I just canceled my trip to Oklahoma. I was looking forward to riding with ya.

 

The ONLY reason that I always use the Kill Switch... In the event of a "Drop" or "Get-Off" I will be brain trained to hit the switch by default...much faster than reaching for the Ign. switch.

 

Holy crap, 5 pages on how to turn off your scoot, must be a slow day.....I use the ignition switch if ya really care.

 

Never use the kill switch to shut the bike down...because one day, you are gonna hit the starter button instead & you definitely will NOT like the sound the starter makes when it engages while the bike is running. Happened to my buddy literally the same day I told him not to use it, & my ex did it to my Fatboy.

 

The only time my kill switch is used is when I bring it to the dealer. They usually switch it off when they shut the bike down.

I can't see turning on 2 switches before I push the start button or having to turn off 2 switches to shut it down.

As far as keeping my eyes on the road and my hands on the grips at shutdown time, I'm usually stopped in a parking lot or garage when I shut it off.

So far, every time I've tipped it over the tip sensor shuts it off for me and I have plenty of time to turn off the ignition switch later.

If the engine runs away, which it won't because the ECM will put the bike in limp mode if the throttle system isn't right but if it does, I'll hit the kill switch to shut the motor off, and this is the only use I see for that switch.

I worry that if I use the kill switch for normal shut down I will forget to turn the ignition switch off.

Either way will work, just pick one.

 

Wow! Never expected so many differing comments but I appreciate every one of them. Looks like there is no "one size fits all" way of doing it. I guess my buddy with the 08 was told to do what he does due to the difference in model years. That being said because I never used the kill switch on my 1600 metric and because it doesn't seem to matter (no matter what manual says) I'm going to start using ignition switch only on the RK to keep some continuity in place.

 

Same here.

 

Of course. Who doesn't!?

 

I just put the jiffy stand out with the bike in gear.
Then turn off ignition.

It's a habit I've got into with the Ultra, never done it this way with any other bike I've owned.

 

I’m an electrician with instrumentation certification and I specialize in electrical substation control wiring. I can’t see where it matters either way. Normally I shut down everything at once with the ignition switch. I use the kill switch if I’m parking on a slope, leaving the bike in gear and both hands are busy with the clutch and brake.

Using the kill switch tells the ECM to shut down the ignition system, thereby killing the engine. Turning off the ignition just kills everything at once. Your ECM is still getting constant power from the battery, so your not totally shutting down the ECM without disconnecting the battery. This is why those of us with a Thunder Max ECM need to re-initialize the ECM after battery disconnection or pulling the main fuse.