KLR dead battery?

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klrman

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The dealer charged me 10 bucks to charge it and said it is fine as they tested it, so we will see soon I guess. If it loses power again I will do my own testing to find out what is going on. I found my voltmeter. I switched batteries between our bikes so if it goes flat again on the other bike, then we know it is the battery not the charging system. Maybe it is our fault too as when we ride up the mountain roads we keep stopping and take in the scenery and then start again which is probably too hard on the battery....this is something I was thinking about lately that could have caused it too.

Scottiedog: I bought a 1 amp motorcycle battery trickle charge at crappy tire today. They had a sale on them for $14.99 and they said it is $39.00 normally. Maybe it is the same type you have? Very small and compact?

Roadane: Thanks! We already put on the Alu Skid plate 2 weeks ago after I heard a terrible rock thump on my casing. Didn't split anything, but that was enough to get the skid plates on in a hurry, and the SS brake cables are on which really helped the front brake. Progressives are on my brothers bike already. We also got the subframe upgrade kit from dual star as I often take my wife up the bumpy back roads and I can just see those 6mm stock bolts giving way oneday. Beats me why Kawa did not through bolt them instead of using those thimble bolts:shock: My doohickey finally came and we put both of them in too....WOW...sure runs smoother now!
 
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edzzed

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i don't get it, i ride and occasionally plug in 2 electric vests. that must suck power yet still have no complaints with my battery. take the battery to crappy tire and ask them to load test it. it is free afterall.
 
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klrman

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Ok..will take the battery in to CTire. Thanks:hb: Would be a shame if the dealer lied, but would not suprise me! The dealer insisted to me that a weakened battery cannot be charged by the KLR stator and since I did not know any better I believed him:shock:
 
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dooveman

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I'm not sure if crappy tire can prove much. They can test your battery I guess. But they don't know the power output of your stator. I know on my blackberry I can recharge using a USB port but if the battery drains too much I can't. I guess the currentdemand profile is non-linear for the battery. Needs power juice to get to a certain threshold and then less for the rest.

I'm surprised he charged you for the charge. Wasn't it their fault that they didn't charge it enough initially?

oh well, some times these dealers just don't know enough. I had goodyear tell me I needed a new battery. I asked to look at the output of the alternator. I could see that the voltage level from the alternator was low and very bumpy. Basically I had a blown diode in the secondary. Then they wanted $400 for a new alternator. So I asked him to use his phone. He told me to go up the street and use a pay phone. Yeah nice. So I did and ended up taking the car to a alternator shop and they replaced the secondary for $80.

I understand they couldn't fix the alternator at Goodyear as they only replace major components but telling me I needed a new battery and not seeing the waveform from the alternator, was bad.

The guy in the service dept. at bby kawi is pretty good. He seems to know what he is talking about. He's owned 3 KLR's too.

brian
 
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klrman

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You know a lot more about batteries and alternators than I do Dooveman! If it dies again I will do more testing to see if I can find out why. I gave the battery to my local dealer but I did not buy the bikes there as they told me they could not get any more black green ones. He says I misunderstood him and that he could have got the bikes from another dealer, but that is history now. He told me if he does a warranty claim on the battery, he will not do it if he does not get the bike in his shop as well. I am a little paranoid myself personally about bringing my bike in anyones shop and whatever happens to the bike, I would rather fix everything myself than bring it in. Mechanics are human and get their good days and bad days, and I don't want them having a bad day on my Kawa:D Besides, the local dealer go pretty angry when I talked about the Doohickey:D

By the way, what do you need to do a wave test on the alternator?
Lucky you were smart enough not to follow the Goodyear dealers advice? That would have been pretty expensive
 
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dooveman

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You just need a scope but you won't have one. They are expensive and shops will have them. They display the output voltage from the alternator. It's an AC voltage that is produced as it comes from a generator. They use a rectifier to change it to DC. aka diodes. You should see a pretty flat 14 volt supply. Looks like a bunch of small bumps. If the rectifier is shot like my one diode. Then you get bigger bumps and half as many. So the average voltage is less. So it can't charge the battery. I guess a picture would work better:shock:

You can also stick a volt meter onto your stator and measure the DC voltage. See what it is like at idle and rev it up. See if it makes a diff. But hopefully you have it licked. Swapping it to the other bike is good to. As long as you can see that something is wrong with the bike you can take it in and say fix it.

And if your worried about them screwing it up you can swap it with your brothers.:dr:
 
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klrman

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I like the idea of my brother's bike being the Guinea Pig:dr: Thanks for the help there Dooveman:clap: I will run the voltage test off the stator myself and see what is going on. I should brush up on my electrical knowledge again. I even forgot that the rectifier converts AC to DC:shock: I got the Clymers manual and it looks pretty good. Will read that more too again.
 
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Pee Wee

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I can't believe a shop was asking for Money to charge up a Battery WTF??

If your battery on the KLR was never charged fully from brand new, then you would have problems with it for sure. We have alot of KLR customers in Victoria...usually the battery problems are from them being left in the bikes over the winter and the Battery de-sulfates. Once the Battery is Stone dead, the charging system will work overtime to try and charge it and kill the Stator, then the Reg/Rec right afterwards.

A battery tender will (if used correctly) maintain a full charge in your battery while it sits dormant in the garage, plugged in.

They cost about $50...and THEY say it will make your battery last ten years longer, because it never allows the Bat to De-sulfate. I have one...never had a battery issue...EVER. :tup:
 
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klrman

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I think the dealer is still POed with me as I did not buy the 2 KLR's there due to a miss understading and that is why he probably charged me.

I do have a question Pee Wee.

1)What is the Brand Name and Model # of your Tender

2)Do you just hook it up to your batter while the battery is in the bike?

If you do, I was wondering if you made any special connections so that you don't have to always pull the seat off when hooking it up. I would really be interested. This KLR will stay with me until I die, so I want to do everything to keep it in the best shape I can as it will be going with me everywhere. I am even thinking of sending it in a crate to Australia oneday and tour the outback with it.:dr:
 
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Scottiedogg

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DRZman....ooops I mean KLRman,

I have the Motomaster CT1562a. It came with a connection that I just leave attached to my bike battery. If I know I'm not going to be riding for a long period of time, more than a couple of weeks, I just plug it in. It also came with the clamps that you attach to battery posts which has a quick connection on it for my other batteries I charge over the winter. I have a little rubber cover I put over the end of my connection coming off my bike battery, just so it doesn't get loaded up with mud. I find the only time I really use the tender is over the winter and when I'm away on summer holidays without my bike:(

Hope this helps

Scottie
 
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leadsled

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Ditto for my bike. I bought a YUASA Powershot at Crappy Tire $49.99,

Leave connecters attached to battery and i just plug er in when i get home.
 
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klrman

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Thanks guys:hb: The Motomaster Charger I bought last week was the wrong one. It was a "Manual" charger which is not what I wanted. I thought $14.99 was too good a deal:shock:

Will grab one today just to have it.
 
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klrman

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Thanks Pee Wee and Scottie. I could not find that one at Canadian Tire in my city. Will try Kamloops store next week Scottie.
 
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klrman

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Thanks Pee Wee. I did not realize you posted the website. I have seen that brand at the dealers. Thanks again
 
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klrman

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Update on the battery. It seems it is not the battery but the rectifier. Battery is using too much water and is overcharging.
 
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dooveman

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What was wrong with the rectifier?
 
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klrman

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Again it is using too much water so that made me think it possibly would be the rectifier, so I checked it on my meter and it showed 20 volts at 3000rpm and from what I understand, that means it is shot?
 
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