Hi all,

I've got an '86 that I think has a problem with the starter relay, but I wanted to get another opinion before I shell out $$$ only to find out the relay isn't the problem.

Last month I tried to crank the bike (after it had been sitting 3-4 months), it turned over fine but wouldn't crank and the battery finally ran out of juice.  So I pulled the battery and put it on the charger overnight.  The next day, I put the battery back in and hit the starter button and it wouldn't turn over at all.  Nothing.  Then I noticed that the headlight had gone out.  Turned the key off and back on, but still no headlight.  Disconnected the battery and left it until the next day.  

Next day, same thing - connect battery, headlight comes on.  Hit starter button - engine doesn't turn over and headlight stays out. So I pulled the starter and battery and hooked the starter straight to the battery (more or less) and starter works fine (but man, you really gotta clamp that thing to the workbench...).  Put it all back on the bike, but got the same result as before.

So I pulled the starter relay and battery and tested like the Clymer suggests (altho their test has the relay still attached in the bike).  The readings came out pretty much to what the Clymer says they should be.  I put everything back on the bike and left it for several weeks.

Last weekend, I charged the battery again (just for good measure), and this time, the engine turned over for about 1-2 seconds before everything went dead again. So disconnected the battery and let it sit for an hour or so, hooked it back up and the headlight came on, but when I hit the starter I got no turnover and a dead headlight.

I got to wondering if maybe it was a wonko battery, so today I removed it and hooked my truck battery up with jumper cables.  Headlight worked, but when I hit the starter button, out it went.  All I got was a single click sound from the starter relay area (which I think I've been getting all along, but memory is fuzzy...).

Has anybody seen this before?  Does the starter relay cut the headlights when it's firing, or does the ignitor do that (or something else altogether?)?  Any suggestions?  

Thanks for any help,
Dave

Sounds like a bad connection (battery) to me, battery, ground on frame, or battery + on solenoid. Probably moved to minimal contact when you R&R'd the battery. But verify the battery is good with a load test before you chase possibilities. Max

I had an issue with my relay (86).

Occasionally, I would hit it, and it wouldn't turn at all. Weird things were happening, like the neutral switch would go out. The sidestand light would turn off when I hit the starter switch. It had all the telltale signs of a nasty grounding problem.

 After a very long time of checking this and doing that, I found the problem. It was indeed the relay. A 21 year old relay is not going to be as efficient as a new one. And the cheapness (Actually poorness) in me prohibited buying a new switch.

So I pulled the relay, and saw all this beautiful green white corrosion on the terminals. First step clean it all up.
Next was to give it a few well placed taps to free the insides. I can only imagine that the insides were just as corroded, but unlike the relay that controls the turn signals, I couldn't figure out open this one up.

 Well, when I had trouble starting, I'd take a long screwdriver and tap the relay. Sure enough the jolt would free up whatever was binding, and it would start.

 I ended up just repositioned the relay to a more accessible location where I could tap it with my hand because I didn't always have a long screwdriver to reach it above the carb.

This may not be the same problem as yours, but the symptoms are similar.  Just try tapping (NOT WHACKING!!!) the relay. If it does start up, and you'd rather not buy a new one, just relocate it.