Tony Tranter is an acknowledged expert on motorcycle electrical systems having pioneered the training of motorcycle mechanics to City and Guilds standard. His book is now in its third edition and has become standard reading for students attending courses on motorcycle engineering and also for DIY mechanics wishing to unravel the mysteries of electrical systems.
Introduction
This book has been written to meet the needs of the practising mechanic, both professional and amateur, together with the increasing flow of student mechanics at further education colleges in the UK, and, in the US, in technical institutes running motorcycle mechanics courses. In the UK it will be of particular relevance to those following the City and Guilds of London Institute 3890 ‘Repair and Servicing of Motorcycles ’ course.
No previous knowledge of electricity is assumed and all terms are explained in a glossary at the end of the manual.
The reader will not find here a catalogue of electric circuits for all machines, but rather a book dealing with the principles of how and why things work. Armed with an understanding of fundamentals it will be easier to follow developments which will surely take place in electrical equipment design. There may be a description of components which do not at the moment figure in actual production machines but, in the opinion of the author, may appear in the future.
Modern motorcycles are remarkable examples of high technology and much of it is due to the electrical equipment designs of recent years. Electrical power requirements now demand generators of greatly increased output and because of the sensitivity of on-board electronic units, voltage regulators of high stability are needed. Not surprisingly these are also electronic!
The language of electronics is sometimes strange to beginners so a glossary of terminology is included as is emphasis on fault finding and testing.
Readers are introduced to the transistor, Zener diode and thyristor (silicon controlled rectifier) and other devices, for these vital rugged components lie at the heart of most electronic circuits found on the motorcycle. A basic understanding of the on-board computer, which finds so many applications in ignition, fuelling and chassis systems is now essential and is described in sufficient detail for most purposes.
For all this, it would be folly not to include an account of older electrical equipment for there are still many earlier motorcycles on the road; a description of dc dynamos and magnetos is therefore included.
Tony Tranter
Coverage
Ignition and combustion explained
Spark plug types and construction
Ignition : Magnetos, coil and battery, CDI, transistor and digital
Fuel injection and engine management
Alternators, DC generators and starters
Batteries
Lighting and signalling
Braking and traction control systems
Electrical fault finding
Practical testing and test equipment
Contents
Introduction
Chapter 1 : The complete system
Chapter 2 : Electrical Basics
Chapter 3 : Ignition and combustion
Chapter 4 : Ignition – Coil and Battery
Chapter 5 : Ignition – Magnetos
Chapter 6 : Ignition - Capacitor Discharge Ignition (CDI)
Chapter 7 : Ignition – Transistor and Digital Ignition
Chapter 8 : Fuel injection
Chapter 9 : Engine management
Chapter 10 : Spark plugs
Chapter 11 : Charging – direct current (DC) generators
Chapter 12A : Charging – flywheel alternators
Chapter 12B : Charging – single phase alternators
Chapter 12C : Charging – three-phase alternators
Chapter 13 : Batteries
Chapter 14 : Lighting and signalling
Chapter 15 : Starter motors
Chapter 16 : Circuits and system components
Chapter 17 : Braking and traction control ( ABS and TCS)
Chapter 18 : Testing and fault finding
Reference
