[Mr.Wilson]

I had my bike apart because the guide plug was leaking. when I pulled the left cover and set it on my stool so as not to put pressure on the wires to the stator, as it is fairly new. I noticed however that there was some bare wire floating, not touching any metal, and the insulation has peeled away. I have no clue as to why this happened, or how it happened. Any ideas as to how to insulate this wire? It is in oil, so tape won't do any good.

 

[smilie]

Cut it, install heat shrink tube, solder wire together and cover with heat shrink tube.

 

[Mr.Wilson]

thank you , I will give it a shot.......whats the worst that can happen? it will work or it wont,right?

 

[smilie]

You do it right, it'll work. If it's one of the 3 yellow wires and the insulation is burnt, you may want to redo your connector. In that case, you eliminate the plug and solder all wires and cover with the heat shrink.

 

[Ramie]

If it were me i would consider replacing the stator while you have it apart. You don't mention how old your ride is or what it is which you should always do when you post but i'm not sure i would want to chance it not happening in the future.

Your call,
good luck

 

[adlowe]

We've sure got solutions! Impressive since we have absolutely no idea what wire or where it's located. Was it inside the crankcase cover and floating in oil? Was it outside the crankcase cover and floating in space? Was it dangling from the wire harness? I have no idea. I don't even know what bike we're talking about.

 

[smilie]

The way I read the post, he pull the left cover and exposed the stator. He also mentions the wire is in oil. Now I may have jumped to conclusions here, but on my shadows that says "stator wire". Feel free to correct me if I missed my guess, as I'm certainly no expert.

 

[adlowe]

He also mentions the wire is in oil.

I read it that way, too. First time. When I went back I was less sure. He doesn't actually say it was floating "in oil" or that it was even attached to the stator. You may be completely right. No way to tell from the info available. Go back and re-read his post with the assumption that the wire was hanging of the stator harness. Then again with the assumption that it was dangling from the wire harness. I think you'll see what I'm trying to get at: we don't have enough info to reliably help because most of what we know is based on what we're assuming he means.

 

[smilie]

Yup. Kinda vague I have to agree. You know what they say about assuming. Maybe he'll come back with more specifics.

 

[Bigboy Al]

we regards to bare wires, you can also pick up liquid electrical tape (sold at lowes & HD)
Apply thin layers and it will cover/seal any bare wires. I've used it in my switch housing.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Gardner-...e-Black-LTB-400/100119178#product_description

 

[ttexastim]

Agree with others ... more info needed. Or a picture. There's a lot of ways to interperet the OP.

 

[jpr1968]

we regards to bare wires, you can also pick up liquid electrical tape (sold at lowes & HD)
Apply thin layers and it will cover/seal any bare wires. I've used it in my switch housing.

Gardner Bender 4 fl. oz. Liquid Electrical Tape - Black-LTB-400 - The Home Depot

Doesn't say if it is impervious to heat or petroleum, which could be a real problem.

 

[John Hopkins]

I had my bike apart because the guide plug was leaking. when I pulled the left cover and set it on my stool so as not to put pressure on the wires to the stator, as it is fairly new. I noticed however that there was some bare wire floating, not touching any metal, and the insulation has peeled away. I have no clue as to why this happened, or how it happened. Any ideas as to how to insulate this wire? It is in oil, so tape won't do any good.

Ouch..

I hope you haven't cut that wire yet..

You say the stator is fairly new.. so take a good clear photo of the stator and a close up of the wire you are concerned about.. it is possible that one of the wires was trapped or damaged during stator assembly but it is also possible that the bare wire may not be as bare as you think it is.. transformer, stator, and motor wires are all 'bare' looking but are coated in a varnish that insulates them from touching each loop as they are wound together in a coil.. if they were really bare they would create a shorted turn which would convert the stator into an electric heater.

John.

 

["Captain D"]

Most alternators have the "inside wires"visible, which have a coating on them which is semi transparent...
I do NOT understand the term "floating"???
Everything inside the stator cover SHOULD be mounted...

Too many variables for me to FULLY get a grasp of this "Problem" >
LLLL Bring it over, the lift is empty right now...
Dennis

PS > I`m only 3 hours away

 

[Mr.Wilson]

the bike in question is a 98 1100 ace. inside the stator cover, the yellow wires that come through the guide before they pass through the gromet. the 3 wires where they come out of the guide then there is a space before the gromet that the wires are visible. only one of the wires is missing the yellow insulation, the silver conductor is visible due to the lack of the yellow insulation. i do not know what happened to the insulation or when it happened. i do know that i checked the stator before i started the proceedure to replace the guide plug seal due it leaking, (btw ADLOWE, thank you so much for your instructions they helped greatly, and have me confident that the repair will work flawlessly), that is when i noticed the bare spot on the wire. it is about 3/4 inch long section that is torn away. i could not find any place that would make me suspect it was from rubbing any metal but i plan on using some fabric tubing to help insulate the wires through the guide area and to the gromet. THIS AREA DOES GET OIL IN IT ( IT IS A WET AREA). the question is will cutting the wire installing the shrink tubing, then soldering the wire back together and sliding the shrink tubing into place and apllying the heat to shrink the tubing, going to be the best way to fix the wire? then i was planning on wrapping the wires with some fabric to further protect all the wires from rubbing or whatever caused the problem in the first place.

 

[Mr.Wilson]

I added the info you guys asked for......... any responses?

 

[Furball Zen]

Its not rubbing, its melting the insulation due to crappy connectors or over charging. Its a widely known issue with the older bikes. Heat shrink should be ok, but i would use a waterproof crimp terminal instead. They have ones that you crimp and then heat with a heat gun that melts it around the wire and creates a barrier.

 

[adlowe]

it is about 3/4 inch long section that is torn away. i could not find any place that would make me suspect it was from rubbing any metal but i plan on using some fabric tubing to help insulate the wires through the guide area and to the gromet. THIS AREA DOES GET OIL IN IT ( IT IS A WET AREA). the question is will cutting the wire installing the shrink tubing, then soldering the wire back together and sliding the shrink tubing into place and apllying the heat to shrink the tubing, going to be the best way to fix the wire? then i was planning on wrapping the wires with some fabric to further protect all the wires from rubbing or whatever caused the problem in the first place.

If I've got it right, you found some yellow insulation stripped away from 1 of the 3 yellow wires. The stripped area is inside the the crankcase cover between the stator windings and the rubber oil-seal grommet.

What moves in that area is the magnet the rotates inside the stator windings to produce electricity. You will NOT see it move unless the engine is turning. VERY BAD to have a bare wire in there! These wires are supposed to have a strip of formed metal holding them up against the side of the crankcase cover. Take a look at this picture to see what I mean:

If it doesn't look like that then your stator is NOT installed correctly. I would not be cutting the wire just to slip on a piece of shrink tube. I'd be wrapping it in high-quality electrical tape then getting it stowed where it belongs.

That picture, btw, is the factory installed stator photographed before removal. I think I've got pictures of the replacement but they would show my work.

 

[Mr.Wilson]

yes adlowe, the picture is correct. the space I saw the bare spot in is close to the grommet where the wire exits the casing and the retainer piece, just across from the retainers bolt. the only space inside the cover, close to the grommet the wires are visible. Mine seems to have more slack than what your picture shows. that is the area the wire is bare. the insulation was inside the guide, guess it "floated" into there, I don't really know. No burn marks were found, no irregularities of any kind were found. took the stator out and inspected it, no burn marks. called Ricks,cause they made it, but they wanted to sell me a new stator, not help with any ideas or solutions. their tech help is "oh yea, that sounds like a bad problem, we can get ya a new stator for $$$$"........ Why get a new one if this one isn't broken? I just want to repair a wire and keep using it. Is that possible? Should I replace a working part because the insulation on a wire came off? Whats the best repair for this?:???:

 

[Mr.Wilson]

View attachment 106577

HERE IS A PICTURE OF THE WIRE IN QUESTION. ps ...... I've learned my lesson about asking for help. from now on I will be as specific as possible with pics when I got them. Thank you guys.