allanrps
XS400 Addict
I just finished upgrading my bike to a pma charging system, and since it went so well I figured I'd write up a guide for it to give back a little to the community. The fragmentary information from the thread we have on this forum isn't really of much help. This isn't a difficult project, but it is a project. If you have this guide and the right tools, it could be an evening of work. Of course, I had neither this guide nor the right tools, so it took me a week's work and a whole lot of dremel bits. It's not difficult though and I highly advise this as an off season project.
My volt readings turn up 14.45 volts from idle all the way up the revs, and up to 10 volts just from a solid kick.
Here's a parts list and my total cost, minus shipping:
Online:
ZL600 Stator and Flywheel ---------- $25
Banshee Stator Plate ------------------ $15
3 Phase Regulator/Rectifier --------- $13
XS400 Gasket 1L9-15461-00-00 --- $12
M16x1.5 Bolt ------------------------------ $5
Home Depot:
Sheet of Steel ----------------------------- $8
Wires ----------------------------------------- $15
Dremel Bits -------------------------------- $10
M6 Nuts ------------------------------------- $2
Total: $105
The power tools I used were a dremel, a drill, and a weak soldering iron. I don't advise it.....
The project is pretty cheap for the amount of return you get. I did get a steal on the stator & flywheel though, you may spend more. I highly advise getting the ZL600 Flywheel, or any other flywheels that may be identical to it. I purchased a banshee flywheel I planned to use, the ZL flywheel just happened to come with the stator I bought, but the fit of the banshee one was really poor. It barely sat on the crankshaft and stuck out so much that it barely reached the stator, and the cover would not fit without modification. The ZL600 flywheel on the other hand was a perfect fit. No modification needed, just bolt on and admire how perfectly it fit in the casing and over the stator. At first I was concerned because the flywheel seemed to be about half the weight of the stock one, but have no fear. Since the weight is distributed farther from the center of rotation, it actually carries the same or more inertia than the stock one. It feels to me as though it has more power coming off idle.
Step 1: Disassembly
I didn't take any pictures for this process, but it's pretty self explanatory.
Firstly, drain a pint or two of oil and put the bike on the center stand so that oil doesn't pour out of the bike. Put something down anyway, because some oil will drip.
Unscrew the 4 screws holding the "Yamaha" cover, and remove that. Under this, you will see three more screws. Unscrew these and set them aside for later, we will be using them. Then unscrew the casing bolts and remove the crankshaft cover. Unscrew the three screws holding the outer stator coil in the crankshaft cover and set those with the other screws, because we will be using those also.
Now turn the cover over and knock the coils out through the holes. You will notice that coming out of one of the wire bundles are two wires that attach to funky spots on the engine. These are the neutral and oil pressure indicator lights. Follow the wires to the plug up by the front of the battery box. Pull from the plug the four leads that are used for the connection of these two wires and then cut the plug. Reconnect these wires and shrink-wrap/tape.
The bolt holding the flywheel/rotor is probably on there pretty good. What you want to do is put the bike in 6th gear and lock up the rear wheel with a bar. Then just lean into it and get that bolt free. To take off the rotor, you are going to need the proper bolt to thread into it and against the crank shaft; it won't just fall off for you. It's an M16x1.5. With the wheel locked up like above, but in the opposite direction, thread the bolt in till it seats. Then put a wrench to it and hit the wrench with a mallet till the rotor falls off.
Remove with it the starter motor gears and chain. Pull the starter motor too, because you wont be using that anymore. Put the clutch-side gear with those bolts you saved, you'll be using that too.
Then use a 1 3/4 inch expansion plug to plug the hole where the starter motor was. It's got to be short enough to sit below the gasket seat, otherwise you will have to make a hole in the mounting plate to accommodate it.
Now that you've got a bare crankshaft, you should look something like this:
Step 2: Fabrication
Now's where things get fun. Unfortunately, if you have access to a CNC or some such metal working machine, you'll miss out on all the good times. If not, scrape together your cutting/sanding disks and drill bits. We will be making a steel plate to sandwich between the engine casing and the crankshaft cover, onto which we will mount the stator.
The first thing we are going to do is prepare the stator mounting bracket. You will need to cut a little notch in the top where the stator sits to accommodate the wire-routing screw on the underside. Here it is circled in red:
Next, you need to cut off some material that will get in the way of the cover, as well as the feet on it, which will allow it to sit at the ideal height on the mounting plate. Here's what the final product should look like:
Go ahead and bolt your stator on, using the bolts I told you to set aside and some blue loctite. They are a perfect fit. Here's what it should look like (I used other bolts because I had them, and I used those bolts to mount the regulator):
Now we're are on to making the mounting plate. Here's the final product we are looking for:
If you have access to a CNC machine, this will be a 30 min job in CAD. If you are a cheap bastard and only have a dremel and too much time, you can follow how I made it.
What I did was cut a rough shape with a dremel and then laid the crank shaft cover over it. I then marked two holes to drill where the bolt holes provided enough space. I drilled these out and bolted the piece onto the cover, using random bolts from dissassembly, then flipped it and did my best to drill the other holes perfectly centered from the other side.
Then I used the long bolts from the final drive cover to bolt the piece to the engine casing, up against the crankshaft. I then marked a hole to drill for the crank shaft and proceeded to drill and dremel that out. Now you can try to screw the piece onto the engine. If you're like me and your largest drill bit you have barely accommodates the screws, you will have to wiggle the holes a little because the threads in the casing don't line up perfectly with the holes on the cover.
Now try to drill out the holes for the aligning studs. As you can see in the picture, on mine I only drilled out the hole for one. That is because my bolt holes are so tight that they align the piece, and the hole drilled around the tip of the expansion plug holds up the other side. I'd advise you to not do it this way and just make sure you drill the holes out perfectly.
Now to drill the holes for the stator mounting bracket. This part is important because it is essential that the stator is perfectly centered. There isn't alot of clearance and you don't want your flywheel rubbing on your stator. Luckily I came up with a trick to do this. Before you do this, put the stator and bracket into the flywheel and set the flywheel on the crankshaft, over your mounting bracket. Look at where the hole is in the cover for routing the wires and think up how you will manage to get the wires there without the flywheel touching them. I tucked them under the upright part of the bracket and looped them back. Now, outline the three legs of your mounting bracket in this position. Go pick up that starter gear I told you to put aside. Now try to slip it into the hole in the middle of the stator. Doesn't fit. Now look at where the parts meet. The rim of the stator sits right on the taper of the starter gear. Now go pick up the bolt that held the flywheel onto the crankshaft. Take the washer off it and put it inside the starter gear. Almost a perfect fit. So, what I did was wrap the washer in tape to make it a perfect fit in the starter gear, then make a cardboard washer to go around the bolt. Secure your mounting plate to the engine casing and slip the stator and bracket over the crankshaft. Put the washer into the starter gear and the cardboard washer over the bolt. Slip the blot through the starter gear and the washer, and seat the starter gear onto the stator. Then thread the bolt into the crankshaft until the starter gear perfectly aligns your stator onto the mounting plate. Orient the stator to the position you marked and mark drill holes using a dremel with a drill bit. Make sure these are placed so that the bolt will not to hit one of the ribs on the engine case. Again, precision is important. I suggest you mark them so that the plate cannot rotate so that the wire alignment doesn't change. Take the part off and drill the holes, constantly checking to make sure the bracket still lines up with your markings and the holes perfectly.
Now that that's done, cut some holes into the plate to allow some oil flow. Then just bolt the part to the cover and dremel the edges down flush. Congrats! You saved some money. Bandage your wounds and move on.
My volt readings turn up 14.45 volts from idle all the way up the revs, and up to 10 volts just from a solid kick.
Here's a parts list and my total cost, minus shipping:
Online:
ZL600 Stator and Flywheel ---------- $25
Banshee Stator Plate ------------------ $15
3 Phase Regulator/Rectifier --------- $13
XS400 Gasket 1L9-15461-00-00 --- $12
M16x1.5 Bolt ------------------------------ $5
Home Depot:
Sheet of Steel ----------------------------- $8
Wires ----------------------------------------- $15
Dremel Bits -------------------------------- $10
M6 Nuts ------------------------------------- $2
Total: $105
The power tools I used were a dremel, a drill, and a weak soldering iron. I don't advise it.....
The project is pretty cheap for the amount of return you get. I did get a steal on the stator & flywheel though, you may spend more. I highly advise getting the ZL600 Flywheel, or any other flywheels that may be identical to it. I purchased a banshee flywheel I planned to use, the ZL flywheel just happened to come with the stator I bought, but the fit of the banshee one was really poor. It barely sat on the crankshaft and stuck out so much that it barely reached the stator, and the cover would not fit without modification. The ZL600 flywheel on the other hand was a perfect fit. No modification needed, just bolt on and admire how perfectly it fit in the casing and over the stator. At first I was concerned because the flywheel seemed to be about half the weight of the stock one, but have no fear. Since the weight is distributed farther from the center of rotation, it actually carries the same or more inertia than the stock one. It feels to me as though it has more power coming off idle.
Step 1: Disassembly
I didn't take any pictures for this process, but it's pretty self explanatory.
Firstly, drain a pint or two of oil and put the bike on the center stand so that oil doesn't pour out of the bike. Put something down anyway, because some oil will drip.
Unscrew the 4 screws holding the "Yamaha" cover, and remove that. Under this, you will see three more screws. Unscrew these and set them aside for later, we will be using them. Then unscrew the casing bolts and remove the crankshaft cover. Unscrew the three screws holding the outer stator coil in the crankshaft cover and set those with the other screws, because we will be using those also.
Now turn the cover over and knock the coils out through the holes. You will notice that coming out of one of the wire bundles are two wires that attach to funky spots on the engine. These are the neutral and oil pressure indicator lights. Follow the wires to the plug up by the front of the battery box. Pull from the plug the four leads that are used for the connection of these two wires and then cut the plug. Reconnect these wires and shrink-wrap/tape.
The bolt holding the flywheel/rotor is probably on there pretty good. What you want to do is put the bike in 6th gear and lock up the rear wheel with a bar. Then just lean into it and get that bolt free. To take off the rotor, you are going to need the proper bolt to thread into it and against the crank shaft; it won't just fall off for you. It's an M16x1.5. With the wheel locked up like above, but in the opposite direction, thread the bolt in till it seats. Then put a wrench to it and hit the wrench with a mallet till the rotor falls off.
Remove with it the starter motor gears and chain. Pull the starter motor too, because you wont be using that anymore. Put the clutch-side gear with those bolts you saved, you'll be using that too.
Then use a 1 3/4 inch expansion plug to plug the hole where the starter motor was. It's got to be short enough to sit below the gasket seat, otherwise you will have to make a hole in the mounting plate to accommodate it.
Now that you've got a bare crankshaft, you should look something like this:
Step 2: Fabrication
Now's where things get fun. Unfortunately, if you have access to a CNC or some such metal working machine, you'll miss out on all the good times. If not, scrape together your cutting/sanding disks and drill bits. We will be making a steel plate to sandwich between the engine casing and the crankshaft cover, onto which we will mount the stator.
The first thing we are going to do is prepare the stator mounting bracket. You will need to cut a little notch in the top where the stator sits to accommodate the wire-routing screw on the underside. Here it is circled in red:
Next, you need to cut off some material that will get in the way of the cover, as well as the feet on it, which will allow it to sit at the ideal height on the mounting plate. Here's what the final product should look like:
Go ahead and bolt your stator on, using the bolts I told you to set aside and some blue loctite. They are a perfect fit. Here's what it should look like (I used other bolts because I had them, and I used those bolts to mount the regulator):
Now we're are on to making the mounting plate. Here's the final product we are looking for:
If you have access to a CNC machine, this will be a 30 min job in CAD. If you are a cheap bastard and only have a dremel and too much time, you can follow how I made it.
What I did was cut a rough shape with a dremel and then laid the crank shaft cover over it. I then marked two holes to drill where the bolt holes provided enough space. I drilled these out and bolted the piece onto the cover, using random bolts from dissassembly, then flipped it and did my best to drill the other holes perfectly centered from the other side.
Then I used the long bolts from the final drive cover to bolt the piece to the engine casing, up against the crankshaft. I then marked a hole to drill for the crank shaft and proceeded to drill and dremel that out. Now you can try to screw the piece onto the engine. If you're like me and your largest drill bit you have barely accommodates the screws, you will have to wiggle the holes a little because the threads in the casing don't line up perfectly with the holes on the cover.
Now try to drill out the holes for the aligning studs. As you can see in the picture, on mine I only drilled out the hole for one. That is because my bolt holes are so tight that they align the piece, and the hole drilled around the tip of the expansion plug holds up the other side. I'd advise you to not do it this way and just make sure you drill the holes out perfectly.
Now to drill the holes for the stator mounting bracket. This part is important because it is essential that the stator is perfectly centered. There isn't alot of clearance and you don't want your flywheel rubbing on your stator. Luckily I came up with a trick to do this. Before you do this, put the stator and bracket into the flywheel and set the flywheel on the crankshaft, over your mounting bracket. Look at where the hole is in the cover for routing the wires and think up how you will manage to get the wires there without the flywheel touching them. I tucked them under the upright part of the bracket and looped them back. Now, outline the three legs of your mounting bracket in this position. Go pick up that starter gear I told you to put aside. Now try to slip it into the hole in the middle of the stator. Doesn't fit. Now look at where the parts meet. The rim of the stator sits right on the taper of the starter gear. Now go pick up the bolt that held the flywheel onto the crankshaft. Take the washer off it and put it inside the starter gear. Almost a perfect fit. So, what I did was wrap the washer in tape to make it a perfect fit in the starter gear, then make a cardboard washer to go around the bolt. Secure your mounting plate to the engine casing and slip the stator and bracket over the crankshaft. Put the washer into the starter gear and the cardboard washer over the bolt. Slip the blot through the starter gear and the washer, and seat the starter gear onto the stator. Then thread the bolt into the crankshaft until the starter gear perfectly aligns your stator onto the mounting plate. Orient the stator to the position you marked and mark drill holes using a dremel with a drill bit. Make sure these are placed so that the bolt will not to hit one of the ribs on the engine case. Again, precision is important. I suggest you mark them so that the plate cannot rotate so that the wire alignment doesn't change. Take the part off and drill the holes, constantly checking to make sure the bracket still lines up with your markings and the holes perfectly.
Now that that's done, cut some holes into the plate to allow some oil flow. Then just bolt the part to the cover and dremel the edges down flush. Congrats! You saved some money. Bandage your wounds and move on.
