TOPIC:

Jussumguy wrote: Well you know it’s charging! Possibly your regulator isn’t getting a proper signal, or it’s not working. Take your wiring harness plugs apart and look for hot spots or bad connections. Don’t buy a Chinese regulator.

Thanks for all that but my question really and specifically if the state of the fusebox could cause overcharging.

BTW I dont buy junk. I got my replacement recitifier from Oregon Motorcycles as suggested my an old timer here in the forum.

Ok then. There is a wire that tells the regulator that the battery needs voltage. If it comes through a dirty connection then the regulator will think the battery needs more power and will overcharge the battery. You’re getting 15-16 volts which makes me think the regulator isn’t doing a very good job. Is it mechanical or electronic?

Yes, as mentioned in your other threads on the subject, the over-heated fuse holders are a common cause of voltage drops which cause the regulator to over-charge the battery. The photos you show are very typical of the problem. There are probably dozens of threads on the subject on KZR over the last 18 years. When the fuse holders overheat from dirt/corrosion, it is very possible for other parts of the harness to suffer similarly. Those other locations, if they are in the overall path of the regulator power, will also contribute some amount of voltage drop. Likely places, in addition to the fuse holders, are the main ignition switch internal contacts, the kill switch contacts, and connectors especially near the steering area.

4 of my bikes are in the heated garage but the KZ650 sits outside the garage, covered in all types of good stuff.

I wanted to work on it today, replacing the fusebox and rectifier, but is 34F / 1C outside and I DO NOT feel like being out in it. So i have a question, wondering how difficult this may be and the time it may take:

Below is a pic of my rectifier on my bike and also the new similar part I ordered (its not the exact same part but shows the area I have concern about a little bit more clearly). Ive changed rectifiers on my hondas before, and it was pretty much a quick job. But the configuration of those rectifiers is very different from the one on my bike, and pictured below:

How does this rectifier affix to the battery box? Is it just a nut that holds it on? I cant see anything in the manual about removing it, and it looks like theres just one nut at the bottom that holds it on. I cant imagine what else might be holding it on:

Yes, it's just a bolt. But be careful about over-torquing the nut/bolt. Those big square fins can twist on each other and allow moisture seepage if not other damage. It looks like a tough device, but it is more fragile than it appears.

But that is just a rectifier. That is not the regulator/rectifier combo unit. The fact that you are getting higher than 15v on the battery means the rectifier is probably ok. The regulator is more likely the issue and the dirty fuse holders are also more likely the issue than the rectifier (i see you are already working on the fuse holder issue in your other thread). Did OregonMotorcycleParts sell you separate regulator and rectifier?

loudhvx wrote: Yes, it's just a bolt. But be careful about over-torquing the nut/bolt. Those big square fins can twist on each other and allow moisture seepage if not other damage. It looks like a tough device, but it is more fragile than it appears.

But that is just a rectifier. That is not the regulator/rectifier combo unit. The fact that you are getting higher than 15v on the battery means the rectifier is probably ok. The regulator is more likely the issue and the dirty fuse holders are also more likely the issue than the rectifier (i see you are already working on the fuse holder issue in your other thread). Did OregonMotorcycleParts sell you separate regulator and rectifier?

Hey and thanks for responding.

I changed the fuse box this morning. It was cold out but not windy, so I managed to change that, I put the fully charged battery back in and a curious thing has happened. Where as with the fuse box the voltage went up (but fluctuated a lot) when I rolled the throttle, this time, with the new fuse box in, I got nothing. Like maybe a 10th of a volt, from 12.5 to 12.59. that never happened before. It always went higher. I havent changed the rectifier yet. Does this still seem like a rectifier problem? I hope so. I dont feel like stator issues - dealing with them.

Tony over at Oregon got jammed and is just mailing the part out to me today. It is the two separate parts, the voltage regulator and the separate rectifier, for a total of under $100

Let me know your thoughts on whether you think the rectifier is still the problem. Im getting next to no charge when I rev the engine.

Pic of the new fusebox i put in today:

It appears to be a three phase rectifier. I asked for pics to determine if the system was one or three phase but no pics.
Steve

loudhvx wrote: Yes, it's just a bolt. But be careful about over-torquing the nut/bolt. Those big square fins can twist on each other and allow moisture seepage if not other damage. It looks like a tough device, but it is more fragile than it appears.

But that is just a rectifier. That is not the regulator/rectifier combo unit. The fact that you are getting higher than 15v on the battery means the rectifier is probably ok. The regulator is more likely the issue and the dirty fuse holders are also more likely the issue than the rectifier (i see you are already working on the fuse holder issue in your other thread). Did OregonMotorcycleParts sell you separate regulator and rectifier?

Hey and thanks for responding.

I changed the fuse box this morning. It was cold out but not windy, so I managed to change that, I put the fully charged battery back in and a curious thing has happened. Where as with the fuse box the voltage went up (but fluctuated a lot) when I rolled the throttle, this time, with the new fuse box in, I got nothing. Like maybe a 10th of a volt, from 12.5 to 12.59. that never happened before. It always went higher. I havent changed the rectifier yet. Does this still seem like a rectifier problem? I hope so. I dont feel like stator issues - dealing with them.

Tony over at Oregon got jammed and is just mailing the part out to me today. It is the two separate parts, the voltage regulator and the separate rectifier, for a total of under $100

Let me know your thoughts on whether you think the rectifier is still the problem. Im getting next to no charge when I rev the engine.

Pic of the new fusebox i put in today:

Sorry for all the posts. Ive decided to consolidate them into this post in case someone searches this topic.

Below are 3 pics: the regulator on the bike, the fuse box that needed replacing, and the replaced fuse box.

1. Last week I was riding my bike and it shut off. I was able to kickstart it and made it the 9 miles home.

2. I checked the charge across the battery with my multimeter. It seemed like it was over charging, and would drop to 12v at 5k rpm

3. I wondered whether the faulty fuse box was the culprit, and since I had a REPRO fuse box laying around, I took the old, battered one out, and put the new one in. I did that this morning.

4. Over the past day I had the battery out of the bike and on Tender, and its was fully charged when I put it back in the bike today.

5. When I put the battery in and started the bike and tested it across the terminal with a multimeter, it barely charged, like from 12.5 volts to 12.59.

6. I have a rectifier and voltage regulator on the way, but in the meantime, Im wondering if this problem can now be confined to the rectifier, as I assumed it was.

Thoughts?

If buying them (reg and rec) separately saves you money, then that's a good way to go. The combo unit really is just the two separate units stuck together.

I guess I don't understand. I thought you already have a new rectifier as in the photo above(not installed). But Tony is sending you another one?

Regarding the change in symptoms... it appears something is not connected. Are you sure the regulator is still connected? And all connectors and wires are still connected as before? The current symptom of only getting 12.xx volts revving or not, means you are probably not getting any charging. (The voltage fluctuates a tiny bit just from a change in ignition load.)

And yes, a dead rectifier could give you the symptom you have now, but anytime something changes, unfortunately the first suspicion is whatever was recently done to the bike.

You will want to check for voltage on the brown wire of the regulator. It should be near battery voltage. Then check the voltage on the green wire at the regulator. It should be near battery voltage when the bike is switched on, but not running.

loudhvx wrote: If buying them (reg and rec) separately saves you money, then that's a good way to go. The combo unit really is just the two separate units stuck together.

Regarding the change in symptoms... it appears something is not connected. Are you sure the regulator is still connected? And all connectors and wires are still connected as before? The current symptom of only getting 12.xx volts revving or not, means you are probably not getting any charging. (The voltage fluctuates a tiny bit just from a change in ignition load.)

You will want to check for voltage on the brown wire of the regulator. It should be near battery voltage. Then check the voltage on the green wire at the regulator. It should be near battery voltage when the bike is switched on, but not running.

The new rectifier hasnt arrived. Thats a photo of the old rectifier on the bike for reference. Im pretty sure I connected everything back properly, as I go very slowly and make note of everything. I will double check though.

There is no brown wire from the rectifier. Only 3 yellow, one red and one black.

Ok, I see now, you just posted the photo from the OregonMotorcycleParts.com website. I was wondering why the ground wires looked greenish. It's for Honda which often uses green as ground.

The voltages I was suggesting checking are on the REGULATOR, not rectifier. That's the other box with 3 wires.