0
Yesterday I rode for about 2hrs with my jacket cranked up to max heat.
Most of the riding was back roads and twisties at a slow pace due to the "Is that water or ice?" factor. In general I was freezing, the jacket didn't seem to put out enough heat.
Then I get on the highway and blast home and warm up which really seems strange.
When I got home I plugged the bike into the battery tender and it charged the battery for about 20 minutes.
One thing I noticed is the tender tries to keep the battery at something like 13.6 volts, whereas the service manual says the battery should be charged to 12.x volts. Could the bike's charging system be letting it drop back down to 12.x volts?
I had tried using a voltmeter on the plug for the jacket while the bike was idling, it was putting out 12.x volts, I forget exactly how much. (This was earlier in the winter)
Should I try idling the bike with the jacket plugged in and on max heat and then check the voltage at the battery? Any other tests I can do to see if it's charging correctly?
When I got home it still cranked the engine to life instantly, so apparently it's not draining the battery heavily... just curious in case I end up using the jacket a lot when I go on a longer trip for several days or a week.
Last time I asked about this Randy had mentioned the wattage of all his accessories and how his bike was charging correctly. If I recall correctly my jacket draws a heavier wattage than all the stuff he mentioned combined. (77watts according to gerbing)
(Wishing I had taken some EE courses)
Ben