headlights out

my headlight wasnt working today on my way home from work. high and low are both out. the filament on the bulb looks fine. im not getting continuity on the low beam wire but the high beam doesnt work either. are they connected somewhere? the ground seems to be ok. the fuse looked all rusty and it says its a 10 amp but the only one i had (a 10 amp) had a thin wire compared to the one that was on there. i dont know if that matters. voltage on the high beam is only .05 im not too good at reading wire diagrams but it looks like the low beam only goes the switch. what should i do next? im horrible with electrical problems!!

From your description it sounds like the wiring connections are rusty? The fuse panel should be upgraded to a new style fuse block that uses spade fuses. At the minimum you should pull out each connector one at a time, sandpaper or steelwool them clean, spray it down with electrical contact cleaner, and use some di-electric grease on them when you plug it back together.


You will need to find out why you have no voltage to your headlight, there must be a bad connection somewhere.

Post edited by: OKC_Kent, at: 2007/04/23 23:12

ok, where did you get your fuse box from?

Booncha57 wrote:

ok, where did you get your fuse box from?

A few of us here have gotten our fuse boxes THIS SITE.

On that web link above, it looks like the first one would work great. You want a fuseblock where each circuit is separate; as some others have circuits ganged together and you don't want that type.

When you get that squared away you can work on your headlight, many of us have upgraded to a 55/60w Halogen light. You can buy a sealed beam halogen, or a replaceable bulb type. The difference in lighting from the stock lamp is great.

In my experiences odd electrical problems have a more than likely chance of being a ground problem or loose connections. Loose connections can be located rather easily by wiggling the connections but ground problems can be a real bitch to find, especially intermittant problems.
Re: the H4 halogen headlight replacement. I just did this upgrade to mine. I can't speak to the increased brightness, yet, but it does seem to be drawing a bit more power and giving my electric start a few more fits.

ronjones, my Canadian model 77 650-B1 was manufactured with the headlights always on as per the regulation. But, it did not come equipped with the starter/headlight lockout feature of later models. So I installed my own.

Now when I press the start button two separate things happen in sequence. First the headlight (Hi and Lo) is disconnected. When and only when this is done, then the starter is allowed to be connected. When I release the starter button the reverse happens. I used two relays of the same type that I used with my Coil Power Relay Mod in a series configuration. Its easier for spares and troubleshooting that way. I carry a spare relay tie-wrapped to the frame and out of site.

I like this because its much easier on my battery. Would this help with your starter?

I had more relays and tie-wraps left over so... I was having a problem with the Bleu Hi/Lo indicator light always on for both positions. So I used yet another relay to route the power more directly and I used a larger gauge wire to the Headlight in order to reduce losses. Now the only thing that goes through the handle bars to the Hi/Lo switch is the much lower current relay coil voltage. The switch seems to like that and my Bleu indicator is indication correctly now.

So, when I look under my left side cover now, I see 3 relays looking back. By the way I tie-wrapped (very loosely) each relay to the frame to cut down on vibration and I tie-warped the relay to the relay base assembly so that they don't separate over time. Don’t ask how I know!

Hope this helps. Best of success!

Post edited by: bill_wilcox100, at: 2007/04/24 11:58

Hey Bill, this is a great site, I give info/opinion to one member that needs help and another member offers me help, thanks.
I like your relay idea and will keep it in mind, if I ever really need to do this upgrade. I'm not a big electronics guy, wiring up the relay for WG's coil mod about taxed my abilities to the limit. I'm not in a big need to do a relay mod for the headlight because my kickstart is working fine, although I may put in an on/off switch for the light, I hate that always on headlight and not having a choice as to wether I'll use it or not. On my last bike a PO had installed a headlight on/off switch.
Thanks again for the thought.
Ron

Glad this was useful... if a little long.

By the way I agree with you! Not being able to switch off your lights when you want is not my cup of tea either but its the highway code, what can I tell you.

I have been considering a circuit that will not turn on the lights until the start button is pushed then is released AND the motor is running. I'm not sure if it should be timer based or actually sense the motor RPM or sense the battery being charged by the Alternator or the alternator outputting normally. They all have their advantages and disadvantages. Wouldn’t want to lose my lights at night because just one of those failed.!!! Its all about the hunt.

Sorry, Booncha57 I don't mean to hijack your thread man. Happy biking all.

PS
If you need more information on these relay circuits I made very detailed schematics/pictorials while I was doing this last summer. If there were a drawing file on the site I guess I could have posted it for others to view, evaluate, critique and maybe even use. Or maybe there already is a place for stuff like this here... somewhere???

Post edited by: bill_wilcox100, at: 2007/04/24 15:53

bill_wilcox100 wrote:

Glad this was useful... if a little long.

By the way I agree with you! Not being able to switch off your lights when you want is not my cup of tea either but its the highway code, what can I tell you.

I have been considering a circuit that will not turn on the lights until the start button is pushed then is released AND the motor is running. I'm not sure if it should be timer based or actually sense the motor RPM or sense the battery being charged by the Alternator or the alternator outputting normally. They all have their advantages and disadvantages. Wouldn’t want to lose my lights at night because just one of those failed.!!! Its all about the hunt.

Sorry, Booncha57 I don't mean to hijack your thread man. Happy biking all.

PS
If you need more information on these relay circuits I made very detailed schematics/pictorials while I was doing this last summer. If there were a drawing file on the site I guess I could have posted it for others to view, evaluate, critique and maybe even use. Or maybe there already is a place for stuff like this here... somewhere???<br><br>Post edited by: bill_wilcox100, at: 2007/04/24 15:53

Hey Bill, I'm not sure but I think, if they are in jpg form they can be added to the knowledge base.
Actually, I'd be interested in your schematics.
Thanks,
Ron

no problem bill, im gonna get out there tomorrow night and get to the bottom of this.

Hay Booncha57, do us a favour and put your location in your signature man. You may get a few more relevant replies for riders close by... you never know! But its just a suggestion though.

Plus I find it really neat knowing that I can share with folks a long way off.

Cheer!