Has anyone upgraded their gl1100 to a mosfet style reg rectifier if so how? I'm wanting to change all led lights and I know how LEDs can cause the shunt style regulators to overheat due to not enough power being used . Any tips hopefully someone has done this
Gl1100 reg rectifier upgrade
- Thread starter derrick woods
- Start date
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I don't remember anyone with an 1100 doing this, but @Rednaxs60 did it on his 1200. Of course my memory has been know to fail sometimes.....
I'll dive in here. There are two types of RRs, shunt and series. The OEM RR is a shunt style, "shunts" excess power to ground. A series RR starts/stops current flow. Both types of RRs have a reference voltage of approximately 14.2 VDC. This is the electrical system voltage that an RR tries to maintain. A MOSFET RR is a misnomer. MOSFET components have been widely used since the '50s. This technology has finally made it into motorcycle RRs and is used in series and shunt RRs. Only advantage is the RRs that use these internal electronic components is efficiency, work better. So the issue is do you want a series or shunt RR as a replacement.
Replacing lights with LEDs should be for illumination only, not to decrease electrical load. The OEM RR is designed to be used with the older style lighting because it uses some of the produced electrical system power.
The electrical system is designed to perform well from the factory, not how we modify to suit what we want. Reducing the electrical load at all power levels will cause the RR to generate more heat because it is working harder to shunt power to ground. The more you use a circuit (shunt circuit), the sooner it will probably fail, nothing lasts forever. Conversely, load the electrical system and you can cause the electrical system voltage to drop enough to have the RR require more voltage than the reference voltage of 14.2 VDC - see voltages greater than 14.2 VDC on a voltmeter, and then the battery may kick in.
Maximum output from the stator assembly is at approximately 5500 RPM, reduces from this to redline. A stator assembly can produce approximately 300 watts at 5500 RPM resulting in approximately 25 amps (using 12 VDC as the voltage - could use 14 VDC for the conversion) of useable power. The electrical system probably needs some 15 to 20 amps to operate. With this in mind, the RR is designed to shunt say a maximum of 5 to 10 amps to ground continuously. The amount shunted to ground will reduce in the power ranges below 5500 RPM.
Having mentioned the above, the issue is which RR do you want. A series RR may require a new location, it's larger than a shunt RR. A series RR is better for system operation IMO. There are other forum posts, here and elsewhere where the person has done a load analysis. Give a look at these. It's a matter of knowing what you are doing to a system that is outside what Mother Honda designed for. We all do it - myself included, and sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't, and sometimes it works but there is no appreciable change so we revert back to what it was.
Good luck.
Replacing lights with LEDs should be for illumination only, not to decrease electrical load. The OEM RR is designed to be used with the older style lighting because it uses some of the produced electrical system power.
The electrical system is designed to perform well from the factory, not how we modify to suit what we want. Reducing the electrical load at all power levels will cause the RR to generate more heat because it is working harder to shunt power to ground. The more you use a circuit (shunt circuit), the sooner it will probably fail, nothing lasts forever. Conversely, load the electrical system and you can cause the electrical system voltage to drop enough to have the RR require more voltage than the reference voltage of 14.2 VDC - see voltages greater than 14.2 VDC on a voltmeter, and then the battery may kick in.
Maximum output from the stator assembly is at approximately 5500 RPM, reduces from this to redline. A stator assembly can produce approximately 300 watts at 5500 RPM resulting in approximately 25 amps (using 12 VDC as the voltage - could use 14 VDC for the conversion) of useable power. The electrical system probably needs some 15 to 20 amps to operate. With this in mind, the RR is designed to shunt say a maximum of 5 to 10 amps to ground continuously. The amount shunted to ground will reduce in the power ranges below 5500 RPM.
Having mentioned the above, the issue is which RR do you want. A series RR may require a new location, it's larger than a shunt RR. A series RR is better for system operation IMO. There are other forum posts, here and elsewhere where the person has done a load analysis. Give a look at these. It's a matter of knowing what you are doing to a system that is outside what Mother Honda designed for. We all do it - myself included, and sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't, and sometimes it works but there is no appreciable change so we revert back to what it was.
Good luck.
Was going to use a series RR before the stator went for a trip south. Changed to the external alternator mod. Have LEDs now, but using an automotive alternator is different than the 3 part alternator system that uses a stator. Know of one 1200 that has the SH847 series installed. Know this because I sold him the one I was going to use, have pictures. Reducing electrical load with LED lighting is not an issue with an automotive alternator, voltage regulation is different. An issue with LED lighting is turn signal hyper flash, not enough electrical load for the older system, something like having one or more of the signal lights out. One other issue is the lighting system load may be reduced such that you may get a lighting warning lamp indication if fitted.
A 3 part alternator system is called this because the rotor is fixed to the engine, the stator is fixed to the engine rear cover and mates with the rotor internally, and the RR is external to the engine, whereas an automotive alternator has the same three ingredients but as a neat little package.
Cheers
Correct I am aware of all this you have spoken about and am very appreciative of the info I just am wanting better lighting because this bike is going to be ridden out town a lot and I just wanted to make sure it would not harm the system running an led headlight just don't wanna fatigue the system if their is a risk. I run led on my 76 but it also never gets further than 30miles from my house so if I have a problem it's not a big deal
I would recommend changing to a series RR to accommodate the change. There are several out there, one for a Polaris ATV/snowmobile that is a series RR but the older non-MOSFET technology that may be easy to fit. This would reduce the issue of how much power gets shunted to ground.
Do you have a link? Or something to point me in a direction thanks
Here's a link discussing the SH775 Polaris RR: Shindengen SH775 Regulator. Read the first post.
