My batter was at 17+ volts today and i searched around but could not find anything. I then talked to a harley davidson mechanic and he told me it was the regulator rectifier. i just wanted to confirm this before buying a new one. or if there was any was i could test it to see if it was bad. someone help me please

 

if your bike is at idle then you rev it you will usually see your headlight get bright for just a moment then go back to normal even if you keep the revs high
if it does this usually your voltage regulator is ok

 

the battery could also be sulfated. does it hold a charge?

 

It holds a charge fine, never even though about checking it.
until i started hooking up some alarm wires.

 

did you check it connected or disconnected. Also, what kind of meter are you using?

 

so i tested the r/r and my battery again today.
well the battery will hit a high of around 19volts when i rev the engine.

i found this little tutorial thing and ran through it.
http://www.offwidth.co.uk/bike/gener...lt_finding.pdf
I made it only to this part:

Bad connection in the positive lead from
RR to battery(+). Check this connection
all the way through. (suspect the
connectors as well as the fuse-box and
fuses). Good connections are extremely
important in this high current connection.
Fix the problem and return to START

since i am not the best with electrical, i was wondering if anyone could help me with where to check. is there a fuse for the r/r? how many plugs are there, could it be as simple as a bad connection in the plug?

please help me, i want to get back to riding.
Gotta love that Florida weather.

 

Again, Iask what kind of meter you are using? Cheap meters can get you into trouble when trying to do electrical work. Measure the voltage drop (or VD for short ) from the output of the R/R to the Bat + terminal. Then measure the VD from the ground of the RR (the case i believe...I'm an automotive guy) to the battery negative. Your ground circuit shoult have very low (.3 Volts or less) and the insulated (power) side should be less than half a volt. Let me know how it goes.

Anyone else with more info on how bikes charging systems work? feel free to chime in. I'm a car guy so I'm learning too.

 

It is a craftsman meter, i believe it is a good one i never had any problems with it before.

this is what the one i am using looks like, the meter and not the pen.

I will test out what you said tomorrow its a little to late for me tonight.
time for bed.

 

That meter should be acceptable. Craftsmen is by no means a bottom line meter but they're not as accurate as some of the others. Still accurate enough. Good luck tomorrow and let me know what ya learn

 

those reading seem to be fine there.

but now when i rev my engine the volts off the battery will read as high as 23 volts.
but when i stop reving it, the meter drops immediately back to around 19 volts.

i have no clue what is happening here.