Engine won't stay running; need help

Nice.
Steve

You have to renew your fork oil, seals and dust caps.
How old are your tires? Be careful when driving with old parts = unpleasant surprises.

Yeah, that's on my short list of things to do. Tires are in great shape, but old. They are on a list too, but forks are ahead of them. Front tire is original to the bike. Back has been changed once.

Question about the blown fuse:
Was it glass? If so, was the link just melted, leaving the inside of the glass tube clean & clear? Or, was the inside of the glass blackened?

Difference is, a melted link in a clean glass tube is from simple overcurrent, such as too much continuous load. (Example - too many added lights for a given fuse.). If the inside of the glass tube is blackened, that's a symptom of a direct short to ground. whereas the link breaks the circuit while under enormous current, resulting in a massive spark that stains the inside if the glass tube. Knowing the difference can make troubleshooting easier.

Another thing we've seen on the old OEM fuses: the fusible link is connected to the end caps by solder joints. The main fuse, especially, runs quite warm. Repeated thermal stress at the solder joints will crack them, leading to all sorts of unpleasant & mysteriousl-intermittent electrical gremlins.


Good Ridin'
slmjim & Z1BEBE

Shit, I don't remember, and probably threw the fuse away already. I'll look around for it. Thanks for the info. Very good stuff to know.

20 or 30 year old tires are a death wish. All of those little surface cracks on the sidewalls and in the tread grooves are blowouts in the making.
If there is any oil left in the left fork, when it starts to leak, there is a good chance it will leak onto the front brake, rendering it useless.
We all understand the joys of riding, but those two problems can lead to disaster. Please take care of them before they take care of you.