Curious Electrics
Posted: 01 Aug 2011 01:43
I finally finished installing a set of Tarozzi rearsets on my '79 Sport. The conversion from the US left shift/right brake set-up to the opposite, to accomodate the rearsets, was a bit more challenging than I expected, especially in terms of fitting the exhaust pipe back on the bike. I think the crossover pipe makes re-fitting the exhaust header a challenge, because you have little or no leeway in terms of adjusting the position of the header when re-installing it.
Today was the shakedown ride to test how well it all functions. Brakes and shifter worked OK, no issues. I charged the battery ahead of time, and, lo and behold, my electric start button WORKED for the first time ever! However, about 30 minutes into the ride, my lights, turn signals all quit. Noticing this, I pulled off to the side of the road and shut down the bike to check everything out. Battery voltage was fine--12.7 V, but the electric start button wouldn't work at all, either--not a sound. Kill switch wasn't the issue, it was in the RUN position throughout. But the bike kickstarted back up on the first try, and I rode it back home without any problem.
Back home, still no response from any of the lights, turn signal, or electric starter with the ignition turned on. Battery still reads 12.7 V. I checked everywhere on the bike for a loose wire or ground, but didn't see any. Checked the fuse holder near the spaghetti box, but the fuse in still looks OK. Is there another fuse on the bike that could have shorted out? If not, I'm thinking of taking apart the e-start switch and the lights switch on the handlebar, to see whether something came loose due to vibration on the ride.
Any thoughts about what else I should investigate?
Thanks,
Peter
Today was the shakedown ride to test how well it all functions. Brakes and shifter worked OK, no issues. I charged the battery ahead of time, and, lo and behold, my electric start button WORKED for the first time ever! However, about 30 minutes into the ride, my lights, turn signals all quit. Noticing this, I pulled off to the side of the road and shut down the bike to check everything out. Battery voltage was fine--12.7 V, but the electric start button wouldn't work at all, either--not a sound. Kill switch wasn't the issue, it was in the RUN position throughout. But the bike kickstarted back up on the first try, and I rode it back home without any problem.
Back home, still no response from any of the lights, turn signal, or electric starter with the ignition turned on. Battery still reads 12.7 V. I checked everywhere on the bike for a loose wire or ground, but didn't see any. Checked the fuse holder near the spaghetti box, but the fuse in still looks OK. Is there another fuse on the bike that could have shorted out? If not, I'm thinking of taking apart the e-start switch and the lights switch on the handlebar, to see whether something came loose due to vibration on the ride.
Any thoughts about what else I should investigate?
Thanks,
Peter