Battery change trouble need help!
#1
05-22-2018, 12:01 AM
Join Date: May 2018
Location: California
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Battery change trouble need help!
i was riding around yesterday and stopped and the gas station down the street from my house and all the sudden my bike won’t start and just makes a clicking noise then all lights go out and nothing works. I ride a 2009 Harley 883 Iron. I’m hoping it’s just that the battery is dead I have only had the bike 6 months not sure when it was last changed decided to buy a new one got the old one out (despite the short negative cable) removed negative then positive. Putting the new one back in reverse order connected positive and the short negative cable was giving me trouble thought I finally got it and it shocked me, worried about frying the new battery or myself. What am I missing? Tried watching videos on it but can’t see any steps I missed or did wrong. There was some corrosion before wiped it down scrubbed it dried it thoroughly before putting in new battery. Please help I can give more info or pictures if needed.
#2
05-22-2018, 03:35 AM
Seasoned HDF Member
#4
05-22-2018, 09:42 PM
#6
05-22-2018, 10:17 PM
did you have a ring on that might have contacted something? The only time ive gotten a big spark from a battery hookup was when i was tightening the connections down with a wrench. I touched both sides of the battery terminals (positive and negative) with the wrench and a huge explosion of sparks happened and it literally took a huge chunk of the end of the wrench off just inches from my finger. So is there a chance you were holding a wrench or anything metal in one hand while you hooked the other side up? Just a thought. Other than that i always thought there was no way to get shocked from a battery if your just putting the positive and negative on by hand.
Last edited by saltlick; 05-22-2018 at 10:19 PM.
#7
05-22-2018, 11:22 PM
Seasoned HDF Member
Anytime that you are working on, or are near your battery, you should NOT have the ignition key in the "ON' position, and you shouldn't be wearing any metal rings, necklaces or anything that could possibly make contact with the battery or the battery terminals.
(I had a cousin that nearly lost his "ring finger" when a wrench he was using touched the POSITIVE post of a battery and the frame of the vehicle at the same time. HE said that his ring "instantly turned red!).
You need to put a lot of light down into and around the battery box and make sure that there is nothing around the POSITIVE cable that could possibly be touching or "grounding" the POSITIVE cable, (such as auxiliary wiring that may be for accessories or even a battery tender harness).
When removing a battery always disconnect the NEGATIVE cable first.
When replacing a battery always reconnect the POSITIVE cable first.
Before attempting to replace the battery cables, make SURE that you are correctly attaching them to their proper locations!
When you are attempting to connect the POSITIVE cable to the battery (with the NEGATIVE cable and all other wiring NOT connected to the battery) you should NOT get any "spark". (You can test this first with a simple 12v "test light" by touching one end of the "test light" to the POSITIVE terminal on the battery and the other end on the "test light" to the end of the POSITIVE battery cable. IF it lights up or if you get a "spark' you have an unwanted "ground".
Once both cables are connected to the battery, any metal that comes into contact with the POSITIVE cable can instantly become a "ground" so be very careful where you lay or place wrenches, screwdrivers, or any other wiring.
(I had a cousin that nearly lost his "ring finger" when a wrench he was using touched the POSITIVE post of a battery and the frame of the vehicle at the same time. HE said that his ring "instantly turned red!).
You need to put a lot of light down into and around the battery box and make sure that there is nothing around the POSITIVE cable that could possibly be touching or "grounding" the POSITIVE cable, (such as auxiliary wiring that may be for accessories or even a battery tender harness).
When removing a battery always disconnect the NEGATIVE cable first.
When replacing a battery always reconnect the POSITIVE cable first.
Before attempting to replace the battery cables, make SURE that you are correctly attaching them to their proper locations!
When you are attempting to connect the POSITIVE cable to the battery (with the NEGATIVE cable and all other wiring NOT connected to the battery) you should NOT get any "spark". (You can test this first with a simple 12v "test light" by touching one end of the "test light" to the POSITIVE terminal on the battery and the other end on the "test light" to the end of the POSITIVE battery cable. IF it lights up or if you get a "spark' you have an unwanted "ground".
Once both cables are connected to the battery, any metal that comes into contact with the POSITIVE cable can instantly become a "ground" so be very careful where you lay or place wrenches, screwdrivers, or any other wiring.
Last edited by 2AMGuy; 05-22-2018 at 11:24 PM.
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#8
05-24-2018, 01:26 AM
Join Date: May 2018
Location: California
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Fixed it.
I did positive first then negative, I didn’t disconnect the main fuse but that might have helper. I was dumb and didn’t think about how humid it gets here at night I think that was my problem it actually started to rain 10 mins after I got everything inside tried again in the morning in the garage did the same thing no problems. Thank you all for the great advice!
#10
05-24-2018, 02:19 AM
Cruiser
Like vonh12 says, take your old battery in to test it and see if its the problem. You could of posted this farther down the page in the electrical section for even more responses.
Good Luck, hope all is back to normal, when I bought my used Sportster, I didnt keep an eye on my battery connections and melted my neg so badly that I had no choice but to replace the battery, then got a C Tek trickle charger that reconditions old batteries.
Dave 04 XL1200C
Good Luck, hope all is back to normal, when I bought my used Sportster, I didnt keep an eye on my battery connections and melted my neg so badly that I had no choice but to replace the battery, then got a C Tek trickle charger that reconditions old batteries.
Dave 04 XL1200C