connected properly.

As far as a remedy for a 15 Volt ++ output from the regulator, there are several possible causes of that problem and others who are more well versed in PMA trouble shooting will have to come to assist you.

 

[ember]

Gotcha! Thank you again, Pete!

 

[da evil one]

alright guys. so im incorrect about the capacitor. tell the folks what is true about it and be productive....if you know

 

[Tim of DO THE TON]

The idea behind the capacitor is to replace a battery in a bike that has had much of the electrical load eliminated such as electric starters, lighting, radios, air-con etc.

All those things draw down on the battery when the bike is idling and not producing enough voltage to both charge the battery and keep the bike and all these extra bits going. Such as at a traffic light or in stop/go traffic commuting home from work. This is why you need a battery - to store the energy for these times of low generation.

A PMA setup generates more oomph than a stock XS650 rotor / stator at low RPM, enough to start the bike when turning it over with the kicker. The SR500 for example is a kick-only bike, and has a PMA. It also however has a battery. You can swap the battery out for a capacitor and not really change anything else and run around town (friend has a battery eliminator - expensive word for capacitor - on his SR500).

An alternative setup, if eliminating/reducing the battery size is your goal are these new lightweight lithium batteries like the Ballistic units. Way smaller and lighter than a stock battery but with all the power.

So, if your charging system is kaput and instead of spending money on rotors every once in a while you feel like spending $300 on a PMA setup, go for it. If along with the PMA you want to eliminate the electric starter, you can go to a smaller / no battery.

You don't need the PMA to go to a smaller battery however. I eliminated my starter motor and run a small AGM battery under my seat. Will probably go to a much lighter smaller lithium model at some point, but my charging system works (replaced my defunct rotor with another free used one a while ago). When this rotor goes, I'll have to choose between another used $20 rotor, a new aftermarket $100 rotor or a $300 PMA setup.

 

[da evil one]

I still have a burning question...will a 12v capacitor elecric start a bike?

 

[Tim of DO THE TON]

Nope. Not in the real world, and certainly not an XS650.

 

[da evil one]

well...as always gotta have some egg on your face here! dont give a shit about electric start anyway but it was just curiousity

 

[da evil one]

thanks for the real world xs heads up tim

 

[Tim of DO THE TON]

I meant 'real world' in the sense that in theory, in a lab, given a large enough capacitor and a small enough engine to turn over and a well tuned enough combustion, then sure, why not.

But when you take the limitations of a capacitor coupled with the size of an XS650 and the sometimes slow to start nature of our old engines, a capacitor driven electric starter just wouldn't work.

Didn't want to suggest you were living in some fantasy land. Fair enough question to ask, and I'm no expert so someone may chime in with more reasons why it can or cannot be done. But there's really no reason to do it given the current state of battery tech.

 

[da evil one]

i guess that WAS a pretty dumb one to ask Tim. A 12 volt cap firing a motorcycle engine over...I gotcha