Heated clothing

[Kurt827]

I can not wait for winter to be over any longer. I need to get this thing out on the road to see if my long hours in the garage have paid off or not.

 

Went out and bought a pair of heated gloves, and a heated vest from tour master Synergy.

 

What is the best way to tell if my charging system and computer will hold up to these items?, besides watching the voltmeter, which i seem to recall some not holding much stock in?

 

I have read the entire set of instructions that came with the clothing and can't seem to find anything on how much draw these things have . Perhaps if someopne on here has these items and a first gen you could let me know how it worked out for you. By the way i have the stock stator on my bike; all lights have been switched to led ,only add-ons consist of low voltage passing lamps and 2 -10 inch led light bars.

[Guest tx2sturgis]

You can put a DC ammeter inline with the items, in your garage, and see what the current draw is...I'm guessing around 5-8 amps total.

 

You should be OK...but its a good idea to run a variable controller, if you have one, and maybe turn off the lights when mostly idling and such in heavy traffic, where the RPMs are generally low, and the stator is barely keeping up with the bikes normal current requirements.

 

At sustained highway speeds, it should be well within what the bike will tolerate.

 

 

 

 

[Kurt827]

Thanks Brian;

 

I do have a control unit on the vest and gloves. Everyone i have talked to seems to agree that when idling is where these bikes have charging issues.

 

call me stupid but when you say i can put a ammeter inline, is this something that a bike shop would have ? also does it stay connected to the bike? I am allright as far as most of this stuff goes, however i know absolutly nothing about electrical system.

[Guest tx2sturgis]

Digital Multi-meters...just the facts:

 

http://www.homedepot.com/catalog/productImage/e0f3fca6-78dc-4c60-ba96-7252b49a0028_300.jpg

 

Heres what I'm refering to...you can buy this type of meter at any radio shack, home depot, or auto supply store. They run anywhere from about $15 to a few hundred dollars( for the PRO models) depending on what you want. I have seen cheapies at harbor freight for 5 bucks. Spend around $25 to $50 and you will get a decent (rubber armored) one for home and auto use. They are used for testing things like voltage, current, resistance, and continuity. (Also, they are used in electronics work, for troubleshooting and repair). I like the type that has the wrist-strap, so you can use both hands and not have to hold the meter while testing something. Make sure it has a DC amp scale, and reads up to at least 10 amps.

 

You can always borrow one from a friend that is techie-minded..no need to buy one if you only want to test this one thing...but it can come in handy for voltage checks on your bike, your car, or your house..anyway, you just put it inline with your gear, and it will tell you how much current it draws. Then you un hook it and put it back in your tool box.