I have a 1978 lowrider shovelhead fxs. It was my father in laws bike. He had it stored in my garage for about 2 years. Well I changed the battery and the lights work. Tries starting it and it started to crank. The ground wire smoked a bit. Took the battery out to make sure everything was ok. Put the battery back in and no crank but still have lights. Any ideas?

 

I would really appreciate any help or could get as I don't know a ton about fixing bikes. Thank you in advance.

 

Are you saying that the bike will turn over but not fire up or not turn over at all ?

 

Starter relay. big troublemaker. I eliminated mine from the circuit.

 

Sat for 2 years....

Change the gas (in the tanks and drop the carb bowl and get that gas out as well)

Remove and clean spark plugs (spray a little bit of WD-40 in the cylinders)

Change oil and filter

Kick the motor through a couple of time to make sure the engine will turn over.

Not a big fan of taking the starter relay out of the system. Starter relays were added in Feb 67 to provide more positive pull-in of the starter pinion gear and solenoid main contacts under a low battery condition and in general, more dependable starting.

You need to take out the battery and do a load test on it. It could be sufficient for lights but not enough to start the motor.

When it starts be prepared to have it puke some oil out the breather.

Before you take it out check tire pressure, take a good look at the tires to make sure there is no dry rot and that the tires are not cracked.

If you are serious about the bike, get a factory shop and parts manual. You need some mechanical skills to maintain old iron, or you end up paying someone a lot of your hard earned dollars.

If you go to an Indie, do some research and find the best in your area. Lot of shops out there but not many with true knowlege of these bikes. Don't waste your time at a dealership. They do not work on Shovels (at least those in my area).

 

check the ignition circuit breaker if that's ok check the starter relay if that's bad replace it don't remove it from the ignition system, if that's ok check the solenoid,,,

 

I agree, drain all the gas, even the bowl. Check spark plugs, or even change them, if the ground wire is smoking make sure is properly grounded I restored a 83 shovelhead that wouldn't start I took the ground wire off cleaned them and tried it and didn't work. I went out and bought new ones and it fired right up. If it has been sitting for two years you might have to clean the carb there could be a clogged needle or something.

 

Did you have time to mess with it and get it running ?

 

Try cleaning out the carb bowl and the jets. Squirt a little gas into the carb and crank it again.