The Knowledge - Velocette Owners Club

#3358 Have done as you suggested and dynamo motors in an anti clock wise direction. I have also had
an output from it and a system output but the charging is intermittent.....I have a field resistance of 4.6
ohm's I have hard wired the k-tec to earth on the battery which is +ve earth. I've come to the conclusion
that the k-tec is shot.....will try to get another one. Do you know who makes them, also is they a way of
testing the k-tec to prove it functionality.......
#3361 Sounds like your reg may be shot. I don’t know where you would get another K-Tec. A few
people I have spoken to don't rate them too highly, but I have no personal experience of them. I have
got V-Reg units on 2 of my bikes and (touch wood) have had no problems. They are available pos or
neg earth, and can be made 6 or 12 volts. I got mine from AO Services. 01953 884681.
L #3872 I switched the sidelight on and smoke appeared from headlight shell. The brown/white
wire cover from the light switch appears to have melted slightly. I do not know where to start looking for
the fault. Brake light and horn work. Any advice greatly appreciated.
#3873 Tracing an electrical fault in a vintage motorcycle or car is a comparatively easy task, -
especially if there has been smoke & a melted wire ! treat the problem as if the electricity is water
running through a pipe, (the wires) - smoke /melted wire equals a leak somewhere to the frame/tinware
of the machine, - that is where the water is running out on to the 'ground' Work away from the ammeter
power source, in this case it has come as far as the main switch without problems, - but somewhere
from there on, & PAST the melted wire, there is a 'leak' to ground, (earth) most probably a wire rubbed
bare or even a wire broken & fallen off a connection & sitting on the surrounding metal work. In your
problem it has to be somewhere along the 'side light' (?)/ taillamp wiring, but there is also the possibility
that an instrument panel illuminating globe, (speedo, ammeter illumination etc.) has a wire touching
metal . If you have been 'servicing' your machine in a major way immediately before the 'fire' occurred,
go straight to where you have been working, it quite often happens that a wire gets 'pinched' under a
bolt head, or between 2 adjoining pieces of metal work, - this happens all the time ! Circuits
(waterpiping) vary, & in quite a lot of cases have been modified over the years to the owner's choice &
extra fuses installed, but certainly not in your case, as a blown fuse would have been the result instead
of the outpouring of smoke. One would have to conclude that you are not proficient in the use of an
electrical 'multi meter' tester, but certainly in your case, a pair of good eyes should solve the problem !
let us know the result
#3896 Thanks for the advice. The problem was on the tail lamp wiring, under the tank, not in the
headlight where the smoke was coming from and where I was looking. I insulated the bare bits of wire
in headlight and still had a problem. I had forgotten about the tail light being on the same circuit. I
insulated a wire under the tank and the system seems ok now.
L #3904 My dynamo won't charge, it was o.k. till couple weeks ago and just suddenly stopped
charging, I sprayed the rotor with WD40 and it started charging again for 2-3 miles then stopped again
sprayed WD40 again and it charged again did this several times then stopped charging completely, I
fitted new brushes and it worked ok for a few minutes then stopped charging again, any ideas what it
could be? I have recently had a transistorized regulator fitted as it was over charging I have checked all
of the connections and they are sound.
#3906 Dave, make sure that the commutator is clean (rub with fine emery cloth and rinse w/contact
cleaner) and that the brush holders are smooth and clean inside. If playing with the brushes helped,
that's probably it. They are probably just sticking. I wouldn't blame the regulator. My 60W Lucas has
done the same thing. Stuck brushes.
#3907 It's better to use sandpaper because emery is metallic! Well, that's what I learnt when I was an
apprentice motor-fitter.
#3912 I concur with Tom. If I don't use the Venom for more than a couple of days I always have to take
off the dynamo end cover and "waggle" the brushes, WD40 helps. When I use the bike every day I
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