Started up my Crossbones yesterday and first noticed that my tail light did not come on at all. I have the run/stop/turn module so my turn signals were on as running lights like they should be. I depressed both my foot brake then my hand brake and noticed that the brake light function on the turn sigs was not working. On the way home I stopped to eat and noticed that when I got back on the bike all the lights on the back came on this time but the brake light function was still not working. When I got the bike home I took off the tail light and noticed that the bulb was really hot and the rubber socket had begun to burn. I checked a number of things including removing the run/stop/turn module and replacing the light bulb. I finally noticed with the tail light lens off that both elements in the tail light were on constantly which is probably why it got so hot on the ride home. From what I can tell, it seems that a brake light signal is constantly being sent to the back of the bike. My guess is that maybe one of the two switches (foot or hand lever) are stuck but I honestly don't know how to test this. Has anyone here ever run into such a problem before?

Looking at the wires on the tail light I see that it has three; a black ground, a red w/yellow which should be the run light and a blue which I am guessing should be the brake light. If this is correct, should the blue wire constantly be showing a current or should it only have current when I depress either of my brake levers?

Any help would be appreciated.

 

when my brake lights were stuck on it was because the spring on the hand brake was gone. That spring is located between the lever and the brake fluid box. when your lever is not in use the spring pushes a button in keeping the lights off and when you pull the lever in use that spring releases the button activating the brake light. Hope this helps.

 

When I have seen them stuck on it has been a broken hand lever switch also. Happen a lot when guys take the levers off the bars to change grips and forget the cardboard shim.

 

So here is what I figured out. I will verify this once I attempt the repairs in case anyone else wants to reference this post.

The front brake light switch works fine. It is the rear switch that seems to be stuck. I referenced my owner's manual to see where it was located. Upon finding it I pulled one of the two connectors and the brake lights went out. I further confirmed that it is probably the rear switch that is the problem because the brake lights began to work properly using the hand lever. I was pretty relieved that this was the case as it seems that it is much easier to replace the rear switch.

I learned that of the three wires that run to the rear light, the blue wire is the run light and NOT the brake light as I originally thought. It is the red wire with yellow stripe that is the brake light wire and as I thought, it should only register a current on a tester when the brakes are applied.

After disconnecting the rear switch and putting everything else back together I road tested my bike and I was happy to learn that for now I can continue to operate my Bones until my new switch arrives. Since I operate both the front and rear brakes simultaneously all the time, I still have a brake light function as I should.

Thanks for the suggestions.

 

Hi Skeez,

Thanks for the (as usual) excellent problem solving write up! Might come in handy for later reference!

 

Sweeeet! Glad you got it figured out. I'll log this in my steel trap memory (not) for later use.