Went out for a ride 4 months ago. Clocks went off and bike cut out. Started after a bump then did a 70 mile rip. Just when I was 1 mile from home it cut out again. Starter was sluggish and wouldn't turnover quick enough. Started in jump from car and now won't start off battery and cuts out all electrical and power intermittently. It has exact start cables and a fully charged battery. Any ideas?
Had the same problem with my 1098 some years ago. Fully charged battery as per optimate green led. Whilst turning engine over full lose of power and reset of clocks with some strange characters on screen. In my case checked out charging circuit and all fine. Replaced the battery and problem fixed. In your case it could be a combination of battery and charging problems. Personally don't put a lot of trust in chargers indicating my battery ok as starting current so high I don't believe they can fully check for this.
Sounds less like a loose connection or duff battery. May be worth giving your fuses a wiggle as you can get light oxidation between fuse and holder. A battery supplier on your local industrial estate should be able to test the battery for you.
That should be fine but you can perform tests of alternator and rectifier with a multimeter. Search for testing rectifier on internet. It's very simple but you need a multimeter. On my monster some years ago I was measuring a healthy 14.4 volts across the battery when running. Unfortunately problems with alternators don't show until hot. When hot the insulation on the alternator leads can break down and short to earth. My measured battery voltage at this point dropped to around 13 volts. New alternator and problem resolved.
Thanks for your comments and suggestions. I am going to have a look this week. I have a multimeter, a spare alternator and an alternative battery. If it's the reg, I'm going to get a mosfet. Anyone know the details on the Triumph lead that plugs into the ducati loom?
Got mosfet Reg/rect and triumph cables. Do I have to move some of the pins, or is it a plug and play? Cheers
It is plug and play with the cables. You will need a cable tie round one of the connectors as the retaining tab does not lock in place. You need to rotate the RR 90 degrees to fit in OEM position. I just drilled new holes and put bolts through from the back. Others have built mounting plate adaptors.
@densel16 there is a company called Nightingales in Northampton (I think) and Graeme there makes up cables to relocate it. I have mine inside the rhs fairing where the exhaust valve servo used to go. Makes for much better airflow on to the r/r
Have just had battery tested and it's knackered. I assume that it's because of the Reg/rect as it's a gel and they don't take kindly to overcharging. I'm getting a lead oxide, as I've never had problems with them, so all should be well. I'm going g to check out the alternator as well, but from what I can gather, it's just a continuity and charging voltage at the battery procedure, so no dramas.!
Never heard of lead oxide batteries but absorbed glass mat lead acid batteries are excellent for Ducatis as they have very high cold cranking amp figures, so crank really hard for starting.
Fair enough, but I've never had a problem with lead/acid batteries. Now I have two bikes with cooked regulators and two dead batteries. I hope to not encounter this problem again, after doing the Reg upgrade on the Duke and thinking of changing the other. I had checked the voltage at the battery, and nothing suspicious. 14.4. Just started it up with the mosfet reg/rect, and it's giving 13.8-14 on Rickover and 14.4 when reved. That's fine for me, but I'm going to solder the connections up from the alternator as they had shown signs of arching. Two bikes down, I've spent the last 4 months on the beemer. That's penance enough.!
