Lights dimming at idle.

Hi Everyone,

I have an issue with the lights on my MaximX. When I give it throttle the lights get bright, as the bike comes back to idle they get dim. Any ideas what is causing this prob? It was doing the same thing last season but not as bad as it is now.

Thanks,
Chuck

 

Battery is getting too old to carry a Deep Charge ... or, ...

As I have mentioned a few times before:

(Chorus)

"Check your Alternator Brushes"

 

(echo, in harmony)

"Alternator Brushes, Amen"

 

Hmmm....may sound stupid..but...where they at on an 82 seca 750?

 

Inside the alternator.

 

Okay..had that comming....now..wheres the alt?

 

On top of the transmission, between the starter and cylinder block. It's a round cover with three bolts holding it on.

 

Okay thanks a bunch..dont know much about these babies.

 

mine was a pain to get the cover off. took a good bit of leverage to loosen the bolts.
have fun

 

Look for "Wear Bars" on the two Carbon Brushes. If you don't see the lines etched into the Carbon ... you'll need to replace the Brushes.

The Brushes are 17mm New
Wear limit 10mm

 

Gotcha...Been working on her since July...Headlights dim a bit when I hit the brake or turn sigs. so...figure thats the first place to start.

After that..another clear coat and she will be road ready.

 

Although, and im not sure if this is normal or not but, I have a new battery, new alternator brushs, and my lights still dim alittle. I think its just normal but maybe not,

 

Me too, and my electrical system is in good shape. At about 1500 rpm or so the dimming is gone.

 

May I suggest the purchase of a manual? Chacal sells the Haynes and the factory manuals, either will provide you with loads of explainations and details.

 

I got nothing against Haynes ... although they have captured a few XJ-er's and put them into Air~Fuel Mixture Hell with a misprint.

If you have ONE Bike ... and you want to know EVERYTHING there is to know about that one Bike ... I suggest getting the YAMAHA Factory Service Manual specific to your Bike.

Haynes will do the trick.
XJCD's are good but you can't bring the computer down on the floor with you.

The Factory Manual covers your Bike ... alone ... there's NO Confusion and theoretically it pays for itself the FIRST Time you open its pages and do some Maintenance or a Repair by YOURSELF!

 

Laptops FTW!!!

 

Thanks all...Ive went thru a few manuals and its all German to me.

Been going by ear with most of this bike.
Today should be the finishing day on it..then for some chilly rides the next few months.

 

Actually, I have a Lenovo X60 tablet that works great... I can even take notes in the margins. Plus, I can search the text. It's not for everyone, and if i didn't have other uses for it, i couldn't justify the cost, but if you have one, their pretty handy.

 

...not to mention printers.

 

If you young'uns don't stop pickin' on Mr. O'Matic I'll hit you with my cane!

 

Well, I'll pipe in here....I use all the manuals all the time in my parts research, and my conclusion is this:

If you plan to do a bit of wrenching (besides minor things like changing the oil and checking the fluid levels) then I would spring for BOTH the Haynes (or Clymer, if yours is a XJ550) manual and the Factory Service Manual for your bike.

The reason being is this: the factory service manuals, although being specific for one or two models, are designed and written with the "experienced Yamaha motorcycle service tech" in mind.....in other words, you sometimes get the "assembly is the reverse of dis-assembly" type of instructions, or, critical steps are skipped in the instructions (not due to mistakes, but merely because there is an "assumption of knowledge" on the part of the manual). So, as an example, the factory service manual might say that the first step in replacing the fork oil seals is to "remove forks from bike", but with little or no instructions on HOW to perform that task.

The Haynes & Clymer manuals, although they borrow quite a bit of material from the factory service manuals (including many of the mistakes!), both go into much greater detail in many areas of service procedures, with commentary written by someone who has obviously done the step-by-step procedure being explained, and has a non-expert reader in mind. Plus, the Haynes manuals, in particular, have quite a few more clear, up-close, and detailed photgraphs and diagrams within them.

It's the difference between looking in a factory parts books and seeing an item described as:

4h7-22327-01-93 Bracket, Stay

and reading this:

HCP7724 1982-83 XJ650 Maxim Headlight Housing Mounting Bracket (or mounting "ears")---this is the large, U-shaped "arm" bracket that the headlight housing mounts into. Chrome plated bracket comes without any mounting hardware and the mounting bolts, collars, and bushings must be ordered separately.


You see the difference..........

In fact, if I had a choice of JUST owning either a factory service manual, or a Haynes or Clymer manual (btw, the Haynes manuals are much better than the Clymer manual)---then I'd choose a Haynes/Clymer manual in a heartbeat.

 

Are the Clymer manuals even available electronically (and legitimately)?

I've got an electronic version of the factory manual, and the Owner's, but I don't recall seein the Clymer.

 

Not that I'm aware of. Illegaly they might be, somewhere (what isn'?) but legally, I would doubt it.