im hoping to get some help with a possible charging problem with my cbr 600 f sport

i've worked out the following through trial and error

1. when i charge the battery with my optimate it holds the charge displayed on a digital volt meter

2. when i ride the bike without using headlights there are no symptoms of loss of complete battery power that would result in having to bump start it

3. if i use headlights, within under an hour or so i will break down and lose all power

i've got 2 batteries and can confirm it happens with both

i was wondering what part(s) i should attempt to replace, or if it's difficult job perhaps to a garage?

the symptoms are described on another forum so i have pasted the original poster's description for reference:


Hi guys,

At the weekend, I went with my brother in law has to pick up his new toy - a very clean 2002 Honda CBR600F which may or may not have a problem with the charging system - I would appreciate your views. In case you're wondering why I was riding it and not him, I should explain that I have TP cover on any bike and he doesn't, so I offered to bring it back for him. It was hardly a chore - it's a lovely bike. Well, nearly...

Anyway, this thing has tiny mileage (just 3,400 from new) and has done only 220 miles between the last two MOT's. When we went to look at the bike, we noticed the battery seemed a little sluggish turning the engine over, but it fired up and ran OK, and we put it down to the bike having been sitting around.

I only did a couple of miles on the test ride - no problem at all. Did the deal, signed the paperwork and went to ride off. Noticed the battery was still a little sluggish but again, she started OK so off we went.

After a mile or so filtering and stop/start (heading out of London) with rad fan kicking in and out almost constantly), the engine suddenly cut out and the battery seemed completely flat. We jump started the bike off the car, and it fired up instantly. I did notice though that whenever the revs dropped below 3,000 RPM, I could hear the fan slow appreciably and the headlight dimmed. I rode it the rest of the way back trying to keep speed and revs up as much as possible, and it got me the 30 miles back to mine no problem at all. It also restarted fine after it was switched off.

Once my brother in law had sorted out his insurance, he took the bike out an hour or so later. He called me to say it had cut out again, and sure enough the battery was dead (the bike had been idling for a couple of minutes at a set of lights). Again, we connected a set of jump leads, the bike fired up instantly, and all seemed to be well.

I left the bike in my garage overnight connected to an Optimate III. This showed the battery as being discharged but recoverable, and the lights all went green after about an hour and a half. For the lights to go green, the battery has to pass a 30 minute low current discharge test without the voltage dropping below 12.3 volts. According to the Optimate, the battery is actually OK. He rode the bike 70 odd miles yesterday and it was fine, although again we plugged into the Optimate last night, and it showed "discharged" for about an hour, before showing fully charged and OK. This was directly after a 30 mile motorway run, which struck me as a little odd. I would expect a fully charged battery after a run like this.

Have yet to attack it with a multimeter, but does this sound like a regulator/rectifier issue (or the beginnings of one), or is it simply a slightly tired battery. It does concern me though that the battery appears to be discharging at idle, or again is this normal, and its only a tired battery showing it up.

The bike has no aftermarket alarm or accessories on it, just the standard fit HISS "chip key" immobiliser.

Would appreciate any thoughts on this one.

Cheers
DP

 

First, you are posting in the f2 (91-94) section, which is fine, but you might find more help in a section for the year you have.
But to help you out, I'd look at 2 things: stator and R/R. I'd reckon the r/r is more likely the culprit, as they are poor quality (I had 1 go on me). There are tests for the r/r, but mine passed the tests, but it wasn't until I replaced it the problems I was having went away.

 

As corruptFile says and I`d go for the rectifier/relay first. Easy way to check is split the connector that runs to it. I would have thought there would be three wires each side (yellow?). Do a continuerty check on each seperate block. There should be no continuerty between the cables. If there is, then thats the direction to whats fooooked.
Both the r/r and the stator are d.i.y jobs as long as you can use a socket set and not too expensive either.
Before I did any of these I would use a multimeter from start up to see what voltages I got. A drop as you start, then an instant rise to over 12v whilst running. Put lights indicators and brake light on all together and watch the meter as you do this. Should stay well above 12v.
I cant be more specific as I`m not your model sorry mate.
Best of luck and let us know how you get on

 

Thread moved to the F4i section....