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Post by royldoc on Apr 15, 2015 16:16:52 GMT -6
I don't doubt you Roy, but it's not the volts we're looking at, it's the amps. How many amps is it pushing thru to the battery? Unless you put a recording meter, or a silly scope on it, you have no way of knowing. You could be feeding it some really dirty power that is still within the voltage limits. Ya not sure of the amps yet. I really don't feel like dragging my scope out to the garage, but might later. Like I said I'm just gonna get lead acid batteries. My boy ran off with my tektronix scope and left me with the old beckman. Its an oldie but goodie. They don't make em like that anymore. Roy |
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Post by royldoc on Apr 15, 2015 15:56:14 GMT -6
AGM's are great batteries but are VERY easy to overcharge. You need to make sure your regulator is not putting out too much juice for it or you'll go thru them like a hot knife thru warm butter. For a Chino scoot, I'd stick with Lead Acid. They are much more durable in over charging situations. I have an AGM on my bike, but I also have a really good regulator. EDIT:
Now that I think about it, this is probably the reason so many people have battery problems like this. Got to make sure your R/R is not blasting the battery with too much. It might be a good idea to add a control resistor right in front of your battery to make sure it's not getting slammed.
You are probably right. however I have yet to see Higher than 15v of the charging system. The magnum max charging volt has been around 14.2 drops down quit a bit to around 12.8v with all the lights on. It has 4 55w headlamps. so it may be undercharging. even with two 55w low beams on it tests at 13.5. The charging on my fiddy is minimal as I am running e.f.i. and the fuel pump draws a lot. The charge voltage on it is around 13v. so I don't thing over charging is the issue. Roy |
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Post by royldoc on Apr 15, 2015 15:35:06 GMT -6
Well the battery in the magnum is a Duracrap. The other one is a magnapower. Not the best brands. The instruction pamphlet for the new battery states, charging voltage should not exceed 15v and max of 2amps. My charger/maintainer puts out 12v @1.5amp. But neither of these batteries has been on the charger. However I'm not sure of the amps of the charging system in the scoots yet. I stated in earlier post that I run them at least every two weeks to make sure the batteries stay charged through the winter months. I also disconnect them to be sure there is no parasitic drain. Agm batteries should hold a charge for at least three months before needing to be topped off. The original lead/acid batteries lasted 3+ years. I have yet to get more than 1 out of agm's
Roy
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Post by royldoc on Apr 14, 2015 21:06:13 GMT -6
I am not liking these AGM batteries. I had a few errands to do today. It being a nice day I decided to do a little sight seeing also. Put about a hundy on the magnum then decided to do my errands. So I stopped at first Place and when I came out to leave the battery was dead. There is an advance auto about a block from where I was, so I took battery in to have it checked. They put it on there little tester and then told me it was dead and needed charged,Duh! Tester showed a voltage of 11.44 volts and 56 cca. Expected charge time 0f 40- 50 min at 40 amp. I didn't have that long to wait, so I just I bought a new battery. I paid the core charge of $10 bucks, brought the old battery home and put in on charger and it goes pop as soon as I plugged it. Now this is the second one of these type of batteries that have done this to me. I am going to check the charging system tomorrow, didn't have time today. The saga continues. Now my 50cc also has one of these batteries in it and it is also not charging. so will have to check it as well. both of these scooters were started once a week or so through the winter months and ridden occasionally. I Rode both of them yesterday for about a half hour each. Now it is hard to believe that both of these batteries would go dead at the same time or the charging system went bad on two different scooters at the same time. has any body else had trouble with agm batteries not charging? I will probably order regular lead acid batteries. all the auto stores carry in the sizes I need is agm's. I also will be adding a spare battery box on the magnum. Pushing this 600 lb three wheel beast sucks, also I don't really want to wait on a jump either. At least the 50 cc has a kick start. I'm done ranting for now.
Roy
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Post by royldoc on Apr 3, 2015 10:20:09 GMT -6
Three wheelers do handle different than two. You really don't ride a trike you drive it, much like a car. You have to turn the handle bars and don't lean in the turns. You really can't do high speed swervin' and curvin'. They can and will tip if you turn to fast. You need to slow down more for turns, as you do in a car. They turn wider than two wheelers do. You also need to pay attention to the width of the rear wheels, so you don't hit curbs and such.
You will want to do a proper P.D.I. Ride safe and enjoy your new ride.
Roy
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Post by royldoc on Apr 2, 2015 11:21:04 GMT -6
Well I don't have much time these days. I didn't finish the test mount. I just put the pump in. So far there has been no oil issues. the modified gear has held up. I have a new plan using a belt driven pump. the plan is to be able to use an oil cooler and good filter. The belt will be driven off the crank on the flywheel side. Still in search of a suitable pump. Pump must be able to self prime, handle the heat of the oil and be small enough to mount in a suitable location. Also must be of reasonable cost.
Roy
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Post by royldoc on Apr 2, 2015 1:04:24 GMT -6
Man I'm a day late and a dollar short again. I agree with alley. I got both mine in 2010 The 50cc is just a tinker toy, I mod it change stuff and ride the heck out of it. If it breaks I fix it. The 300 is a decent machine used for longer trips and faster speed roads. Both of these trikes have been good to me. They are decent quality for the money.
Roy
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I am done!
by: royldoc - Mar 15, 2015 13:18:45 GMT -6
Post by royldoc on Mar 15, 2015 13:18:45 GMT -6
Well I cant complain about my Ice Bear trikes. So far it has been mostly good. I expect to work on the mojo because I push it really hard sometimes. Most times i ride it pretty easy but going up big hills WOT at 20 per takes a toll on this little machine. Although I haven't needed to work on it near as much as I thought I would. My magnum has been an awesome machine for the price. I very rarely work on it and the few times I have it has been minor. Now If A better quality trike was manufactured in the same price range as my 300 I would probably jump on it.
Roy
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Post by royldoc on Feb 25, 2015 0:35:44 GMT -6
Looks like I'm late to this party. Several of us here ride trikes for various reasons. Jim at rapid repair is good people and will go above and beyond the other dealers. I bought my first trike from him. When the time comes I will get the next one from him. He pretty much summed it up for you. If you do decide to go with another dealer be sure to check them out good with better business bureau ect. The 300 size trikes should suite your needs as far as speed requirements. I currently own two trikes one is a 50cc size that i modify and tinker on a lot. I use it for cruising around the neighborhood 25 mph limit and short errands. The 300 I use for longer trips where I will have to travel on faster roads. Like Jim said with proper set up and maintenance these machines will give you many miles of service and joy. Plenty of information can be found in the trike section. If you can't find what your looking for just ask and we will help you to the best of our abilities. There is a lot of good knowledgeable people on this forum. Oh and we like to have some fun also.
Roy
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Post by royldoc on Feb 3, 2015 0:02:20 GMT -6
I guess it all depends on the use of the tire. I have one on the front of my 50cc trike. It has held up well over 3k miles. Still has a lot of tread left. It has fairly good traction on wet roads. As I said it depends, trikes steer different than two wheels, so performance on a two wheeler may differ. When it comes time to replace the front tire I will go with the same, as I like the way it handles and lasted on my trike.
Roy
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Seafoam
by: royldoc - Feb 1, 2015 11:36:03 GMT -6
Post by royldoc on Feb 1, 2015 11:36:03 GMT -6
I use it in all my engines. I have a five gallon can that I use to fill up. It's good stuff. It can even be used in oil just before an oil change to help keep the oil system clean. I buy it in the one gallon size. It is cheaper in the long term that way.
Roy
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Post by royldoc on Jan 29, 2015 0:15:47 GMT -6
Maybe it's just low on blinker fluid. Have you checked it lately?  Roy |
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Post by royldoc on Jan 26, 2015 12:37:25 GMT -6
I do think it is awesome. Some people have way to much time and/or money on their hands. unfortunately I ain't one of those peoples. I do have quite a few r/c models though. Next model I build is gonna be a ultra light helicopter kit. I have been seriously looking at the mosquito.
Roy
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Post by royldoc on Jan 20, 2015 0:27:02 GMT -6
I love electronic devices. I am curious as to how they are designed and built. I and am constantly fulfilling that curiosity by taking things apart and trying to repair or salvage them for components. I was schooled in electronics back when you could actually see the components. They were mostly vacuum tubes, resisters,capacitors,ect. and you could tell what they were without the use of a powerful magnifying glass or microscope.
Roy
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Post by royldoc on Jan 9, 2015 0:08:03 GMT -6
Been wanting a 150 size trike to round out my collection. I think I'll get me one of them. Don't like the fact of no storage. But the cool factor and ease of getting to stuff without taking plastic off more than makes up for it.
Roy
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