| Author | Message | ||
     Old_mil |
Does anyone know: (1) The amp rating of the stock S3T altenator? (2) If there's a Buell, HD, or third party kit to increase alternator output? Between motolights, an XM radio, and a GPS, the load is starting to increase. Now I'm thinking of adding an autocom intercom and amp. | ||
| Tramp |
maybe you should sh*tcan all of that...."stuff"... or buy one of those four-wheel contraptions called: "cars" | ||
| Old_mil |
...anyone with an actual answer? (Message edited by old_mil on August 07, 2005) | ||
| Old_mil |
Ok...an actual answer has been found. The S2 & S3 have a 297 Watt AC Alternator. On a 12 volt system, this calculates out to 24.75 amps. So I'm guessing it's the same charging system that HD rates at 22 amps in the Sportsters. So now to find an upgraded stator for the Sporster, which is like looking for a needle in a haystack. | ||
| Natexlh1000 |
According to my X1 book, it is a 22A system. The real question here now is how much current is needed for the bike? All of the lights are easy to add up but what about the "brain"? the pump, the ignition? It think it would be most easy for you to get one of these:  I got it for $35 but I figured out my sportster's problem before I instaled it. Kuryakin sells them. It has a light sensor to dim them at night. | ||
| Old_mil |
I actually have one of those on my S3T right now. Based on what it's telling me, I think I'm pretty much bumping up against the maxiumum drain on the charging system and if I add the intercom and amp, I'll be over it. | ||
| Easy_rider |
Thanks for asking the question, Old mil. I've been beginning to wonder the same thing. | ||
| Whodom |
The new Ulysses has a 38 amp alternator rated at 481 watts @ 3000 RPM, 494 watts peak. Hopefully it's a bolt-on swap to tubers. Probably have to replace the voltage regulator too. That would be an easy upgrade if it'll fit. | ||
| Old_mil |
That 38 amp alternator from the Ulysses would solve my problems ... but what are the odds of it being a bolt on swap? After a morning of searching I haven't been able to find anything more than a 22amp replacement stator for a Sportster which of course doesn't give you any sort of a boost. | ||
| Jackbequick |
Old_mil - Check out the Custom Chrome online catalog, they have a bunch of 32 to 38 Amp stator and alternator stuff, I'm pretty sure some of it will fit on the Buell engines. They even have some three phase alternators. Jack | ||
| Tramp |
hyundai makes cars with beefier alternators than buell has. good radios, cigarette lighters, etc. and they don't need kickstands. there also some nice programs you can get to do 'virtual riding' and never leave your home entertainment, and of course, you wll know where you are, so you won't need any GPS. | ||
| Bikerjim99 |
Hey tramp Don't knock GPS and such until you have tried it. Beats trying to see a map while riding. Bet you got rid of that unnecessary electric start on your scoot.  I don't consider myself a Gold Wing rider, but I do use my Garmin 12 GPS ( battery powered ) and have been known to use an electric vest when the temp gets in the 50 degree and under riding conditions. Some people need more power than others. | ||
| Easy_rider |
What? We don't all have the same wants and needs out of a bike? I thought this board was only for people who felt the same about everything! (Sorry Tramp.... I'm done being a smartass now..) | ||
| Tramp |
well put, ez- never a need to apologize. a good wiseass is worth far more than schmendricks who offer to wee-wee on others' graves, etc., outta genuine anger. honestly, i've never ever needed a gps. if i'm on a road, i know it's going somewhere. when loran was introduced into aircraft, there were far more midairs and just 'lost' pilots becuase of the horrible syndrome known as "eyes in the cockpit". if you sell your gps on ebay, you'll find you never really needed it, unless you have the some very serious orientation issues. i assume you're riding on roads and not open desert, right? jeez- just follow directions...roads all go somewhere..isn't that what the freedom of riding is about? i apologize, for i've always been amazed at the inherent admission of ineptitude of gps-junkies.... what did you guys do before gps? every new 'invention' creates new lazinesses.  | ||
| Tramp |
and RADIOS on motorcycles? ...the horror... ...the horror.... | ||
| Philip |
i have to agree with you about radios on motorcycles. the last thing i want while riding in houston traffic is any kind of distraction. maybe it is my limited my mental capacity but when things get tight even the gum gets tossed! | ||
| Tramp |
i'm an attention freak when it comes to riding. the only instrument on my s2 is a hobbes clock, which i can't even see when i'm astride. please understand, i am kinda kidding around, there, all you permanently disoriented radioheads  .... (any of you guys seen the new lineup of DVD players for Buells?) | ||
| Road_thing |
 "Hm, I didn't know I HAD a clock..." | ||
| Newfie_buell |
Who needs a radio when you can SING???? I don't need a map, all I do is keep riding until I get to the edge, then ride to another edge!!!!!  | ||
| Henrik |
permanently disoriented radiohead Anyone remember the old Monty Python gag - "the hundred yard dash for people without sense of direction"?  Henrik | ||
| Tramp |
yes- or the hundred mile ride for orientation-deficient buellers from the ministry of silly walks? no offense intended toward mr. throat-warbler mangrove of magellan gps, inc.... | ||
| Old_mil |
Regarding radios and GPS units, you're right...if you're constantly doing your riding within a hundred or two miles of home it's not a big deal. However if you're 1,000 miles from home in unfamiliar territory, a GPS is a great tool when it comes to planning fuel stops. An XM radio with the weather channel (or local radio with weather band) is great when the sky starts looking ugly and there isn't a highway overpass, car wash, hotel, or gas station within sight. | ||
| Tramp |
That's silly. I've ridden coast-to-coast many times and i don't NEED a gps, and neither do you. what do you think motorcyclists have been doing for the 100 or so years prior to the mass-marketing of GPSes? that XM radio when, as you say, 'the sky starts looking ugly' is unneccessary, unless you don't know what an ugly sky means. reread your post. you just described exactly the porblem. as i've said before, on this board, our overwrought technocracy for the sake of technocracy has us rapidly becoming tokyo. free yourself and jettison the geek-toys. ride your motorcycle with the abandon of an individual and his machine nejoying the byways of this beautiful continent. what's next- helmet-mounted display w/the weather channel? | ||
| Easy_rider |
Tramp, Funny you should mention the weather channel. There've been a few rides where we've meandered around trying to miss the passing rainclouds and I've wondered how soon it will be before it's possible to get the "local doppler radar" screen for up to the minute weather. Personally, I don't get GPS. I am intercom-curious and occasionally I'd like to be able to answer the cell, or at least know it's ringing. I really want tunes. Especially on a 2-hours highway ride to Ohio. All that has me thinking about one of the combo units and how much power headroom I've got. I understand what you're saying. But we've all got different wants. I won't go all the way, but if we should ever meet, I'll be the guy with an mp3 player on and headphones in my helmet. Not a iPod, though. That'd be too geeky! | ||
| Tramp |
i know, i know- i *more* than subscribe to the concept of different strokes. what is this "cell" you're referring to? -tramp van winkle | ||
| Old_mil |
>That's silly. I've ridden coast-to-coast many times >and i don't NEED a gps... Good for you. >and neither do you... I don't *need* a GPS. I *want* one. If GPS technology suddenly went away, I would keep riding, and do so happily. However, I'm not Amish. It's here, I like it, I use it. | ||
| Tramp |
i eschew modern means...my buell's only lived so long because it's towed by a belgian. ploughing with my draft team's left me sleepy, tomorrow we have a barn to raise, i want to be ready, english. -brother noah tramp | ||
| Easy_rider |
LOL!!! | ||
| Chauly |
I fried my first stator by plugging full-electric gear in while riding in 30-degree weather, plus a set of driving lights (since it was dark, and the stock light pretty much sucks), so I had three choices: see, freeze, or stop. It turns out I just made it home on the battery, but I was cold, and it was still dark out! I replaced it with an Accel aftermarket stator; that fractured its leads at the coil. I replaced it with a stock stator, took off the driving lights, and just stick with the vest when it's chilly. I ride my ST1100 (81K miles)when it gets really miserable, or when my S-3 is broken (like now!). I put a Datel voltmeter on my dash (http://store.cd4power.com/cgi-bin/cd4power.storefront/42f88bcd056302cc271d0c9f89 42068d/Catalog/1045 )to monitor voltage. I use a GPS, intercom, cell, etc. without a problem; they're not real high draws... | ||
| Jackbequick |
> I've ridden coast-to-coast many times and i don't NEED a gps, and neither do you. Do you use maps? Do you (shudder) stop and ask for directions? GPS is part of mankind's evolution from walking a certain direction relative to the sun. By your professed standards you should be on foot, clothed in an animal hide, and carrying a sharpened stick. And I suppose you would be sneering at anyone you encounter that is carrying a fire hardened stick with a balanced heft. No anger here, just continuing the dialogue. Jack |
