Electrical Gremlins Part 5: The Reckoning?

[Son_of_Dog]

Here's the links to the previous threads relevant to this journey:

Blank Display, No Status Lights, And Other Issues

Electrical Gremlin Strikes Again

Indicators Not Functioning

Electrical Gremlins Part 4

There's a lot of dumb shit to take in here, so to summarize...

Blank display thread is resolved by charging the battery.

Electrical Gremlin strikes again thread is resolved by replacing the speedometer, because I put dryer sheets in the circuit board housing to absorb moisture behind the glass that had gotten in. I didn't take the dryer sheets back out, and the moisture that they absorbed sat against the circuit board and destroyed it.

Indicators Not Functioning is resolved by rewiring the auxiliary lights, the wires were pinched in installation, and they were shorting out.

Electrical Gremlins Part 4 is the same issue as what I'm going to talk about here; it remained "tentatively" resolved by replacing the battery and installing the starter rebuild kit from eBay.

Let me start by saying, I think the issue I was having is resolved. Time will tell.

The problem is that intermittently (of course) the bike will refuse to turn over the starter motor. I can clearly hear the click of the solenoid pushing the gear in the starter motor forward, but then nothing happens. I can release the start button and immediately push it again, and the same thing will happen for a few clicks until the bike decides to go ahead and turn the motor over. Once, I held the start button down until the solenoid "un-clicked," because the solenoid fuse in slot 9 burned out. For some reason, the bike had a 15a fuse in the slot, instead of 20a like the owner's manual states. I've replaced every one of the relays on separate occasions.

Before the most recent ride I went on, Bikes Blues and BBQ, I decided I was going to attempt to fix the issue from Electrical Gremlins Part 4 by rewiring and confirming the wiring logic of all of my dumb-ass additions to the bike.

I've replaced my stock horn with a pair of dual tone horns. I'm looking at what I did, and the way it's wired. It would appear that I replaced the stock horn entirely with a relay, and used that relay to trigger power from the battery to the new horns. This was confirmed by DEcosse as a good way to wire this, so I checked all of the connections and everything was solid.

I've already put in the new starter motor contacts and solenoid kit from ebay, and I've replaced the starter motor (motor portion only) with the toyota one. I've also doubled up my battery cables, as Mad Dog bought Mitzy's upgraded cables for his touring and gave me his old battery cables.

The most questionable wiring I found was this: my auxiliary lights, which are aftermarket, have a common ground for the DRL's and the actual headlight. The rough diagram that I've drawn below illustrates the issue. I had a ground that bypassed The OEM ground for the auxiliary lights. Spoiler: this was not the issue.

After a hard couple of days, it was done and I went to Arkansas. The problem persisted throughout the trip, and the rewiring had apparently had no particular effect on the starting issue. While riding some twisties somewhere in Missouri, it occurred to me that waaaaay back when I thought the ignition switch was bad on my bike I had wired a secondary "killswitch" wired into my ignition switch that sits under my left side panel and that it might be the problem, because it's just a 30amp rated standard toggle switch, no IP rating (not waterproof). It was also wired into the ignition switch power (white wire on my touring) with about 25' of 10ga wire, because I had previously thought it would be a good idea to have "extra wire" somewhere on the bike so that I'd have it if I needed it. Why I ever thought the "extra wire" needed to be wired into an active circuit, I cannot imagine.

I had rewired and confirmed the wiring logic of all of my previous additions to the bike, but I had forgotten about the switch. So, at the end of the week last week I lifted up the tank and cut the wires to the killswitch and soldered the power wire to the ignition switch back together. This makes the wiring to my ignition switch completely stock in configuration.

The issue has yet to repeat.

[Mad Dog]

So, on your next bike how will you approach adding accessories?..GRIN.

[barbagris]

1) Buy one already fitted with everything (and yes - I have found one or two)
2) Accept defeat before starting ( This is not in my playbook)
3) Use an Amplink or something from Axel-Joost. (or motogadget if you can think past the instructions)

[Son_of_Dog]

I think I'd be missing part of the experience of owning a motorcycle if I didn't constantly have it in pieces.

[Mad Dog]

I’ve worked on my Rockets more than any bike I’ve ever owned, I think it’s the nature of the beast.

[barbagris]

Now - convert that silly old speedo to a dead reckoning GPS system. There will be tears

[Son_of_Dog]

This did not fix the issue. On a lark I pulled the clutch switch and tried manually depressing it while attempting to start the bike. With only the clutch switch depressed nothing happens when I push the starter button. When I pull in the clutch lever, the bike clicks but does not start. Pulling the lever and depressing the clutch switch while pushing the start button causes a click but no start.

To sum up, the bike doesn't make a difference between the clutch switch being depressed or not. Does anyone have the part number for the clutch switch?

[1olbull]

I’ve worked on my Rockets more than any bike I’ve ever owned, I think it’s the nature of the beast.

Mine (two) have been blessings compared to all the work i had to do on my 2004 Kaw V2K.
If one chooses to enhance (fuck with) it, be very careful.

[Son_of_Dog]

Took the clutch switch apart, cleaned and re-greased it. Tested resistance across it and had no issues. When I tested it previously I didn't understand that the switch was open when it was depressed and not when it was released. The search continues.

[Big Bill]

Took the clutch switch apart, cleaned and re-greased it. Tested resistance across it and had no issues. When I tested it previously I didn't understand that the switch was open when it was depressed and not when it was released. The search continues.

One of my early instructors in Automotive technology said "all random electrical issues are ground problems unless proven otherwise"

47 years later he's still batting about
.850 on that statement.

[Son_of_Dog]

Here's the list of things I did last night:


Cleaned the ground on the bottom of the engine

Took the starter off

Cleaned the contacts on the starter

Opened the solenoid chamber on the starter, sprayed out the inside with carburetor cleaner (gave it ample time to air out)

Sanded the contacts a little to try to make better connection

Applied bulb grease to the contact ring in the solenoid

Clipped roughly 3/16" off the end of the solenoid spring

Reassembled everything

Applied bulb grease to the plastic connection to the solenoid on the top of the starter (generously)



Hopefully this does the trick, we will see.

[Widowmaker]

The clutch switch has a plunger that the clutch handle contacts to close switch for current to continue on its way, it gets wore sanded ground and doesn’t actuate that switch correctly, electrical is good, mechanical part of switch may be bad. I’ve changed 1 because of that.