Turn signal problem and now no ignition - wtf?

ground wire issue, easy enough, check all grounds

stonemaster wrote:

ground wire issue, easy enough, check all grounds

You make it sound so simple . . .

Annnnnd we're back.

Dirty connections on the engine kill switch.

I feel so good right now.

EDIT: False Alarm. Fuses keeps blowing. At least I figured out where I was losing power to the rest of the bike. Now I just have this persistent blown 20A fuse problem.

Print this out, as it's a good electrical troubleshooting procedure:


The Dreaded Shorting/Intermittent Electrical Problem!

Here is the most basic method I know(Taken from www.kzrider.com by member Patton)

1. Charge your battery and have it load tested if you can. The floating ball hydrometer can be used to check the specific gravity of the charged cells in the battery.

2. Disconnect the Black lead from the (-) Battery terminal... or Red from the (+) Battery terminal, it does not matter which one.

3. Connect one of the following test setups in series with the Battery terminal and lead:
3.1 A 12 V light bulb,
3.2 A 12 V test light,
3.3 A 12 V test buzzer or,
3.4 A 12 V horn... you get the idea.

4. With the Ignition Switch OFF, go through your harness and wiggle the wires while looking/listening for the test setup to go on/start buzzing.

5.With the Ignition Switch ON, repeat the test except this time the looking/listening for the test setup to go off/stop buzzing.

6. Be prepared to open the Ignition switch and check/test for solder joint failure and or circuit board micro breaks (don't ask how I know this ).

7. Be prepared to pull the wires out of the Head Light to test for failures at or near the grommet.

8. Be prepared to open the harness at or near the Steering Neck for failures. This is where wires tend to exhibit fatigue due to repetitive movement.

9. Be prepared to open the left and right switch gear to search for rust and or broken parts. CAUTION: watch out for flying springs, ball bearings and stuff. Do indoors on White sheet (again don't ask ).

10. Be prepared to follow the heavy gauge wire from the Starter Solenoid (Relay) to the starter for bare wire exposure. Especially near bends and grommets.

11. If you can reproduce the fault symptom your are pretty much home free. Be prepare to find and repair/replace any internal wire breaks, insulation break downs, exposed wires, rubber grommet failures, etc. Often, shrink tubing will solve the problem temporarily until something better can be done.

12. I use a very good electrical contact cleaner/preservative called De-oxit made by Caig Labs in San Diego Ca. Their website is www.deoxit.com It can be purchased at Radio Shack and any other electronic supply store. I use it on all of my motorcycle’s electrical connectors , in my home entertainment center’s stereo patch cords and cordless phones charging cradles.

Thanks. I'll be sure to go through this when I get a 12 V buzzer or light or something.

After taking a ride for a block the 20A main went again. Could this be a reg/rec problem?

What happens is I ride for a block, come to a stop sign, and the 20A main fuse blows as soon as I rev it into 1st gear.

Could be a wire or more rubbing through the insulation when the handle bars are turned.I'd get the buzzer or test light connected and prepare to spend some time figuring out where the problem(s) is/are.

Other than a electrical short to frame during a ride...

Good (ideal) battery to frame/engine ground?

Does the 20AMP (stop using the 30amp :whistle:) fuse blow in a non ride?

BTW, in an emergency as you did, I'd do the same so don;t take it personally....

Aim a cooling fan on the engine, start and warm it up a couple minutes as normal... rev it and hold to 3-4K, fuse blow.... Twist the throttle up to ~ 5K, don't hold, fuse blow....

Remove the tank and get yourself some longer fuel line... Start the engine, leave at idle and jiggle the electrical harness, tap the bar controls/switches... Fuse blow?

If no problems in above....
Rectifier/regulator most likely cause of fuse blowing during a ride where a rectifier diode is shorting to ground or one of the regulator SCR's is doing the same...
Could be through current/heat break downs, reverse voltage breakdowns, age of electrical components etc....

Have you gone through the OEM electrical test and measurements... If not, good time to do so....

Also, clean all your connector pins and inline bullet connections with Emory cloth.... You don't have to grind down metal, just clean the oxidization off them pins.... You may be surprised in the out come....

OMR

EDIT: BTW, don't rely on buzzers, 12Vdc lamps etc... for they will activate in non true 12Vdc.... Sure, they're ok just to see if current is flowing or not but at what voltage is the question....

Get your self a meter, preferably with diode measurement capabilities this way you can check your rectifier diodes as well.... Only way to go and you can pick a fairly decent one up @ $20-$40....

Going through and cleaning all connections now with deoxidizer and cloth.

Noticing burn marks on black/yellow wire (ground?) coming out of the regulator/rectifier. This is the ground wire for most of the lights on the bike no?

alexnelson wrote:

Thanks. I'll be sure to go through this when I get a 12 V buzzer or light or something.

After taking a ride for a block the 20A main went again. Could this be a reg/rec problem?

What happens is I ride for a block, come to a stop sign, and the 20A main fuse blows as soon as I rev it into 1st gear.

Check for a short where the switchpod mates to the handlebars. That would explain why it pops when you roll the throttle

The black/yellow wire is wire from the reg to ground. Most of the bikes ground wiring is blk/yel. If the regulator/rectifier is shorted inside and is shunting the stators output to ground through that wire, it could be enough to fry it. Sounds like a bad reg to me.

Kawickrice wrote:

Check for a short where the switchpod mates to the handlebars. That would explain why it pops when you roll the throttle

I couldn't see anything too suspect in there. Besides, it doesn't blow when I roll the throttle while in neutral. Only when engaging first gear and then rolling the throttle.

polkat wrote:

The black/yellow wire is wire from the reg to ground. Most of the bikes ground wiring is blk/yel. If the regulator/rectifier is shorted inside and is shunting the stators output to ground through that wire, it could be enough to fry it. Sounds like a bad reg to me.

I'm starting to think this too. Would this explain why the fuse only seems be blowing after a block of riding? The stator gets enough of a charge to the rectifier but because it's not working properly a fuse goes?