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Want to know how much electrical capacity a VT1100 has?

1K views 8 replies 4 participants last post by  ihavethespirit 
#1 ·
I can tell you what my 03 Spirit 1100 doesn't have,
Put on the highbeam flasher, 2 55w fog lamps and turn up the 100 watt amp to hear the music over the cross wind and your battery will drain to nothing.
Twodawdz and I went for a 320 miler on Saturday. Up 101 from LA and to Santa Maria, then a nice little twisty I found by accident a few years ago to 166 to New Cuyama. Stopped for gas and when I went to crack my 6 month old factory battery and it barely turned the starter and I needed a jump. Riding homw 120 miles in one shot with fog lamps and stereo OFF - my batter is fully charged and holding a charge.
If I ever run both drains at the same time, I have always turned one off about 5 minutes from stopping - just in case. Didn't this time and the result was that now I will also carry jumper cables along with a compressor and liter or 2 of gasoline- pretty soon I will either need a trailer or a Gold Wing -.....hmmmm....Honey something I need to talk to you about....
 
#2 ·
I also have two 55w auxilary lamps but they are only on with the low beams as during daylight hours I just use the hi beams, I also have an electric jacket liner and gloves, so far with my set up have had no problems, I also keep my battery tender jr hooked up when not riding.
 
#3 ·
Eldorado said:
I also have two 55w auxilary lamps but they are only on with the low beams as during daylight hours I just use the hi beams, I also have an electric jacket liner and gloves, so far with my set up have had no problems, I also keep my battery tender jr hooked up when not riding.
Which bike do you have? I wonder if there is a difference in electrical charging capability between our bikes? I ride every weekend so my battery doesn't get a chance to lose much between ride - but I did get a 'tender' - just haven't hooked it up yet.

Here is one for the rest of the forum - Twodawgzz taught me this - carry a spare ignition/gas cap key - if for some reason you can't turn off your bike - ie starter, battery etc - you will need the 2nd key for the gascap - that twodawgzz is a really smart guy but he doen's know how to spell :)
 
#4 ·
The pair of 55w spots put it right at the limit of output, add the extra 100w boom box and your about 85w over load, as you have found.

Get a mp3 player.

Btw, I was on the 101 several times today, from 405 to Oxnard and then back to 5, for work though, sigh, :(
 
#5 ·
rickbb said:
The pair of 55w spots put it right at the limit of output, add the extra 100w boom box and your about 85w over load, as you have found.

Get a mp3 player.

Btw, I was on the 101 several times today, from 405 to Oxnard and then back to 5, for work though, sigh, :(
Actually the music is a cluge job ( ask Mtn Bike Mike :) of a small 100w amp, 2 35watt speakers and my IPOD shuffle. Music in my helmet is as distracting to me as driving in a car with a cell phone - for me, ambient music doesn't distract me at all.- easy enough to do 1 or the other - just thought I would share my mishap- and Shadow's don't bump start easily - I tried..
 
#6 ·
ihavethespirit said:
Eldorado said:
I also have two 55w auxilary lamps but they are only on with the low beams as during daylight hours I just use the hi beams, I also have an electric jacket liner and gloves, so far with my set up have had no problems, I also keep my battery tender jr hooked up when not riding.
Which bike do you have? I wonder if there is a difference in electrical charging capability between our bikes? I ride every weekend so my battery doesn't get a chance to lose much between ride - but I did get a 'tender' - just haven't hooked it up yet.

Here is one for the rest of the forum - Twodawgzz taught me this - carry a spare ignition/gas cap key - if for some reason you can't turn off your bike - ie starter, battery etc - you will need the 2nd key for the gascap - that twodawgzz is a really smart guy but he doen's know how to spell :)
Well I ride a 02 Sabre, just checked on my electric jacket liner and it will draw 5 amps/65 watts at full power, I so far have only been runing it at about 1/4 as that's as much as needed so far, the gloves feed off the Jacket liner and draw 2.3 amps, as mentioned no problem so far as even at nite I switch between hi and low beams, I'm sure I'm close to max but have been able to manage the load so far.
 
#7 ·
Maybe someone knows if the Sabre has a bigger charging system but if it is a real cold night- turn off your foglights about 10 minutes before you shut off the bike, if you are planning on a restart :wink:
 
#8 ·
Right after I bought my wing, I was showing some members in my family all the kewl stuff it had.
I had all the lights on (4 headlights, 2 fog lights) stereo,cb, intercom. Motor off.
The battery went dead within 5 minutes. Luckily their driveway was steep enough that a short roll and pop the clutch, the bike fired right up.
Now the good part, I went for a short ride yesterday (150 miles), I see another cyclist parked along side the road, so I stop, turn everything off, and ask if he needed any help. No, he just stopped to take some photo's. So we chatted a bit about his FJR. And he takes off.
I hop on my wing, turn the key on push the button............ nothing. Again I am on a hill, but this time popping the clutch didn't work.
I am thinking crap, I am out in the middle of nowhere and the bike won't start.
I had trouble with the stereo earlier so now I am thinking, maybe a loose wire, but everything is working, it just won't crank.
Then I notice the kill switch is in the off position. :oops:
 
#9 ·
ashadowrider
Glen- Hawaii600 - said that when ever he rode with a Wing pack someone would hit his reverse lever- cause it won't start that way either, but easier to overlook.
 
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