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I put in new throttle cables after one randomly snapped.
My buddy painted up a new front fender for me, got it installed over the weekend. I like it. Kind of completes it, in my opinion.
Now for the bad. I went for a ride down to PCB earlier today. Beautiful day and beautiful ride down there. On the way back she kept cutting out while riding. Going like 20-30 mph then losing all power. After I'd roll to the side of the road she would start back up after a minute and continue on. But rode and idled like ****. Fine while cruising highway speeds though. I made it home safe. When I got home I hooked it up to my HF trickle charger and it stayed red for a while. I'm thinking possible bad battery, voltage regulator, or stator.
Did you check the battery cables/connections? Might be loose. When I get back from a ride and plug in my battery tender it will be red for a little while (few minutes) before going green but the bike runs fine.
Did you check the battery cables/connections? Might be loose. When I get back from a ride and plug in my battery tender it will be red for a little while (few minutes) before going green but the bike runs fine.
The night prior to this I rode out to a party. All was fine until I tried to take off later on in the evening. No start, no click, nothing. headlight dimmed, that's all. I pushed her over into my buddies driveway. 10 minutes later, I tried again and she kicked over again after some sparks coming out by the primary. I made it home. The next day I took off the seat to find the negative battery cable was super loose. tightened her up and she was fine for the ride out to PCB. I'm gonna check to see if any other grounds are loose.
She's also running super rich still. like 97 miles per tank rich. black smoke coming out the exhaust. After 97 miles on a full tank I had to kick over to the reserve. I got a slow weekend coming up (hopefully), I plan on spending some time working on her.
Originally Posted by Schex
Looking good, there's a "how to diagnose your charging system" sticky thread
Thanks again @Schex I plan on running those charging system tests.
Last edited by Bryan83taco; Mar 8, 2022 at 09:27 PM.
Get that rich condition fixed, that could lead to washed down cylinders and ruined ring seal, then it starts burning oil and smoking.
I bought a '97 softail custom years ago that was burning oil and smoking because someone threw a S&S super E on it and ran it pig rich, got it pretty cheap, fixed it and added some pep, I still regret selling it.
When I got my bike last year I had the same problem with black smoke. The dealer goes oh you just have to ride it and clear it out. Turns out it was the ignition failing and not putting out enough energy to burn the fuel completely. Plugs were black/sooty. After a few months it wouldnt run right at all and let me sit. Put in a Dyna2000 and it runs like a new bike.
Last edited by Volkspanzer; Mar 9, 2022 at 02:27 AM.
I started messing around with the carb. Set it back to factory specs as per S&S. No start, lol, of course. Turns out my main jet got clogged up. Took it apart today and noticed no fuel spraying when throttling. Cleaned out the fuel bowl and jets. Fixed that problem. Put in some new plugs and changed out fuel line (it was old). Set the carb to factory specs, started right up, pushed down the enricher and idled a bit high. Took her out and warmed her up. Came back and began dialing in the carb, got her running and idling smooth now. No black soot coming out the pipe, looks like a/f ratio is better.
But then while idling she just died. Good thing I was done. But no lights or nothing after turning ignition back on. Battery was sitting at 12.5V. I'll go through that charging system check later on this weekend.
I started messing around with the carb. Set it back to factory specs as per S&S. No start, lol, of course. Turns out my main jet got clogged up. Took it apart today and noticed no fuel spraying when throttling. Cleaned out the fuel bowl and jets. Fixed that problem. Put in some new plugs and changed out fuel line (it was old). Set the carb to factory specs, started right up, pushed down the enricher and idled a bit high. Took her out and warmed her up. Came back and began dialing in the carb, got her running and idling smooth now. No black soot coming out the pipe, looks like a/f ratio is better.
But then while idling she just died. Good thing I was done. But no lights or nothing after turning ignition back on. Battery was sitting at 12.5V. I'll go through that charging system check later on this weekend.
Time to start cleaning connections. Start at the battery and work your way out.....lol. Some contact cleaner and electrical grease helps alot too.
Time to start cleaning connections. Start at the battery and work your way out.....lol. Some contact cleaner and electrical grease helps alot too.
Your bike is looking really sharp!
And double check that flakey voltage regulator connection point at the block. You can have a bad connection and not even know it. It's a bad design. It can be a "hidden gremlin" that can cause lots of issues, however my guess is your problem is something like a loose battery cable. Use the Dr Hess sticky to diagnose:
I took a quick look at it last night. The negative battery cable at the frame connection behind the coil was barely on there. I tightened it up, still nothing. The battery is still sitting good at 12.58V. I'm fairly certain the main circuit breaker went out (No lights or anything when I turn the ignition on). I grabbed a 30A replacement on the way home today, I'll swap it out later tonight or tomorrow when I get some motivation. I'll also do a full charging system check as well tomorrow.
I sent off coil/ECU cover to my buddy to powder coat black. While that's off I got to rethread one of the bolts that it mounts onto.
****** Turns out one of the wires came off the ignition switch on the dash **********************************
She turns over just fine now. I'm gonna clear her up and take her for a run tomorrow and see how she does. I'm kind of assuming that loose ground was my cause of the bike dyeing. Well see tomorrow.
Last edited by Bryan83taco; Mar 25, 2022 at 06:01 PM.
Reason: SOLVED
7 Surprising Harley-Davidson Products that Are Not Motorcycles
Slideshow: The bar-and-shield logo shows up on far more than motorcycles, some of the company's most unexpected products have nothing to do with riding.
Slideshow: From the troubled AMF years to modern misfires, these bikes earned reputations for reliability issues, questionable engineering, or disappointing performance.
Crazy Bunderbike Build Looks Amazing, But Is It Impossible to Ride?
Slideshow: The Swiss custom shop has taken a Harley Softail and stretched it into something so long and low that it looks closer to a rolling sculpture than a conventional motorcycle.
Engraved Rebellion: Inside Bundnerbike's Glam Rock II
Slideshow: A standard cruiser becomes an intricate metal canvas in the hands of a Swiss custom house known for pushing Harley-Davidson platforms far beyond their factory brief.
Slideshow: Harley-Davidson's challenges aren't abstract; they show up in dropping shipments, shrinking dealer traffic, and strategic decisions that aren't yet translating into growth.
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