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Message started by Toroso on 07/10/13 at 14:57:09

Title: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by Toroso on 07/10/13 at 14:57:09

OK, Monday evening I was goofing around on the drive and there were a number of start ups, but everything seemed fine when I put it in the garage. Tuesday night I come and hit the start button, just a clank, no start. I figured I drained the battery down. I put it on the battery tender and about a half hour later it fired right up. So I grab the helmet and hop on, clank, no start. I left it on the tender all night and today. Still no start. Seller said battery was new. All lights work are working. What should I look at?

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by EJID on 07/10/13 at 15:03:33

I would check the 3 main safety circuits...

1. Kill switch next to the throttle (embarrassing mistake, but all too frequent) :-[
2. Kickstand up, or bike in Neutral (switch has been known to fail)
3. Clutch pulled in (switch has been known to fail)

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by NormH3 on 07/10/13 at 15:05:25

I'm no expert, but I would check the battery anyway.

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by Toroso on 07/10/13 at 15:23:56

0E01020F4B0 wrote:

But if these were the case the starter would not engage at all, true?

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by verslagen1 on 07/10/13 at 15:28:36

you need to get a voltmeter on it, even new batteries fail.

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by justin_o_guy2 on 07/10/13 at 15:35:57

you did slap the battery a little,,test w/ volt meter, if low, check h2o level,( if unsure of it)& charge it if thats whsat it needs.. 12.5 is a hot battery,

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by WD on 07/10/13 at 15:37:11

Battery, if you have the stock wet cell, check the fluid levels. Summers in Dixie are tough on old fashioned batteries.

Once it is topped off, fluid and charge, and passes a load test, check the safeties.

1. Kickstand switch is notorious for giving out with no warning signs. Unhook the clip from the switch, jumper bike side connector box with a paperclip, if the bike starts, switch failed. Replace or bypass.

2. Clutch switch. See above.

3. Kill switch. Been seeing spiders in the garage? Open up the switch box, remove the egg casing... Been there... more than once... very annoying. Deleted the switch boxes (for looks more than anything else)...

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by Toroso on 07/10/13 at 16:32:05

6F7C380 wrote:

Once again, if it was a switch failure, would the starter not engage? I hear a clunk when hit the switch.

It is supposedly a AMG gel battery (new ha ha). I'm inclined to believe it is the battery, yet how long would a battery tender take to recharge it? The light is green, but soon as I try to crank it goes to red.

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by Toroso on 07/10/13 at 16:43:42

OK, I checked the battery with a meter. Got just a little over 1 volt. But! Is this a battery issue or something else in the system? Before I spring for a new battery.

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by justin_o_guy2 on 07/10/13 at 16:49:19

a tender isnt a charger, its a maintainer, take it to a parts store, letr them charge/test battery,
a charger, a no kidding battery charger, is a tool ive had for 30 years. everyone needs a charger, id get one with a " start" , charge , trickle switch, something that will toss some juice or just go easy, but its hard on a $5.00 float charger to charge one. aint happenin quick if its low. all the electrons have to go thru that whisker thin wire,

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by Toroso on 07/10/13 at 17:35:49

Alrighty now! Pulled the battery out and check it. 12.83 volts. Battery good! Based on my experience of rolling off the drive Monday I am now suspecting the kickstand switch. I will check that tomorrow evening.

May explain why it briefly started last night...

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by Toroso on 07/10/13 at 18:07:18

5645010 wrote:

1. Kickstand switch is notorious for giving out with no warning signs. Unhook the clip from the switch, jumper bike side connector box with a paperclip, if the bike starts, switch failed. Replace or bypass.

I think this may be the issue. It looks like a plug from pics I've looked at. How would I go about jumpering/bypassing it?

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by justin_o_guy2 on 07/10/13 at 18:38:51

you got an ohm meter? connect across wires coming from sidestand switch, operate switch by hand, should go from infinite to 0 ohm when pressed in, if not, the short between the wires going from the plug up to the bike, that way it will believe the stand is up,
now, be very careful not to ride off, stand down, & get hurt

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by WD on 07/10/13 at 19:31:59

I snipped the wires off and twisted them together when the bike was maybe 2 months old, so March or April of 1998. Lived in Long Beach MS at the time, between the salt and the humidity, it was toast. Covered the twist with a wire nut, no problems since then (from that circuit). I've also deleted/bypassed the clutch switch on my Savage and Lisa's 96 800 Intruder. Plus her clutch switch.

Failure prone disasters in the making. They normally fail in the backside of nowhere, in the rain, at night, with no cell coverage.

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by Toroso on 07/11/13 at 16:40:09

OK, out of the bike battery tested good 12.84 volts. Kickstand switch removed and bypassed. Clutch switch jumpered. Still no start, just the starter going clank. What next?

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by justin_o_guy2 on 07/11/13 at 16:53:44

battery ios hot, starter goes clank,, sure its t5he stareter & not the solenoid? if youre sure its the starter, then put that thing in 5th or whatever *& turn the motor , or pull the plug, but you need to see the motor turn over,

or, is this a model that can lose the started gear?

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by Toroso on 07/11/13 at 17:04:21

66797F7865625363536B79753E0C0 wrote:

Well, there you have me. The starter is NOT turning the engine over. I just hear a single clank. Could be the solenoid. What does that do?

Quote:

or, is this a model that can lose the started gear?

I don't know what that means.

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by justin_o_guy2 on 07/11/13 at 17:16:58

awwrite, put your hand on the solenoid, hit the start button.

if you feel it click & thats where the clank is from, the touch the starter, hit button, feel there,, if nothing, solenoid isnt passing current
or, starter is dead
if it clanks
( what year model?0)

You may need to pull the starter

Guys, i am 1 handed
i know others know this stuff
help this huy out

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by Toroso on 07/11/13 at 17:38:35

I hate to be a pain, but I am lost here.

I don't feel anything from the solenoid. I don't feel anything from the starter. The clank I hear seems to be coming from the engine itself.

I feel it is something electrical because during all this it did once crank up just as normal.

Could the rectifier be an issue? I remember the seller telling he had a hard time getting it to crank once and it turned out to be the rectifier.

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by verslagen1 on 07/11/13 at 17:51:57

every once in awhile, a connector under the seat will pull loose.
3 Wire connector that goes to the starter relay.

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by savagerider87 on 07/11/13 at 18:43:02

try checking the starter button contacts inside the handlebar controls (under the kill switch) if theres any corrosion on the contacts she wont spin and itll clunk

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by oldNslow on 07/11/13 at 18:56:04

Quote:

OK, out of the bike battery tested good 12.84 volts. Kickstand switch removed and bypassed. Clutch switch jumpered. Still no start, just the starter going clank. What next?

Quote:

don't feel anything from the solenoid. I don't feel anything from the starter. The clank I hear seems to be coming from the engine itself

Quote:

Could the rectifier be an issue? I remember the seller telling he had a hard time getting it to crank once and it turned out to be the rectifier.

Forget about the rectifier for now. It's part of the charging system not the starting system. If the problem was in the charging system you would have a dead battery, but you said the battery was ok.

I'm confused by the "clank". There is nothing in the motor that can make noise when you hit the start button UNLESS the starter is trying to turn.

Note: What comes next is only valid if you are positive that your battery is ok. Did you actually take it somewhere and have it load tested. Just testing the voltage across the terminals only tells part of the story. A bad battery is the most common cause of a no start.

Touch the negative lead from your voltmeter to the engine case somewhere, touch the positive lead to the stud on the starter that has the wire hooked to it and push the start button. If you get a voltage reading pretty close to battery voltage and the starter isn't turning the engine, then you're going to have to pull the starter out and figure out why. If you get NO voltage at the stud when you hit the start button then the solenoid isn't sending the juice to the starter. That will give you - and us - a better idea of where to go next.

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by justin_o_guy2 on 07/11/13 at 19:20:31

you can get alligator clips that push onto your test leads, so you dont need 3 arms. radio shack

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by Dave on 07/12/13 at 06:40:34

It may be that the clank you are hearing from the engine is the decompression solenoid energizing and pulling the exhaust valve open. See if that noise is coming from the top of the engine and up in the bottom of the fuel tank.

If the decompression solenoid is working that tells you the starter button is working and the safety switches are OK. THe next thing to check is that the starter solenoid is receiving the signal to energize....you need to check with a voltmeter or test light at the wires that energized the starter solenoid. If that is getting power you then need to confirm the starter solenoid is energizing and sending power to the starter.

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by Toroso on 07/12/13 at 07:36:09

310A0710010D16100B030E11620 wrote:

I was listening to it last night and this is exactly what I was hearing! Loudest right at the top of the head, bottom of gas tank.

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by Toroso on 07/12/13 at 07:39:13

023C3D31233F3E500 wrote:

Note: What comes next is only valid if you are positive that your battery is ok. Did you actually take it somewhere and have it load tested. Just testing the voltage across the terminals only tells part of the story. A bad battery is the most common cause of a no start.

Touch the negative lead from your voltmeter to the engine case somewhere, touch the positive lead to the stud on the starter that has the wire hooked to it and push the start button. If you get a voltage reading pretty close to battery voltage and the starter isn't turning the engine, then you're going to have to pull the starter out and figure out why. If you get NO voltage at the stud when you hit the start button then the solenoid isn't sending the juice to the starter. That will give you - and us - a better idea of where to go next.

Will check this tonight. Thanks

Title: Re: Bike will not start Grrrrr!
Post by Toroso on 07/12/13 at 14:53:51

32213637282523212A75440 wrote:

every once in awhile, a connector under the seat will pull loose.
3 Wire connector that goes to the starter relay.

Problem solved! U R Da Man Versalgen1!!!

Thank you and everyone else who tried to help! :) :) :) :) :)