Rode 40 miles then it quit...

Anybody got any suggestion on converting to 3 phase and how to do it? Maybe even what and where to buy the correct parts

rebreath wrote: so after much hunting I think i finally found a replacement reg for my kaw. It appears to be an electrosport 3 phase(has no brown wire) so it would appear i have more mods to make. Not sure how tho and thus my new question. How do I go from a 1-phase to a three phase so I can use this electrosport reg/rec.

I'm not sure if your rotor is suitable for 3-phase, but you'd need the stator from an 81-83 KZ650-CSR or get one from just about any 750-4 model >> the rotor & stator are the same on most of these 650/750s. If your rotor is good for the switch & you already have the voltage regulator, then the stator is all you'd need, plus some re-wiring. As for the wiring, at the least you'd probably need to add a yellow wire between the stator & voltage regulator. For crimping new terminals I use a ratcheting open barrel crimper >> the crimps are very strong, same as stock.

1981 KZ650-CSR charging system components:
Alternator (rotor + stator). voltage regulator (reg-rec). wire harness 26001-1117 (fits between stator connector & voltage regulator & also has the neutral switch wire)(you might could use your wire harness & add a yellow wire).

Like Martin said, you have to install a 3-phase stator from a 3-phase Kz650 after 1978. The only real wiring change is that you have to run a third yellow wire from the stator to the reg/rec.

You can then use a 3-phase reg/rec from a modern bike like a Ninja 250 or 500 from the early 2000's. They can be had for about $10 but require adding the brown wire. The brown wire would tap into the brown wire on your existing harness.

You could also use the Electrosport reg/rec or the Shindengen unit.

Ok, slightly confused here. The regulators that i see do not have a brown wire. Maybe I am looking at the wrong ones. Also, how do I check/know if my rotor is OK for the switch?

loudhvx wrote: Like Martin said, you have to install a 3-phase stator from a 3-phase Kz650 after 1978. The only real wiring change is that you have to run a third yellow wire from the stator to the reg/rec.

You can then use a 3-phase reg/rec from a modern bike like a Ninja 250 or 500 from the early 2000's. They can be had for about $10 but require adding the brown wire. The brown wire would tap into the brown wire on your existing harness.

You could also use the Electrosport reg/rec or the Shindengen unit.

Some voltage regulators don't need the brown wire. Brown serves as a voltage sensing wire, but on some modern reg-recs, the voltage sensing is built into the circuitry, so they don't use the brown wire (credit to loudhvx). Assuming the brown wire from the wire harness is routed into a connector, I would just leave it there, unused. It's a power wire (hot), so you can't leave it unprotected & dangling.

And how do i check viability of the rotor for an upgrade to 3-phase?

martin_csr wrote: Some voltage regulators don't need the brown wire. Brown serves as a voltage sensing wire, but on some modern reg-recs, the voltage sensing is built into the circuitry, so they don't use the brown wire (credit to loudhvx). Assuming the brown wire from the wire harness is routed into a connector, I would just leave it there, unused. It's a power wire (hot), so you can't leave it unprotected & dangling.

Well, luckily this has been done in the past by more than one member. They report the 3-phase stator and 1-phase rotor physically fit together without any problems and the charging system works well after the modification.

OK...So I finally had the stars align and managed to get a new reg and stator from ricks AND I have time to install them both. Looks like the stator will go right on with zero issue. Three things about the old and new reg/recs...
1- old reg is apparently a 2-phase.. will this affect my intended switch to 3-phase?
2-old reg has 5 wires..2 yellow, 1 brown, 1 black and 1 white with red stripe.
3- NEW reg/rec has 5 wires as well.....3 Yellow, 1 black with white stripe and 1 red(terminated with a pin)
So i already know i have to run a third yellow from stator and this leads to my questions
1- does black with white stripe connect to original black in harness?
2-does solid red(new) connect to white with red stripe?
3- And brown becomes connected to nothing, correct?

martin_csr wrote: Some voltage regulators don't need the brown wire. Brown serves as a voltage sensing wire, but on some modern reg-recs, the voltage sensing is built into the circuitry, so they don't use the brown wire (credit to loudhvx). Assuming the brown wire from the wire harness is routed into a connector, I would just leave it there, unused. It's a power wire (hot), so you can't leave it unprotected & dangling.

Many people incorrectly call the original system 2-phase, and it's understandable because it has 2 wires. But real 2-phase needs at least 3 wires and often has 4 wires. Meanwhile, 3-phase almost always has 3 wires and 1-phase has 2 wires.

rebreath wrote:
1- does black with white stripe connect to original black in harness?
2-does solid red(new) connect to white with red stripe?
3- And brown becomes connected to nothing, correct?

I think those are correct. I'm not familiar with a Rick's regulator, but the above seems logical.

Good luck with the install.

so , once again the stars aligned and I got a few minutes to install, wire and test fire the new stator and reg/rec. was slow to start and wouldnt idle correctly. Do I need to recheck timing as a result of new electronics? Is this an indicator now of coil failure?
Before it quit(title of thread) it was running well. Idled well and stopped and started with zero issues.