short somewhere ?
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Intermediate
Joined: Jan 2020
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From: north carolina
short somewhere ?
ive been having a parasitic draw on my battery and traced it to bikes neutral indicator switch.i tested it per manual . with wire disconnected and touching ground the light came on indicating a bad switch. put in a new switch today and same thing. whats am i doing wrong? is there a short somewhere else in the switch wiring? the reason suspected switch in the first place is the drain on battery would stop with me going back and forth from 1st to neutral.its a 1988 fxr.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 21,143
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From: South Carolina
The neutral switch completes the circuit to ground when the transmission is in neutral.
Of course that means if you disconnect the wire and touch it to ground the neutral light will come on.
A neutral switch is not going to cause a parasitic draw, because it does not get power when the ignition switch is turned off.
Exactly how are you testing for a parasitic draw?
Why are you suspecting a parasitic draw?
Of course that means if you disconnect the wire and touch it to ground the neutral light will come on.
A neutral switch is not going to cause a parasitic draw, because it does not get power when the ignition switch is turned off.
Exactly how are you testing for a parasitic draw?
Why are you suspecting a parasitic draw?
Last edited by Dan89FLSTC; Jul 13, 2021 at 07:15 AM.
Thread Starter
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Intermediate
Joined: Jan 2020
Posts: 34
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From: north carolina
using a test light...all started when battery ran down.after seeing the light come on during the test i discovered that by rocking bike back and forth in gear the light would go out.per advice from the forum i looked at neutral switch. it failed the test per the manual although the test never made since to me since all im doing is completing circuit.but, the light comes on in gear as well when grounding the lead which i think is still normal. ive looked at all wiring around headlight and found nothing.on a positive note i cant duplicate it again but it has done this two different times.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 21,143
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From: South Carolina
Forget about the neutral light, it did not cause your battery to run down.
If the battery ran down, charge it fully and have it load tested.
After load testing, perform a charging system test.
Throw the test light back into the bottom drawer of your tool box and get a cheap multimeter.
If the battery ran down, charge it fully and have it load tested.
After load testing, perform a charging system test.
Throw the test light back into the bottom drawer of your tool box and get a cheap multimeter.
Thread Starter
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Intermediate
Joined: Jan 2020
Posts: 34
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From: north carolina
something isnt right...the battery is new as of about 3 months ago. the stator is chargeing. what started this whole battery issue was a melted battery terminal when trying to start bike in gear with clutch in.i assumed fault with battery. new battery no more problems. but i parked bike in neutral . couple weeks ago went to start bike and had a weak battery . it would hardly turn over and melted insulation around the positive battery cable lead. battery and cable itself was hot .i let it cool down and tried to hook up battery charger .charger kept kicking off saying reverse polarity but polarity was right. then i removed battery and bench charged it.went to put it back in and strong sparks flew when touching negative cable to negative terminal. almost welded cable to terminal.[ie melted terminal which started this whole thing].at this point i know theres a ground short somewhere.now comes test light and draw test. light lit up indicating a parasitic draw or short somewhere.thats when i discovered the bike was parked in gear. i had put it in gear while removing battery. when i got on bike to put it back in neutral and rocked the bike the test light went off and i could successfully connect battery without sparks flying.advice from forum suggested problem in the neutral switch. i replaced neutral switch only to find out original switch was probably good. ive yet to duplicate the battery problem because i keep it parked in neutral but im sure the issue has not been resolved. after putting this in words im thinking maybe problem is in the starter circuit. idk.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Apr 2013
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From: Newcastle, OK
something isnt right...the battery is new as of about 3 months ago. the stator is chargeing. what started this whole battery issue was a melted battery terminal when trying to start bike in gear with clutch in.i assumed fault with battery. new battery no more problems. but i parked bike in neutral . couple weeks ago went to start bike and had a weak battery . it would hardly turn over and melted insulation around the positive battery cable lead. battery and cable itself was hot .i let it cool down and tried to hook up battery charger .charger kept kicking off saying reverse polarity but polarity was right. then i removed battery and bench charged it.went to put it back in and strong sparks flew when touching negative cable to negative terminal. almost welded cable to terminal.[ie melted terminal which started this whole thing].at this point i know theres a ground short somewhere.now comes test light and draw test. light lit up indicating a parasitic draw or short somewhere.thats when i discovered the bike was parked in gear. i had put it in gear while removing battery. when i got on bike to put it back in neutral and rocked the bike the test light went off and i could successfully connect battery without sparks flying.advice from forum suggested problem in the neutral switch. i replaced neutral switch only to find out original switch was probably good. ive yet to duplicate the battery problem because i keep it parked in neutral but im sure the issue has not been resolved. after putting this in words im thinking maybe problem is in the starter circuit. idk.
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Joined: Sep 2017
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From: England
I cannot fathom your post but have picked out this "charger kept kicking off saying reverse polarity but polarity was right."
I believe your charger.
I believe your charger.
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Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: May 2008
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From: South Carolina
Forget about the neutral switch, it is not your issue.
When the ignition is turned off the neutral switch is not powered, so there is no electrical drain.
You could ground out the neutral switch circuit by connecting the wire to the frame and it will still not drain the battery if the ignition switch is turned off.
Until you get a multimeter you are just chasing your tail with that useless test light.
You are making a very simple process difficult.
When the ignition is turned off the neutral switch is not powered, so there is no electrical drain.
You could ground out the neutral switch circuit by connecting the wire to the frame and it will still not drain the battery if the ignition switch is turned off.
Until you get a multimeter you are just chasing your tail with that useless test light.
You are making a very simple process difficult.
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Thread Starter
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Intermediate
Joined: Jan 2020
Posts: 34
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From: north carolina
trying not to be difficult.as far as charger kicking off it was correct saying reverse polarity because it was reversed by way of a short.i only tested neutral switch because it was suggested.. now its just a matter of tracing wires. in the meantime its not an issue. battery is charged and bike running. i do have a multi meter and will check components as i have time. thanks for helping out men, i appreciate it.hopefully i can report back in a week or two.
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Joined: Feb 2015
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From: Arkansas
Ok, I have seen batteries drain and reverse their polarity. First things first you'll likely find that your terminals have a mass of corrosion inside the insulation, so replace those. Second replace that battery again. The reversed polarity battery is done and you really cannot revive it. Melted terminals are typically a result of high resistance and not a parasitic draw, if you are getting a parasitic draw it'll most likely come from the Voltage Regulator and not a neutral switch. The VR may charge but the true test is with an ammeter. Disconnect the ground cable to the battery and put the ammeter between the battery and the ground cable to see what the draw is, then disconnect the VR and see if the draw changes. If so then a diode in the rectifier portion has failed and you may have AC bleeding into your DC system.