Thank you fellas so much. Yes I forgot to mention that sometimes when I hit the start button nothing happens at all (not even a relay click sound). Stator and regulator passed but I noticed one of the regulator wires were spliced together which I will make sure it's a good secure connection soon. There was shorting under front fender but I repaired all of that and havent found any in the rear. Yes you are correct also it is MA , I apologize. Meds make it hard to focus sometimes or even communicate properly if that makes sense. Thank you so much for the wiring diagram, I couldn't find that on Google so you guys are awesome. I'm looking forward to trying to find time between appointments and trying your recommendations out. I've been very confident tha it is a bad ground or damaged wire based on wacky an intermittent things. Have a good night and I appreciate you both a lot.

 

I just edited post #9 with additional info

 

You are reading 2.53 miliamps on that DVM the way you have it configured. If you were reading 2.5 amps, you would have smoke coming out of something somewhere and your battery would discharge very quickly.

I see that you have the meter set for reading 20 miliamps but I cannot tell if you have your DVM connected into the circuit correctly to read amps. If your probes are connected across a fuse, you are reading current drop across that fuse circuit. To read amps the circuit has to be opened and the meter leads connected in series with the open ends of the circuit. Take out the fuses one by one and measure across the open socket contacts to read static current draw in any of the individual circuits. When you find one, you start disconnecting stuff until it goes away and then work your way back.

It is very difficult to troubleshoot an electrical problem on a public forum even if you really know your stuff and that particular model's quirks. From your description of things acting erratic and not starting, I suspect you have a weak battery, intermittent voltage regulator, or loose connection. Or it could be just a bunch of corrosion in connectors and connections. Those things cause all kinds of off the wall problems but all it usually takes is cleaning them out with electronics cleaner and dabbing in some dielectric grease.

 

When measuring I had the negative battery terminal disconnected and attached one lead to terminal while the other to battery. The battery is 2 week old AGM and also have sanded all grounds for good contact, QD electronics cleaner in in every connector, wiggled and tugged a lot of wires for any changes but I did forget to add dielectric grease. It truly is a nightmare troubleshooting this thing.

doing the test that I described I proceeded to pull fuses until voltage dropped to 0.5 finding the above pictures fuse as the main culprit. Still haven't had any luck finding info on what all that fuse controls but plan on running a ground from radio housing to battery this weekend.

 

Per the spec, the mA drain is below limits and is ok. I would do the regulator bleed tests if you are concerned. I'm confused why you are worried about that fuse. A high parasitic draw kills the battery - you are chasing a radio issue that resolved temporarily when you unplugged lights.

 

This is all so confusing or it's just because I've gotten a very neglected bike and have been bulling through it since I gotten it. I did not perform the bleed test but I will check my manual and hopefully be able to do it tomorrow evening. Thank you sir.

 

Mark - here is my suggestion. Take a day off and relax and refresh. You might be too close to the forest to see the trees. If you were not having a problem with the battery draining while it was off, you most likely do not have a parasitic drain and you are worrying about a 2.5mA drain that is allowed to be as high as 10mA.

Performing the stator and regulator tests will tell you if the charging system is all good.

Checking all connections is a big thing.

Your comment that the radio was fine when you disconnected something tells a lot. If you have wiggled all those wires, perhaps disconnect harness connections one by one to see if the problem resolves - then go from there.

I would verify the bat neg to powertrain ground and bat neg to frame ground. There might be a positive smaller wire that runs from the starter plus to the main breaker - not sure on that bike. If there is, make sure it's not all corroded under the insulation.

From your comment that the volt gauge fluxuates with the blinkers, I still suspect a wiring or component issue.

Do your lights operate properly and blinkers work properly?

PM me if you want - I will try to help you out.

Ed

 

I really do appreciate you very much Ed. The stator test passed with flying colors but the regulator ground test didnt fair so well so I cleaned and sanded the direct ground on it. As far as the other lights, they all work properly it's just my voltmeter and radio that acts up. When I use the cigarette lighter it tanks drastically (I mean like almost buries itself low side). When my spotlights are on it only drops a little but the lights dont flicker. The only flickering I get is when I power on the radio and its trying to grab signal then the radio backlight flickers but with it off it's a solid light. It seems like the bike reacts whenever there is a certain amount of added load applied. I have found electrical issues which one is from the regulator and runs back into the small 50 amp by the battery. It appears to have been spliced and reconnected but upon feeling only it seems like it was done with very little craftsmanship.

The main battery and powertrain grounds are solid and good (sanded nicely). I'm unsure of a small positive wire from starter under it but I will look for it tomorrow. How do I check under the insulation for corrosion? I really do appreciate all of your time and experience sir.

 

 

Thats how i check for corrosion as well. I'll check out YouTube for some voltage drop testing. Thank you