81' XJ650 Maxim (stator issues)

ive had my bike diagnosed by a local shop and have been told its my stator that is my issue. which i figured it was. however i wanna fix this myself, does anyone know where i can get a step by step instruction on how to change my stator out?

 

Start by making sure that the shop didn't misdiagnose.

What were the symptoms that led to you taking the bike to a shop?

 

Yeah no kidding. Most shops will have zero clue about the Yamaha alternators of our era; the brushes are a "wear item" whereas the stator is essentially a "brick." (Which can become worn but rarely outright fails.) Unless they removed the alternator cover and properly diagnosed it, I would not take their diagnosis too seriously. They may have jumped to a conclusion based on low alternator output.

You may need to remove the alternator cover, clean everything thoroughly and carefully, and replace your alternator brushes.

How many miles on the bike? That will provide a clue...

 

Also, not so long ago I lived in BFE Kansas. There are very few decent motorcycle shops there, and none of them are fluent in 80's Yamaha.

 

I can ride the bike for awhile after i charge the battery. But eventually it dies and after that i get nothing. I turn the key over and all i get is my lights. I try to start it and absolutely nothing happens. Its a brand new battery and brand new regulator. I have 2 friends that work specifically on older bikes that both said its the stator, 1 of which owns his own shop.

 

How do i replace the brushes? Sorry, im 100% new to working on bikes. Im use to working on trucks and cars. The bike has 41.5k miles

 

The alternator brushes are a wear item, and are more likely to be the culprit than the stator.
Pull the alternator cover and inspect (left side of the engine, big round cover held on by three screws) The brushes are in a holder in the cover and have a wear limit of 10mm, and the wear limit is marked by a line in the brushes. Clean the traces on the rotor with a hard eraser.
Your freind with a shop should know better than to guess about the cause of a problem. He should have pulled his meter out and tested the stator for you.

Also Read This First

 

So the "diagnosis" was word-o-mouth based on a description of symptoms, second hand?

That ain't a diagnosis it's a SWAG, and probably wrong as K-Moe points out. If the alternator has never been apart, you'll need a new cover gasket. On the 550s the new gasket is thin aluminum; check with Len for your bike.

TIPS: Be very careful of the wires from the cover (the brushes are in the cover) and the little rubber half-grommet where they go through the case. Wires are probably baked a tad crispy but will be OK as long as you don't go excessively flexing or twisting them.

If there is no "wear line" visible in the brushes, it's because they've worn past it.

DO NOT "flood" or saturate the stator with contact cleaner; apply your solvent of choice to a shop towel to clean it. If you use an eraser as suggested, be sure to clean it thoroughly afterward.

Try not to laugh when you figure out just how primitive the whole thing is.

 

Thank you guys for the help on the brushes. I will update yall as soon as i get the chance to check them out.

 

Ok guys, i changed out the brushes. Although i can still see the line on them. Its not even half way worn to the line yet but went ahead and changed them. I charged my battery and put it in. Now it will fire up, but revs super high and starts blowing white smoke and the rpms will not lower. Any ideas?

 

here is a pic of one the ones i took off

 

Ok scratch the rpm issue. I got that fixed. Throttle cable was sticking. However, after that i got it to run for a about 3min. Amd smoke starting coming from under my engine and continued through my exhaust as stated before.

 

White smoke?
That's just dust and condensation burning off.

 

How long does it take for that to go away? It has been rained on a bit since i have it under a car port its not completely protected from the elements. And has sat for about 2months

 

About 10 minutes. Maybe a bit longer.
It even happens to mine after winter storage in an fully-enclosed garage.

 

Okay but the part that worries me is the smoke coming from under the engine. It has an off smell to it and gets worse the longer it runs. I dont wanna screw something up by letting it run amd it be something other than moisture or dust.

 

Perhaps there is an oil leak as well.
A visual inspection will confirm, or rule that out.

 

I just checked. I do have oil on the underside of the engine. Where the clutch is (left side). Could i replace that seal very easily?

 

The clutch cover seal is easily replaceable. Drain the oil. before replacing.
The correct new gasket can be had from @chacal.]
Don't be surprised if you find RTV instead of a proper gasket when you pull the cover off.

 

Thanks. Now my next project will be putting new turn signals on. It didnt have any when i got it

 

Inquiring minds want to know - is it charging? You should have 14.5V +/- .3V across a fully charged battery when above about 2000 RPM.

 

I dont have a volt meter to check it. Best i can do is run it and see if it dies or not

 

This sounds like a perfect time to buy a good quality meter. You will use it many times over. Get a good multimeter. Buy once cry once.

 

Even a $12 analog meter is better than no meter, and you can keep it stored on the bike without worrying about it getting lost or broken.

 

I do plan on buying another one. My last one got stolen (it wasnt a cheap one either). Question... If oil has leaked onto my exhaust pipe, will that smoke once the bike warms up? Its actually nice out today and i fired it up, no smoke from exhaust pipe end but still coming from under engine.

 

No the bike is not charging. Brushes are changed, i charged the battery and rode for a bit till it died again. Next step im guessing is to change the stator?

 

Perhaps, but I would suggest investing in a DMM and measuring the stator yourself just for reassurance. The specified resistance is .46 ohms +/- 10% between phases with all phases open to ground. The .46 measurement is a stretch for any standard DMM, so expect a reading just outside the upper end of the spec.

 

If oil gets on the exhaust it will make smoke. It'll be more grey than white though.

 

Should've saved your money on those brushes and put it towards a cheap meter at Harbor freight. That's the only way to diagnose a charging system, even the best on this forum can't help you from the symptoms. The FSM has a detailed troubleshooting chart with tests, takes less then 30 min to do them all and you'll know where your problem is.

Also, just because your regulator is new doesn't mean it is good, there are a ton of cheap aftermarket ones out there that are junk. I can't recall how many bikes I've worked on over the years, I've only ever had one bad regulator. If you don't want to buy a meter, start taking all the connections apart and cleaning them. That's about the only thing you can do without throwing money at parts you probably don't need.

 

From what i understand the stator is the last part i have to replace. And i bought it awhile back, just been trying to avoid doing it and starting with the simpler things first. But yes i do need to get a meter

 

back to basics have you cleaned the ground connections? battery to motor, motor to frame and the grounds at the ignition coil bolts?cleaned battery connect ions?


consider replacing those bolts at coils if they are all rusted.
now about the battery
even new batterys can be bad.
when you charge the battery what voltage does it read after charging and what voltage does it read after sitting over night 12 to 18 hours?
charger must be 1.5 to 2 amps max
what kind of battery is it? How old?
lead acid is it full of acid to the spec lines?
only use distilled water to refill.

beg borrow or buy a meter.

 

5$ will get you a meter from Taiwan
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Digital-XL...173304436449?_trksid=p2385738.m4383.l4275.c10

same meter from walmart 11.09$
https://www.walmart.com/ip/HOTBEST-...MI2_6s2YPW7AIVCY-GCh2bxwbvEAQYASABEgJJt_D_BwE

 

Can anyone give me some advice for getting this bolt out?

 

put bike in gear and tighten rear brake then have someone apply pressure to brake. use an impact driver or long breaker bar to losen bolt.

you will need a tool to remove rotor after bolt is out