Alternator .. should I mess with it?

Ok, here's the story. Years ago I "repaired" the alternator in my KZ1000.. It was spinning on the shaft, not charging the battery. I don't remember if there was a place for keyway, but I assume there must have been and either the previous owner failed to install or it was broken. I "fixed" it byt thread-locking tin foil onto the shaft, then covering that with more threadlock making a tight fit. I took the cover off it now that I own the bike again and I could turn the motor by the alternator. So I assume it is still holding. Thing is, now I'm paranoid it will come apart at an inopertune time... Should I mess with it or just leave it alone?
I had made up my mind to take it off but I discovered that whatever fork cap bolt they are talking about to use to remove it my bike does not have. It must be a different size because I couldnt find one that was anything close to what is needed. That setback was enough to discourage me from going any further. Does anyone happened to know what the blot size/thread is so I can try and find one at the hardware store or something?
Appreciate any input here.. I'm torn between breaking something that isnt broken and having it fail on me possibly down the road.

Ron

Hey Ron,

Here is a Flowchart for you....

Nevco48 wrote:

Hey Ron,

Here is a Flowchart for you....

:woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: Oh man.....I ned one of those for the shop at work!!!!! Sooooo appropriate!!:laugh:

haha great pic, gotta print off a few copies...
if the altenator is in the right spot, maybe spot weld it to the crank real lightly to prevent any movement

AR15Ron wrote:

Ok, here's the story. Years ago I "repaired" the alternator in my KZ1000.. I don't remember if there was a place for keyway, but I assume there must have been and either the previous owner failed to install or it was broken. I "fixed" it by thread-locking tin foil onto the shaft, then covering that with more threadlock making a tight fit. Appreciate any input here.. I'm torn between breaking something that isnt broken and having it fail on me possibly down the road.

Since you asked. . .

It's broken. You probably aren't going to have any real piece of mind with the bike until it is fixed. You sold that bike to someone and then got it back? Be sure your sin will find you out. . .

That being said, my suggestion is that you drill a 3/32 hole or something similar (maybe larger) in the seam where the the unit goes over the shaft, and insert a roll-pin into the hole. That will secure it.

I had a Mazda 323 that had a broken keyway in the crankshaft where the pulley connects, and I fixed the nightmare that way.

Post edited by: KaZooCruiser, at: 2007/03/13 12:09

use a strong bolt and tighten it down good. The stock bolt breaks easy.

That's kind of what I'm thinking.. If I don't fix I'll keep wondering when it's going to break...
I'm not sure that there is a keyway, but I think there must have been and I just missed it? I would think the keyway itself would be fine, I've never seen one broken. The key is either broken or missing I'm sure, but I hope if I take it apart I can just get or make a new key to put in there.
My biggest question is, what do I need for a bolt to pop the alternator off? I tried all the bolts in the front fork area and none fit. The book says to use a fork cap bolt and a ball bearing. I have the bearing but not the bolt! I dunno if someone has an extra bolt, or could just tell me what size it is so I can buy one at the hardware store?

Ron

The 78's don't have a keyway. They have the three roller-type bearing looking thinggy's that grab the crank with cyntriphical (SP) force. You might want to check to see if they are bound up. If not try another stator magnet.

its the big bolt in center of top triple tree.900 cranks have woodruff key,kz1000 cranks have a thrust washer on back and a bolt threaded into crank that holds it in place,if rotor was allowed to spin on crank at some point the resistance fit is gone .you could install a differant rotor if the end of crank isnt chewed up.if you are really ambitious and have access to lathe you could machine the inside of rotor for a bigger hole and machine a bushing to bring things back to an interferance fit.i see APE Jay just signed on,lets see what the master has to say!

The bolt on the 77/78 is torqued to 95 ft. lbs.and no key, that should be lots to hold that on.the early z's had a small bolt with only 18 ft.lbs. If it held for years it should be good.If you take it apart you should sourse out a used rotor .the crank end is hardend so it should be ok,but the rotor is aluminum so it goes first.If the crank has any damage you can put valve lapping compound between the rotor and crank and clean it up.I learned this 1st hand on my 76 . houseofmotorcycles.bikebandit.com/partsb...%28KZ1000A2%29US.asp

I just looked at a 78a and 78a2 on Bike Barn's site and see the 78a uses the small bolt maybe 8mm., like my 76 and the a2(1979) uses a 12 mm. bolt.So if your bolt is about 8 there will be a key.The key doesnt actualy do much.I sheared a few off on mine.

Post edited by: mark1122, at: 2007/03/14 03:59