New Terry Prince billet frame

[Monkeypants]

Hi Dag
Good to know that it turns the 1200 over OK. A club member here has had one on his 998 Egli, it has been quite problematic with some broken Sprags and several broken shear pins. He uses a single mid sized Shorai which is not adequate. If the bike does not start on the first try, he needs to use jumper cables and find a helpful car owner. It seems to be quite important to keep the battery voltage up with the sprag setup. A lethargic turnover does not give good sprag engagement and can result in early sprag failure. This is a common problem on modern bikes as well. The pre 2002 Triumph 955 Daytonas are known for this. A weak battery can destroy the sprag, which is internal . The engine is then considered destroyed as the cost to repair is greater than the value of the complete bike. Fortunately after 2002 thiscwas changed so that the sprag can be replaced with a few hours of work.

 

[clevtrev]

The instructions with the kit, tell you which battery to use.

 

[dagriise@online.no]

Yup I remember these potential problems... (Perhaps Trevor can enlighten us on the status of the sprag clutches in the Grosset starter?) The thing i found out with the Shorai batteries is that when they call them 14 amp... with a cca of 210, Shorai have in reality only found a lead acid battery that gives 210cca, and then labeled their battery with the same amps... (in reality my batteries only have a couple of amps..-with a 4ah load they only lasted 30-40 minutes from fully charged to my chosen cut out of 11,3V! ) This is in my opinion the real "rip of" with the Shorai... There are also claims that they dont even have the ability to give the rated CCAs..... (search youtube for "Shorai testing"..)
However Shorai have been quite cooperative in determining whether their batteries are faulty...

 

[grahamsharrock]

Hi Dag
You are right about the swing arm never turning up, He actually got in touch not long after I put the word out about how to contact him, but has since disappeared again. Thanks for the reminder about Colin.
I saw that picture of the primary cover. Who is making it and will they be selling any?

cheers
Graham

 

[dagriise@online.no]

Trevor,
Francois "okayed" my battery pack so that should be ok. Im just having to look into the possibility that either I have one weak, and one "strong" battery, (Im using two in parallel) and/or if any of the cables are restricting the ever so important current flow, and should have an increased cross section to avoid resistance.. (especially when the 1200 hits compression) And if i should Cable the earthing directly to the starter in stead of relying on the "frame/engine earthing".. As said the battery pack did turn the engine quite freely on most attempts, but there was some incidents where the engine stalled against compression.

Graham,
Dont know who made the cover, but ask around here on the forum and someone may be able to direct you.. Perhaps Bob Newby knows?

 

[dagriise@online.no]

Graham,
Here is at least a mentioning of someone who have ordered one... try contacting him..: http://www.vincentownersclub.co.uk/...elt-drive-by-bob-newby.5898/page-3#post-44756

 

[Monkeypants]

Dag, all of the LiFePo4 Battery makers do a/similar thing with the ratings, very misleading. Additionally, Shorai states that their batteries are only compatible with charging systems capable of producing 13.1 volts at idle. That rules out a lot of older style systems. I recall that Trevor uses his deadloss with charging done at rest via the Shorai charger. This might be the best way to use a Li battery, at least you start with the required high voltage condition. Once they are down to 12.8 volts or so, where most of our lead acid batteries/dynamos run, the Li battery is drained flat.

Glen

 

[dagriise@online.no]

I did take the plunge and changed the voltage regulator to the latest version supplied with the Alton, (podtronic)as the one supplied originally with the Alton, simply would drain the battery, if left for a long time. (one should have a on/off switch between the battery and regulator, which gives you one more thing to swear about when you forget...)
I have a Shorai charger, and some leads that stay on the bike, for qd purpose when the bike is left for a few weeks..+ I should of course have changed the whole battery pack, but as you know, I chose the shorais for their size..

 

[vibrac]

Latest alton does not drain

 

[Monkeypants]

On the subject of Altons, I had one of the sped up versions on my Rapide for awhile, until the platic drive gear lost it's teeth twice. That version of the Alton produced enough power at idle to run twin point twin coil ignition without the battery. I know this because I initially wired it up incorrectly such that the alternator output to the ignition was not cut off by the key ignition switch, which cut off battery supply to the ignition.
To be sure this was happening I removed the battery from the bike and attempted to kickstart it. I could not get it running with the kickstart, but a fairly gentle bump start fired it right up and then it ran perfectly. Almost like having a mag!
I have since replaced that Alton with the later direct drive style, which works great but does not have enough output at idle to run the ignition pwithout battery. t might do so with a lower draw electronic ignition.
One of the mem
bers here supplied me with a steel replacement gear for the sped up Alton, so I intend to fit that and use that alternator on my project bike.