i should mention i took the battery to Oreily and batteries plus to make sure that i was getting a good load test since i bought the battery and batteries plus

 

Hey guys, I'm having the same issue as Dustin and want to get it fixed asap. I have a '95 sportster. The battery tests at 12.75 when off, 12.38 when key is on, 11.85 when start button is pressed, back up to 12.36 when released, and finally up to 12.6 when key is turned back off. I bought a relay to see if that was the issue but nothing was resolved.
The checked to started connections. The voltage on the side connection is 12.7 while off, 12.4 with key on, and 11.4ish when start button is pressed.
The connection on top has .32 with start butting pressed and nothing without the button pressed. I haven't tried bypassing the side connection and going to the top like Dustin as I don't have to required cable.

 

As a quick test it might be worth running a jumper wire from your battery positive wire to the green wire that goes into back of the solenoid. This will bypass all the rest of your starter wiring like the button and relay etc.
It's also well worth removing the ground wire on top of the transmission and the stud it mounts to make sure they are clean and not oxidised. It can be a little fiddly to get at.

Also take the cover off of your solenoid and check for good clean copper contacts. If charred or scorched, you can clean them up.

 

Did the test and it arced at the battery side. Does this mean the starter is bad?

 

It will tend to arc a little when you do this test. Securely hold the wire to the positive battery terminal and touch it firmly to the green wire connection at the solenoid for a second or two and no more than that. Does anything happen at all regards the starter turning over?

Doing a voltage drop test is probably one of the best ways to see what is going on if you're 100% happy with the battery being good. If you're not familiar with the test process it might be worth doing a youtube check to give you an idea. Also HD's electrical diagnostic manual explains the process and it's a good way of pinpointing an issue within a ciruit.

I know you've tested the battery, but what happens when you hold your meter (set to dc volts) across the battery whilst pressing the start button? What reading do you get?
Compared to the typical starting problems caused by bad connections, poor batteries, poor earths and the like, an actual bad starter motor is quite rare although not unheard of. I'd definitely ensure it wasn't another issue before spending money on an expensive "maybe" solution.
The lights going dim either indicates a battery unable to provide enough amperage. Or a bad, loose or corroded connection, either on the power or earth side in the starting system, creating a high resistance in the circuit. Is it a stock battery or aftermarket? Do you have the option of borrowing a battery from a friend to try it on your bike?

Check that main earth wire on the transmission and ensure it's clean and tight as I mentioned above.
Also give a decent tug on the battery cables with the ignition on to make sure there's no internal wire issue with them. If there is a badly corroded wire within the sheathing it might cause the lights to flicker or dim.
Remove the three small screws on the solenoid housing and check those copper connections are clean. Disconnect battery when doing this.
Pull all the fuses and make sure they're all clean, also the sockets that the relays go into. I see you've already tried swapping them.
Don't overlook these kinda things as they're notorious for causing issues starting.

 

i will try the green wire on the starter, i did not know about this one. the weather is supposed to be nasty tomorrow and ive got some house repairs starting so it may be another few days before i can try this..... gotta love not having a garage.

 

had a moment to look at the bike briefly this morning. Is the wire I'm looking for connected to a clip/connector or an actual bolt like the other two?

 

It should be a white translucent single clip connector with a green wire going into it. located almost at the bottom of the solenoid.

You can either remove that connector (which can be a little fiddly) and temporarily replace it with your jumper wire held in place either by hand or with a spade connector crimped to your jumper wire. Or push your jumper wire into the back of this original white connector.
Then press the other end of your jumper wire to battery positive terminal for a second or two.
This should turn the starter over if things are good with battery voltage and the starter itself.
I've actually changed around what I've originally said in the above post regards which side of the jumper wire to touch first as doing it this way I've just mentioned will prevent you accidentally touching the jumper wire to something accidentally whilst being connected to battery positive and creating sparks and arcs on other metal components.
So just to confirm....You are only going to be briefly joining the connection at the white translucent single connector at the bottom of the solenoid (red arrow) to the battery positive terminal on the battery. Not to any other bolts or starter connections like the main positive cable post on the solenoid.

 

Thank you! I shoved a wire into the back of the connector and touched it to the positive side of the battery and got the same, but slightly stronger single click, no turn of the motor. Not sure what this means

 

Since you did the rocker leaks, have you had the bike running? Just asking to make sure it isn't a mechanical issue is why I ask. If you haven't, then take the plugs out, put the bike in 5th gear and either turn the rear wheel over by hand or push the bike forward....it should move with a relatively small amount of effort.

If it has been running then disregard that.

After re-reading your posts, I can't see that you've mentioned the age of the battery. I know you've had it load tested as being good but if all was working fine before you left it a few weeks, then that would be my main culprit with what is happening. However, I'm loath to suggest spending money on an expensive new battery without covering some basics particularly if you're not in a rush to get it sorted.

I'm a bit concerned about when you held the jump lead from the car to the bike's starter motor body after trying the solenoid terminal first, and you say the starter motor turned over slowly. Was that to the covered terminal on the starter itself or actually the starter body? Where was the earth cable from the car at that point?

What I'd suggest next is a voltage drop test.
1) Put your meter on DC volts.
2) Attach the positive red lead from the multimeter to the battery positive terminal of battery.
3) Attach the negative black lead from the mutimeter to the solenoid terminal where the bikes battery positive lead connects to it and hold it there.
4) Now try starting the bike for a few seconds and observe the reading on the multimeter regardless of whether it is presently turning over.
What reading do you see?
You should be seeing less that 1 volt.
This test can be carried out through out the starter system but take that reading first and see what you get. Remember that this test requires the starter ciruit to be energised by you pressing the start button whist carrying it out.


Another thing to try is again put the meter on DC volts and see what happens to the voltage of the battery whilst attempting to start.
1) Fully charge the battery and leave to settle for an hour. What is the voltage?
2) Turn the ignition on. what is the voltage across the battery?
3) Hold the meter leads across the battery positive and negative terminals and try starting the bike for a few seconds.
4) Even though the starter isn't physically turning over, what reading do you observe? Does it stay virtually the same as when you were not pressing the start button or does it drop dramatically?
If it hardly changes then it's unlikely a battery issue.
If it drops below 9.5 volts, particularly if it's way below that, then that often indcates the battery is at fault.

That is taking into account that your happy with the starter relay, the earths have been cleaned and are secure, the battery leads seem good and tight and that the starter motor operated correctly before you left the bike for that short while. As I said before, it's quite rare for a starter motor to fail so abruptly. Certain components in the starter like the starter clutch gear and solenoid contacts can go bad for sure, but those motors are pretty good for fairly standard engines.