Need advice for Buell dirt track project.?

Use a battery eliminator, at least.

Tends to work a little better than cruising around with Voltage Regulator sensing ZERO volts.

Forget using electric starter on any downgraded power supply,the low amperage is hard on the starter & will eventually ruin an expensive part.

You may also consider using a 12V Nimh Power pack,,,as used in RC's,Robots,Portable Electronics,Tools,etc.

Most have only miliamps,,,700~1200,etc.

But ya dont need much amperage to cold start the ignition/fuel system.

The standing voltage of the tiny batt-pack will make it start lots easier,and run more stable at low rpms,,,

and the Batt Eliminator will accomodate all else.

Most store-bought Eliminators are "$20" range.

All they are is large value Capacitors.

You'll have plenty to do besides making your own,,,

and ya can't build them much cheaper anyway.

Caps alone are $8~10.

Same for lil' Batt Packs,,about $20.

Most are just 10x 2A batteries.

I'd put 2~3 heavy blocking diodes in series on the (+) side to keep bike's output from trying to charge them.

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http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/BATTERY-ELIMINATOR-...

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http://cgi.ebay.com/12v-2-3-Amp-Hour-2300mah-NiCd-...

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http://cgi.ebay.com/Portable-12V-li-ion-rechargeab...

(Thats about 6~7 ounces,,, 3.75" Long x 2.5" wide x 7/8" thick----cigarette pack sized)

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These are 'bout what you'd need to isolate any small batt pack from bike's charging circuit.

3A each,,,make 2 sets >

twist 3 in parallel that'll give about 10A capacity,,,then connect the 2 sets in series.

Solder whatever connector on each end,,,case the thing in heat shrink.

Should block even a dead short,,,might wanna add a fuse holder for cheap insurance

Quicker to do than it is to type it:)

http://cgi.ebay.com/DIODE-DIODES-1N5406-3AMP-600VA...

Just some quick examples of what's available,,there's a variety of stuff out there.

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Buell oughta be an interesting dirttrack project.

I used to fool with that stuff.

Started with Triumph long time ago,,then went to Yamaha for a while.

Harley still had KR's,,,then they destroked their old XLR to make a 750 in 1970

They didnt work too good,so they made a whole new 750.

We stayed competitive for a short while at Yamaha,till everybody was able to get the '72 XR's & get them dialed in.

Yamaha quit Dirt Track,for all practical purposes,,,so I left and switched to HD's new XR's and ran those for several years till I quit messing with bikes .

Anyway...good luck with your project,,hope it turns out well.

Every bike I've owned has run just fine without any battery at all. The magneto (permanent-magnet alternator) puts out enough juice to run everything.Why don't you pull one of the battery wires off the battery when the bike is running at idle and see what happens? If it works, as it should, you can start the bike by kick or bump, or use the starter with external battery cables.