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Overcharging issue
#696392
05/24/17 8:51 pm
05/24/17 8:51 pm
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Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 588 Toronto, Canada
Bola
OP
BritBike Forum member
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OP
BritBike Forum member
Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 588
Toronto, Canada
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I figured it was the zener diode so I swapped mine out with Adam M. Not! What are the odds that two Zeners are faulty? I use a Sparkbright battery voltage light monitor mounted to the dash plate of my 69 TR6R. It does a nice job of letting me know the state of my battery. A Shorai 7A. I ran this battery for three years successfully in my A65, also with a Sparkbright voltage light. No issues whatsoever. The battery typically holds a charge of 13.3V most of the time. During riding the Sparkbright voltage light flashes Green/Red. This is an indication of overcharging. This occurs at over 4000 rpm. A steady Green means all is well. If it's not the Zener what else could it be. I'm running stock Lucas electrics with Boyer Mark III. I know, I know, I should upgrade to solid state and be done with it.
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Re: Overcharging issue
[Re: Bola]
#696433
05/25/17 2:54 am
05/25/17 2:54 am
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Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 11,168 North Georgia, USA
RF Whatley
BritBike Forum member
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BritBike Forum member
Joined: Oct 2003
Posts: 11,168
North Georgia, USA
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An indicator lamp is not proof of over-charging. Is the battery physically hot ? Are you burning out light bulbs ? What other symptoms are being given ?
Don't hide 'em, Ride 'em !!
RF Whatley Cornelia, GA
"Shop Boy" at Rodi British Bikes
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Re: Overcharging issue
[Re: RF Whatley]
#696452
05/25/17 9:53 am
05/25/17 9:53 am
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Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 9,689 Scotland
Stuart
BritBike Forum member
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BritBike Forum member
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 9,689
Scotland
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Hi, During riding the Sparkbright voltage light flashes Green/Red. This is an indication of overcharging. An indicator lamp is not proof of over-charging. +1. An educated guess says this "Sparkbright" is an LED? If so, it "flashes Green/Red" at a particular Volts value or within a small range. So, at best, all it's telling you is the bike's system Volts are at that value or within that range (at worst, it - not the Zener - is faulty). If you look in the Triumph workshop manuals, "Testing the Zener Diode" says it can allow the system to rise above 15V (15.2V, 15.3V, 15.4V depending where you look, although ime, Zeners almost never allow even 15V) before it's deemed 'faulty'. This occurs at over 4000 rpm. It'd be better if you connect a Voltmeter across the battery and rev. the engine to and a little above 4,000 rpm, to see what the Volts value or range actually is? A steady Green means all is well. Mmmm ... it means is the Volts across the Sparkbright are at some arbitrary value or range that someone has decided is "well". Do you know this Volts value or range, and is it suitable for your bike's electrics? stock Lucas electrics I know, I know, I should upgrade to solid state and be done with it.  "stock" Lucas rectifier and Zener diode are "solid state". If, by "upgrade", you mean 'replace the rectifier and Zener diode with a combined reg./rec.', up to you how you blow your hard-earned but, if you're hoping to 'fix' a 'problem', it'd be wise to see if there is a 'problem' and if a reg./rec. will fix it?  Fwiw, all my Triumphs still have rectifier 'n' Zeners. Hth. Regards,
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Re: Overcharging issue
[Re: Bola]
#696497
05/25/17 6:40 pm
05/25/17 6:40 pm
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Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 9,689 Scotland
Stuart
BritBike Forum member
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BritBike Forum member
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 9,689
Scotland
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Hi, Well, as mentioned I have exactly the same setup on the A65 with no issues. So take the Sparkbright and Zener from your A65 and fit it on your Triumph? Fwiw, I have two T160's with Rita e.i.; if I ever want to assure myself that a particular fault isn't an e.i., I simply swap the e.i. between bikes.  I did place a multimeter across the battery terminals, revved the bike to 5000 rpm and got nothing more than 14.80v. But this was digital not analog. Sometimes the digital ones go wonky. And most of the time they don't. wondering if installing the wires to the rectifier wrongly could produce false readings? Depends which wires you installed wrongly:- . swapping the Red and Brown/White would've blown the fuse; . swapping the Green/Yellow and the White/Green doesn't matter, they're AC; . so? Hth. Regards,
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Re: Overcharging issue
[Re: Bola]
#696829
05/30/17 5:31 am
05/30/17 5:31 am
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Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 7,309 scotland
triton thrasher
BritBike Forum member
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BritBike Forum member
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 7,309
scotland
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Does running with the headlight on make a difference?
There's no law that says you have to use a Zener diode.
Last edited by triton thrasher; 05/30/17 5:34 am.
Amateur Loctite enthusiast.
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Re: Overcharging issue
[Re: triton thrasher]
#696854
05/30/17 2:38 pm
05/30/17 2:38 pm
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Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 588 Toronto, Canada
Bola
OP
BritBike Forum member
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OP
BritBike Forum member
Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 588
Toronto, Canada
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Does running with the headlight on make a difference? Yes I tried that but voltage is still high. At this point I'll likely upgrade to a Tympanium or other similar unit.
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Re: Overcharging issue
[Re: Bola]
#696876
05/30/17 6:41 pm
05/30/17 6:41 pm
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Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 9,689 Scotland
Stuart
BritBike Forum member
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BritBike Forum member
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 9,689
Scotland
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Hi, Does running with the headlight on make a difference? I tried that but voltage is still high. At this point I'll likely upgrade to a Tympanium or other similar unit. As I posted before, up to you how you blow your hard-earned ... but I don't see anywhere in this thread that you've done simple stuff like checked the other components in the Zener's circuit?  Did you try the Sparkbright and/or the Zener from your A65? If you know the Zener in your A65 works fine in your A65, and it doesn't in your TR6R, having also tried the Zener from Adam's bike, it's pretty unlikely the problem is the Zener itself, yes? However, if your '69 has standard electrics, assuming the ammeter is indicating as it should, the Brown/White wire to the Zener, its connection to Zener, the Zener's connection to the heatsink, the heatsink's connection to the Red wire and probably the Red wire's connection to other Red wires are all part of the Zener's circuit; if none of two or three Zeners regulate the Volts properly, might the problem lie elsewhere? Btw, another possible clue is the Volts are only a little above where they should be, so you aren't dealing with a failure, you're dealing with something that isn't working as it should. Put it another way - if the headlamp bulb was dim (ok, dimmer than standard  ) and you tried one or two other headlamp bulbs, and they were also dim (ok, ...  ), would you really think, "I must replace the headlamp" ...  or would you think, "maybe I'll just check the wiring and the switches ..."?  The Zener circuit doesn't have switches but it does have a few other things in common with the headlamp circuit ... Hth. Regards,
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Re: Overcharging issue
[Re: Bola]
#696912
05/31/17 12:11 am
05/31/17 12:11 am
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Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 98 Pennsyltucky, USA
steve-d
BritBike Forum member
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BritBike Forum member
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 98
Pennsyltucky, USA
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Test ZD: preliminary test -- test it with an ohmmeter-----if it is good you will only have continuity in one direction-----that easy------------> true you still dont know the voltages it will permit-----but at least you won't use one that is earthed.
73 T140V
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