07-05-12, 12:16 PM
Easy with a good battery, just look for volts rising as you bring the revs up. Should level out at about 14V when the regulator kicks in and dissipates any excess as heat. At middle of the rev range it ought to be able to maintain the battery voltage at that level even with the headlight on.
With a dead battery, not so easy to judge. You should at least be able to see some rise in voltage.
If it gets much over 14V the regulator has packed up in which case it'll kill a new battery. (You'd probably also notice lights being rather bright and the pong of boiling battery.)
With a dead battery, not so easy to judge. You should at least be able to see some rise in voltage.
If it gets much over 14V the regulator has packed up in which case it'll kill a new battery. (You'd probably also notice lights being rather bright and the pong of boiling battery.)