Bike won't crank....

[candyred11]

Hey guys new to the website but I have been browsing around trying to find an answer to my problem and haven't found it so figured I would ask. I've got a 79 XS1100 standard and i just went through and cleaned all the carbs. Put it all back together and fired it right up and was running fine. Turned the choke off and was idling real good. After about a total run time of 5 minutes it just shut off. No backfire no nothing just dead. Still had power and everything but just stopped running. Hit the starter button and nothing. So i jumped the starter solenoid and it cranks fine. Find the connector for the starter button and jump it and the bike cranks. As i look at the connector i notice that the connector coming from the button only has 3 wires but the connector it plugs into has 5. I go to jump the connector again and this time it won't crank. Note: I had just tapped on the tip over sensor thinking that it might be giving me the problem. Jump the starter solenoid and it cranks fine. So i guess my question is does any one know why it would just shut off like that? I already ordered a new starter button and will install that as soon as i get it. Any suggestions will be appreciated!

[bikerphil]

Welcome to the forum. I'd first start by checking the fuse panel. The old type glass fuses can cause intermittent connections. Clean and tighten them up a bit and see if that helps. The old glass fuses are unreliable, they may appear to be good but can be broken or loose inside. Most of us here upgrade the fuse panel to the newer blade type fuses. HTH

[DiverRay]

The problem I've had on my '79's are the "kill" switches! The first one seemed "frozen", but if it DID move even a little bit, the bike would die. The second one was an intermittent problem, and when I pulled the switch apart to clean it, all the plastic came apart into about 8 bits! I ended up with a new right hand control to fix that one. You CAN buy a new right control from mikesxs.com, and just use the "guts" to rebuild your control. JAT

[randy]

The tipover switch is a known weak point. You can just unplug it to take it out of the equation. Might help you isolate the problem. If you don't plan on tipping over you can leave it unplugged!

[candyred11]

thanks for the suggestions guys i will try all of these tonight. BTW the PO did a hacka$$ wiring job throughout the whole bike. The right turn signal is always on and when u turn the left on on it gets brighter in the front but neither of them flash. So thanks for the help so far!

[randy]

The front signals also function as running lights, so both should be on. Second filament kicks in with turn signal on. Does sound like you have to go through the wiring, your grounds are probably bad, neglect does that to 30-yr old bikes.

[Rasputin]

First of all wlecome to the Forum.
I dont know Jack schitt about electrical. I am more inclined to sit in the corner drooling than to tackle an electrical problem. Most of these guys know what they are talking about so use their wisdom.
I do have one suggestion as to why it may have shut down. Are the petcocks turned to the correct position and is there gas in the tank? I know some times people have had issues after working on carbs and petcocks due to lack of gas. JAT

[Ivan]

Heres my best shot:

The TCI unit needs about 10.5v to make a spark. Under this it just shuts off. This is also about the voltage where starters get kinda iffy on wether they crank or not. If the system voltage gets low, the solenoid may not close well enough to make a good connection on the secondary side.

I'll bet the charging system isnt up to snuff, and after the five minutes, the system volts drew down enough to cause the TCI to shut down, then the extra cranking drew it down enough the starter wont engage.

Charge the battery up and see if the same thing happens.

While the bike is running you should see over 12v at the battery terminals.

[boyat68]

I am with Ivan on this as it sounds like the battery is not charging or the battery may just need water level checked. A low water level will test good voltage but will not have enough amps to turn over the bike.

[candyred11]

ok i have tried everything stated above so far and nothing. I would think the battery wasn't charged but we have had it on a charger wheneven we try and start it. And yes the bike has over a half tank and the petcocks were on the right position. But, what is the exact way to test the start button and exactly how do you replace it?

[DiverRay]

The battery MUST be GOOD if the bike is going to turn over!!!
The XS WILL NOT START WITH A BAD BATTERY. It does NOT care if you jump it, have it on a charger, or what you want to do. If you are not POSITIVE the battery has been TESTED by a RELIABLE source, replace it.
When I was working on Sailors bike with two of the people from here, we could NOT get it to turn over or kick start with the bad battery installed. Replaced the battery, and it fired up!

[candyred11]

what is the exact way to replace the starter button?


Update: Bike will crank now when you jump the solenoid and shes backfiring now so were on the right track!

[randy]

CANDYRED,

At the solenoid, with ignition ON, unplug the blue wire and ground it. If the bike cranks, then it's probably the starter button. Take apart the starter button clamshell, you'll see the blue/white wire leading to the starter button. it may have just broken off. try then grounding it there. Again, bike should crank. If it still doesn't crank, check the two red/whites in that clam, they are the kill switch wires, they need to be shorted together for the bike to crank. Keep testing and report back.

[candyred11]

Update: Bike will crank! But now all it does is backfire . I would crank it and then it would just have a pretty consistent back fire. Bike has fuel, air, spark, and i checked the compression with a compression tester and everything is checking out. Battery has 12.1 volts when i will start to crank so i don't think that could be the problem. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated!!!! Thanks for all the help so far guys hopefully with your help I will be back on the road!

[DiverRay]

Check the wires going to the coils, or put a timing light on the #1 coil lead. Crank the bike, and make sure you have a flash close to the "F". If the "F" is 180 degrees from the pointer, you have the wires going to the coils reversed. Switch the orange and grey wires. The red/white are the same to both coils.