Is the wire on the starter you see, the heavy battery wire? Remember, your's is the wrong color coming off the battery. You want to check small wire going to the starter.

Meant problem lies at breakers? And I am guessing. I am thinking you missed something.

You need to check for voltage or with wires off resistance thru your switches.

 

UmmmK. A bit about electricity. Voltage, which you read with a voltmeter is Potential. It doesn't do anything, its just there. Amperage, which is Current Flow does the work. A starter may need 100 amperes at 12 volts to turn. 10 amps available from the electrical system won't turn it. Resistance, is just what it sounds like, a resistance to current flow. Also, when a current runs through a resistance, it generates heat. Study Ohm's Law for more detail and understanding.

Now, those auto parts crimp-on connectors? They're notorious for working loose from heat and vibration. If the crimp weakens, what happens? Resistance at the joint goes up. Way up.

If there's significant current going through the joint, that with the resistance generates heat. Lots of it. The heat further weakens the crimp, and causes corrosion on the wire and the crimp joint, More resistance. It gets worse until almost no current can get through the joint. But guess what? You may still see 12+ volts on the voltmeter, although that'll drop a lot if you try to have a current run through the joint. The resistance is acting sorta like a voltage limiter.

Look at that red wire running to your ignition switch. See anything that looks like a high resistance joint? Like maybe its kinda burned and melted?

I'd get rid of all those auto parts crimp-ons and use good lugs, solder and cover with shrink tube. Look on Youtube for videos about soldering, basic electricity, etc. There's lots.

I'd much rather take the time to do all those in my own garage with nice tools and lights rather than by the roadside halfway between Here and There with night and a storm coming on. Been there, done that, NOT fun.

You also REALLY need a wiring diagram, like from a factory shop manual, to have much hope of tracing faults and making good repairs. 'I think that's where it fell off' is a real good way to ruin lots of parts, waste a lot of time and maybe if you're really lucky burn the thing down. Electricity is rigorously perfectly logical, but its not forgiving at all.

You really need to take your wiring diagram and trace EVERY wire on the thing. THose crimp-ons didn't come from the factory, and kinda show whoever did the wiring wasn't the best electrician. You may find lots of deviations from stock, and remember STOCK RAN. The redone or 'improved' version, maybe. Iffy at best.

 

Thanks! I will definitely go through all the wires and redo all of the connections, but that will have to wait. I just want to get it running before summer is over. It has been sitting for two years. I will also have to look up lugs to see how that works. I have soldered a couple of times.

I really need to know what tests I can do with my micro meter to figure out if certain wires are the issue for the bike not getting any electricity. I hope the issue doesn't lie within the ignition switch wires because if so I believe I will have to pull off the gas tank.

So how do I perform other tests for diagnosis on the wires and breakers?

 

Pull your battery loose.. Put your meter on 200 OHM or lower. Make your check across ever wire to its terminal and the wire to where it goes. You should get very close to the same reading and you would get when you check your meter by connecting the probes together.

The problem here is on the big amp connections, they can show good but still will not pass the current.

Did you check the key switch per the wiring diagram I posted? If there is power there, at a minimum, you should have lights.

 

So to clarify, if I was measuring the red wire for the ignition. I trace that wire to where it is on the breaker and then put one probe there (on the actual wire - where it touches the breaker) and then at the other end where the red wire touches the ignition switch?

Yes, I looked at it. I do not understand electric schematics very well, but I am not getting power what-so-ever, so maybe this wire actually is the issue.

 

Also between the top of the thread and then the wire lug and to the wire itself.

Same way you would check for 12.6 volts at the battery itself. Should be on the lead battery terminals. The wire lugs and where the wire comes out of lug. Three test.


That red wire is power from the battery to the ignition switch I think. For some reason, your pictures are gone.

 

That's what it looked like. And that wire is for sure bad at the switch end. For some reason, he wants to spend any amount of time screwing around when he could've done it right in about 1/2 hour or less.

Then he's 'just gonna get it running' and run it until it breaks down again, which it will, and soon. Just hope it doesn't happen on the highway with a boomer comin up fast behind.

 

Why am I screwing around? I'm asking all of these questions because I do not know anything about this stuff. I am completely ignorant to electrical testing and what the results mean. My understanding of the bike is very low. Lastly, my intentions are not to "run it until it breaks down again". I was given a 25 year old bike (when I received it) that had already sat for 2 years. Somehow made it home (15 hours) all the way from Newport News, VA with it being my first time riding on the interstate. Then shortly after the bike started breaking every time I road it. I believe the bike has over 100,000 miles on it and it obviously needs some work. The only reason I said I wanted to just get it running is because I have a feeling this is going to take me a while because I'm not a mechanic and am learning along the way.

However, with all this said... I started taking the tank off last night to do it the right way or at least start down that path. So I got the tank unbolted and lose, but the speedo cable is stopping me. In the image below, do I just unscrew the cable to remove it?




I am going to try to at least rewire the three ignition switch wires fully. In its current state, the three ignition wires appear to be spliced into the original wires right under the tank, so if I can get the tank off fully, I will re-wire them with just the one wire (not spliced)....unless it makes sense to wire in some sort of plug to allow me to remove the wires from a plug in case I need to remove them at a later time.

 

Yes, that straight knurl cap just screws off. There is a flex steel drive cable inside. Keep the dirt out and off the grease on the cable. Sorry, we did not meet when you were in Newport News. I am just over in Hampton...


Years ago when people were friendly back in the 60's, I hitched rides all the way from Newport News to Columbus to get a bike for $100. I had around $120 when I left. Took 4 days. Needless to say, I got a little hungry. But White Castel had 10 cent hamburgers.

 

Wow yea... really close. My dad lives in Newport News and rides quite often. Maybe you have met him before.

Any recommendations for places to buy 12 gauge wire at to re-do all of this wiring? Autozone only has red and it is $24 for a 100ft roll. I also need black and green. Any websites you guys have saved? I checked Harbor Freight and they don't have it either.