Hold your breath, I'm goin in......

[icebrrg3rd]

Hey! That sounds like the gremlin I had last year! I musta lost him in Cudahy and he found your bike. Uh Oh, you haven't sync'd your bike lately, have you? Maybe that's how he transfered from my bike to yours...

 

I never did figure out what was causing the cut-out in my bike, it just stopped happening. I had cleaned/sprayed the kill switch, messed with the fuse box, starter relay, it would still kill off in mid-ride, only to be restarted in 30 minutes to 2 hours later. Then all of a sudden, it hasn't happened (knock on wood). I have had my bike partially disassembled, so maybe I move something unknowingly. I do have a new battery in it, running the new TCI, still have glass fuses (I know, I know), old starter relay, new starter, I did resolder the computer recently due to a headlight issue, and touched all the connections, maybe that fixed it?

 

-Andrew

[Flyinfool]

So thats where I got it from.

I'll be sending you the bill.........

[icebrrg3rd]

So Jeff, how's it going with YOUR gremlin (he's not mine anymore!)? Have you gotten your bike to stay running? Just wondering as tomorrow evening is fast approaching. Just let me know if you're riding with me to Orlin's, or else I'll be heading out solo.

 

-Andrew

[WildBill1]

Does your First Gen. have a Tilt Angle shut off breaker like the Second Gen. Bikes? They do give problems on Second Gen. Bikes. Fairly easy to check just lay it over on a couple blankets in the yard.

 

Bill,

[Flyinfool]

There is a tilt sensor on the first gen, I have it disconnected to eliminate it as a possible source of this problem.

 

I now have EVERY component that could possibly cause this either jumpered or disconnected to eliminate it as a possibility. The only thing left is the wiring its self or a connector somewhere in the wire harness. That is this weekends project.

 

Because this is very intermittent all I can not actually test anything, all I can do is try something and then go for a test ride to see if the problem comes back, and hope I can make it back home if it does.

[dacheedah]

Jeff U forgot more than I know. I would be lookin at my connectors for a burned or corroded wire. Its almost like it heats up and expands to short, cools down to touch kind of thing

[WildBill1]

There is a tilt sensor on the first gen, I have it disconnected to eliminate it as a possible source of this problem.

 

I now have EVERY component that could possibly cause this either jumpered or disconnected to eliminate it as a possibility. The only thing left is the wiring its self or a connector somewhere in the wire harness. That is this weekends project.

 

Because this is very intermittent all I can not actually test anything, all I can do is try something and then go for a test ride to see if the problem comes back, and hope I can make it back home if it does.

 

Getting back, 95% of the time if its not a component failure on a 12V system its ground related fault.

[Big Lou]

i ONCE WORKED ON A MACK KEPT DYING , 4 times that truck left the shop ,

 

towed back

. left to run all day . nothing ..me driving, nothing

driver was upset ,

finally i was outside washing it and it died

started right back up .water killed it again..

 

wiring harness to the computer on the side of block .,. allmost to the back was shorted inside the harness ,, hard place to see or get to,, it had rubbed against the holder that tied it from bouncing

 

another a freightliner ,, i could grab harness and shake it and truck would die ,,

the freightliner had breaks inside coating ,,, it did NOT SHOW

[Flyinfool]

OK here is what I found so far.

 

As mentioned earlier, the hinge pin for the kill switch was broken off so the switch was wobbling and possibly not always making good contact.

 

The clutch switch never worked since I bought this bike 6 years ago.

In disassembling it I found that it was frozen halfway between in and out so it was making the connections for the bike to run, but not breaking the connection for the cruise. The clutch bushings were worn enough to not force the switch all the way to either end of its travel.

 

There is a smaller black wire that comes of of the NEG battery terminal and about 3 inches later goes into a single pin connector, I believe this one goes to a frame ground somewhere. That single pin connector had gotten a dose of battery acid at some point in the past and it is well corroded.

 

The red white wire that supplies power to all of the affected circuits had a weak crimp to the terminal in one of the connectors, a gentle tug removed it from the terminal.

 

As long as the bike is all apart I will replace the Main fuse with a Maxi Fuse.

Repair the clutch switch and bushings.

Eliminate the corroded connector in the frame ground wire.

Solder all of the terminals in the connector that had the weak crimp.

 

Then I can put it all back together, remove all of the jumpers and bypasses and wiring butchery that was done to get home, and while trouble shooting, to return all safety circuits to proper operation. and take a test ride with fingers crossed.

 

So tomorrow I get to start tracking down parts to order.

Edited June 28, 2013 by Flyinfool

[Flyinfool]

A kind member her had the replacement kill switch that I need that is no longer available from Yami.

 

All of the parts that I think I need are now sourced and ordered. With the 4th holiday coming up I likely will not see them all till the following week.

 

In the mean time I can repair the wires that need repairing, and clean and add dielectric grease to all connectors that I can get to while the fairing is apart. In 2 weeks I can go out for the next test ride to see if I have fixed the issue.....

[dacheedah]

glad you are making progress. . .

[Big Lou]

sounds like me,, everything ..I cant make

 

.an have to order,,, is a week away..

.

the worst part is the biggest bike junk man in Alabama down the road said , nobody sends ventures to him,, they dont get scrapped,,cause they are still running!!!!!

 

he has thousands of gold wings

 

kind of made me feel good to hear that this bike dont break down much..

 

:080402gudl_prv::080402gudl_prv:

[GeorgeS]

Few more things to do, if not done recently :stirthepot::whistling:

 

Drain each carb bowl seperatly, let fuel pump run fuel thru each bowl.

 

Completly drain the Fuel tank, at the Petcock !! ( just in case some water in tank )

 

Replace the Fuel filter.

 

Screw out the Plug 7MM wires, each end , nip of 1/4 inch and re-install.

 

Replace spark plugs ! ( Iridium, type, or course )

 

Check for loose parts, on all 4 Carb Intake's, and the Clamps , above and below

all 4 carbs.

 

Good time, to " Resolder " the large Studs, on " BOTH " ends, of " Both " Battery

cables !!!

 

Clean--- the 10MM Nut. on the Starter !!! where large Red Cable connected, just in case its corroded from Road wash, from front wheel

 

--- Don't forget to check the Plug on the " Barometric Pressure Sensor " !!!!!!

 

As long as your working on the bike :whistling: , you might as well replace the starter solinoid also, this is also a good thing to do, on older bikes :stirthepot:

 

And of course after all this is done, you will need a new set of "" Dunlops "" :stirthepot::whistling:

[frogmaster]

Jeff,

 

Yeah that is what I was gonna say... NOT...LOL. I think you have found the problems based on what you have told me at MD-2013 and read here.

 

Charlie & Tess

PS: Thanks for the SS-Kickstand Plate again.

 

OK here is what I found so far.

 

As mentioned earlier, the hinge pin for the kill switch was broken off so the switch was wobbling and possibly not always making good contact.

 

The clutch switch never worked since I bought this bike 6 years ago.

In disassembling it I found that it was frozen halfway between in and out so it was making the connections for the bike to run, but not breaking the connection for the cruise. The clutch bushings were worn enough to not force the switch all the way to either end of its travel.

 

There is a smaller black wire that comes of of the NEG battery terminal and about 3 inches later goes into a single pin connector, I believe this one goes to a frame ground somewhere. That single pin connector had gotten a dose of battery acid at some point in the past and it is well corroded.

 

The red white wire that supplies power to all of the affected circuits had a weak crimp to the terminal in one of the connectors, a gentle tug removed it from the terminal.

 

As long as the bike is all apart I will replace the Main fuse with a Maxi Fuse.

Repair the clutch switch and bushings.

Eliminate the corroded connector in the frame ground wire.

Solder all of the terminals in the connector that had the weak crimp.

 

Then I can put it all back together, remove all of the jumpers and bypasses and wiring butchery that was done to get home, and while trouble shooting, to return all safety circuits to proper operation. and take a test ride with fingers crossed.

 

So tomorrow I get to start tracking down parts to order.

[Flyinfool]

Well it is going back together, slooooowwwwwly.

I did get it started tonight and ran it at idle for a half hour with no glitches.

 

I still have my 3 emergency bypasses in place that will stay in till the road test says its good.

 

I still have to put the front end back on the bike before I can road test it.

 

But at least it is running now:thumbsup:

[Yammer Dan]

Got fingers crossed Jeff!!

[Phoneman1981]

Interesting read. Kind of like watching "As the World Turns". Anxious to hear more.

[bongobobny]

Interesting read. Kind of like watching "As the World Turns". Anxious to hear more.

...or as we call it around here, "As The Wheel Turns!"

[dacheedah]

and we got everything crossed

[icebrrg3rd]

Was just wondering about you & your bike, Jeff. Knew you were getting your parts soon so was just waiting on some positive news from Cudahy. Heh, heh, positive and Cudahy in one sentence. I cracks me up.

 

Glad it's running, hope this fixes it. And NO, don't send that grimey little gremlin back my way. Send him to the Hardley museum, those bikes don't run anyways...

 

-Andrew

[Flyinfool]

Well I have the bike back together, all of the safety circuits are hooked back up, new kill switch installed, clutch switch is working for the first time since I bought the bike.

I did find another mouse chewed wire that I had to rerun, it was the power wire for the radio so it was not part of the original problem.

 

It is late now and dark out, If it is gonna still show a gremlin in there, I would rather chase it in daylight.

Tomorrow (Saturday) I am heading out for a long test drive.

Hopefully I got all of the gremlins out of the bike and packaged up to send off in the mail to some far away place.......

[dacheedah]

Fingers crossed for ya, have an uneventful ride

[Flyinfool]

:big-grin-emoticon: :big-grin-emoticon: :big-grin-emoticon: :big-grin-emoticon: :big-grin-emoticon:

 

I took a 4 hour ride today and nary a hiccup.

 

:dancefool: :dancefool: :dancefool: :dancefool: :dancefool: :dancefool:

[Snaggletooth]

[Yammer Dan]

Good Job Jeff! I hope you squashed that gremlin under your foot before it got away!! It show up at my house I'm in trouble!!!