Honda ATC Electical Conversion 83 200E & 84 200M

[Social Torture]

I have an 84 ATC200M that I have bolted an 83 ATC200E engine to. I have the engine from the 84 ATC200M that I am planning to do a complete rebuild.

The charging system on the 200E is not charging. After I rebuild the engine from the 200M, I'll be tackling the 200E engine.

Since I'm going to be tearing the engines down, anyway, is it possible to convert the electrical system to one that doesn't use a battery, such as that of an ATC200 or an ATC200S? Cheap batteries don't seem to hold up, and I'm not going to spend $100+ on a battery. I can justify rebuilding my engines. Has anyone here done this? If it can be done, I'm looking for some how to sources. I'm not too picky about the type of media. If for whatever reason that it can't be done, I would like to know why.

I should probably mention that I'm not afraid to build my own wiring harness. I plenty of material on hand to do that part of it.

Thanks in advance for any replies.

[Flossyb20]

There's really no reason to do that...the 200m and 200e motors will run just fine without a battery...the battery is only for the electric start (but will also power the headlights when the bike isn't running) - you should really just keep it all on there, in case one day you get tired of pulling that rope.

[Social Torture]

Stop the trike!

Flossyb20, if I run my Honda without a battery, won't that burn out my voltage regulator, light bulbs, and so on? Will the lights at least still work, at least?

If running it without a battery won't hurt anything, I'll definitely leave everything there.

I never turn the headlights on, on anything, when the engine isn't running anyway.

[Social Torture]

While I'm thinking about it, does anyone have any information, sources, links, and etc regarding how to rebuild ATC engines? I am a novice in the realm of mechanics, but I am a fast learner. I can teach myself by going at it, hands on if I have some reference material.

[redsox]

get a clymer manuel. they're online, but i like having the book. ebay has em for 10 or 15 bucks and they're pretty good. come to think of it, they have one manuel that covers both of your machines in both years. you'll be happy you got it. also, in regards to the battery. not necessary. wont hurt a thing.

[Flossyb20]

Redsox is correct, running without a battery won't hurt a thing...you're stator is designed to run the engine and lights as it is, so it won't overtax the system at all. As far as the rebuild, you can find the factory manual (or the link to one) on here if you search a bit. The factory manual does a great job, even shows you how to reseat the valves if needed. Besides, these are Hondas, and shouldn't need much more than a bore and piston (maybe clutches)

[Social Torture]

Thank-you, redsox. I will look for that clymer manual.