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First up was repairing the straps on the saddlebags. Thankfully I still had the missing buckle. Aside from that first picture I don't recall this bike ever being without saddle bags. I do like the look of no bags but will likely leave them on.
The wiring was a bit of a mess. The main group of wires down the frame was secured with the horn bracket. The starter had been jumped with a new wire. Starter relay was bouncing around in the tool box. Breakers were unsecured and wrapped up with tape to keep sparks from flying. First time I've seen a wire nut used in automotive application before. Multiple dead end wires capped or taped off. Wires falling out of connectors, etc, etc. After years of use and road side repairs it was time to replace it all.
Wiring is always fun. You might want to find someplace easily accessible for that starter relay.to live. They are notorious for failing. Mine was originally on the battery side of the rear fender extension and a real bitch to get to without removing the rear tire. I moved it to the end of the starter motor.
Wiring is always fun. You might want to find someplace easily accessible for that starter relay.to live. They are notorious for failing. Mine was originally on the battery side of the rear fender extension and a real bitch to get to without removing the rear tire. I moved it to the end of the starter motor.
Thanks for the heads up. There is what appears to be a mounting tab for the relay next to the starter. I haven't got that far just yet but from the wire I have laid out I think that will work.
Aside from adding a few accessories to my Jeep I have not done any real wiring. I was hesitant to take this on and even called around to some local shops to get quotes but a couple of friends much more knowledgeable than myself convinced me to give it a go. Knowing I had some in person back up if needed I went for it. I like the color coded diagram in my manual but I was getting it covered with grease and oil within minutes. I suppose that's how a manual should look but I went a different route. I have a large scale printer at work so I downloaded the diagram from Harley and printed it off. The quality of the digital diagram from Harley is garbage. The letters are almost impossible to read even when enlarged to this scale. Once I had the new harness I went through each wire, labeled them with tape, and marked them off on the diagram. This really helped me understand what I was going to do one wire at a time. I needed new handle bar switches too. Had a heck of a time finding what I had on the bike. Once I quit searching year and model I found them. Apparently they're 70' something sportster controls.
Wiring is always fun. You might want to find someplace easily accessible for that starter relay.to live. They are notorious for failing. Mine was originally on the battery side of the rear fender extension and a real bitch to get to without removing the rear tire. I moved it to the end of the starter motor.
There was a recall on the `89 models for the starter relay, they were relocated from the fender extension to a spot on the right side behind the battery, underneath the seat. This got them out of the weather, they were having an issue with starter motor run on due to stuck relay contacts.
I had one fail this way, but luckily it only stuck for a few seconds.
The relay that was installed by the dealer doing the recall has a plastic cover over it to keep out water, that relay worked fine for over 30 years, I replaced it last year while I was going through the electrics on the bike, just because it was 30 years old.
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