CB1100 Alternator

[Houtman_imp]

Thanks, why did the field coil type reduce HP loss when the battery didn't need charging? Was power to the field coil cut (using some sort of feedback mechanism)?

Brushes on the CBX lasted between 10 and 15 thousand miles , always had a spare set with me and easy to change on the road.
Early CBX 's were often made redundant because owners were afraid of an expensive repair or new alternator .Brushes were very cheap.

What do you mean they were made redundant?
The CB1100 type, with its permanent magnets is so simple compared to the other two types that I think there must be some downside to it or why would they have gone to so much trouble to use electromagnets on the rotor?

What do you mean they were made redundant?
The CB1100 type, with its permanent magnets is so simple compared to the other two types that I think there must be some downside to it or why would they have gone to so much trouble to use electromagnets on the rotor? With redundant I meant that often the owner did not repair the bike and just let it sit in his garage/shed and after a while tried to sell it.
Once I bought a 79 CBX with only 14000 miles on it for $ 600 in Upstate NY and the only thing it needed was a new set of brushes. The bike would not charge/run and owner afraid of repair bill

After some years later the cheap and easy repair became well known and than the bikes were not that cheap any longer !