First post so please bare with me.
This morning I began changing my starter (2003 fxd). I got the starter bolted up and went to reconnect the battery. When I put the cable back to the negative post, smoke and a little fire sparked up near the front right foot peg. It turns out I hooked one of the 2 negative cables to the hot post on the new starter and then the hot battery cable to the starter bolt along with the other negative cable. I took it all back apart and hooked it up right, but now my dash is blank and it seams all electrical is dead. I pulled the battery out, looked at the fuses, checked voltage at the battery (13ish V) and am stumped on where to look next.

Any help or ideas are appreciated.

 

did you check the main fuse?

 

that,,

 

Well, you fried some wires. Before you start any other "repairs" to your bike, GET A SERVICE MANUAL! You will need it to check all of the wiring in the starter circuit. You may have also fried the battery. Lesson #1, if you've never done it before, use some masking tape and mark where each wire is connected BEFORE you take it apart. Makes reassembly a no-brainier.

 

Thanks for the help. After reviewing some wiring diagrams, I noticed I had wires connected to the starter mount and one to the hot post. I rearranged the wires again and it started up.

 

Good for you,
Hey, we all make some silly mistakes from time to time,, glad you found an issue you could fix
Stay safe out there,,