79 F electrical issues, imagine that!

[2manybikes]

The bike blows the main lighting fuse every time you start it. I have a running parts bike, so I have been removing components from it, and trying them one at a time. I have checked the bulb holder for the headlight as wells as swapping the LH controls, dimmer relay and most every other electrical box on the bike. I have not changed the ignition switch yet. The turn signals do work, but you have to monkey with the button a bit to get them to cancel. ( This does not cause the fuse to blow.) All the other electrical components work, and the charging system is OK. The bike runs fine as well, with the exception of the fuse blowing. The PO replaced the wiring harness so it could be something with that. None of the connectors, or wires, look cooked. I am out of ideas! Thanks for any suggestions.

[2manybikes]

79F headlight

76 views and no respomse?Come on guys, I'm stumped and need some help!

[motoman]

76 views and no respomse?Come on guys, I'm stumped and need some help!

Okay, for grins, behind the headlight in the bucket holder is a conglomeration of wire plug-ins. Check them for melted connectors, otherwise un-plug all of them and with electrical cleaner clean all contacts on both ends of connectors. That would be a good starting point for process of elimination. Poor connections equals resistance and raises current draw.

[vanimal5k]

Is it blowing the fuse while starting the bike(starter button depressed) or after it starts? If it happens while trying to start it, it could be corrosion in the starter button, bad brushes in the starter, bad starter cable, or bad starter relay/solenoid.

[HalfCentury]

Just to play devil's advocate for the sake of discussion, if contact resistances cause unwanted resistance, that would not explain a blown fuse. Increased resistance would cause heat if current was high.

To me, a blown fuse means there is a short somewhere; an unwanted path to ground. That would explain a blown fuse.

Have you unplugged your headlight to determine if the problem goes away?

I would disconnect anything that draws electric power one at a time.

[TopCatGr58]

Okay, you have a fuse in the headlight circuit, you start the bike and the headlight fuse blows, but the rest of the bikes electrics keep working. You said the harness was swapped out, that may or may not be a causitive factor.

Once the bike starts, the charging circuit triggers the headlight relay to turn on the headlights. You can do a test of the headlight circuit WITHOUT the bike being running by doing the headlight relay bypass, and then see if the fuse still blows. IF so, then there's some sort of rubbed wire shorting out the headlight circuit to ground, and it's not necessarily the act of starting that is the problem.

Good luck hunting it down.

T.C.

[2manybikes]

Electrical issues

Thanks for the replies. I have visually inspected the wires and connectors to include the ones in the headlight bucket. I did not clean them, but I will. I have checked the headlight with a battery, and all seems well. I have also replaced the LH control, as well as the RH one. It's hard to say when the fuse blows, but it's not when the switch is turned on. With that in mind, it makes me think the relay is working, and perhaps the problem is down stream from that.

[motoman]

Thanks for the replies. I have visually inspected the wires and connectors to include the ones in the headlight bucket. I did not clean them, but I will. I have checked the headlight with a battery, and all seems well. I have also replaced the LH control, as well as the RH one. It's hard to say when the fuse blows, but it's not when the switch is turned on. With that in mind, it makes me think the relay is working, and perhaps the problem is down stream from that.

Gonna have to un-plug and clean them ALL with a GOOD not cheap quality spray electrical cleaner. Like I previously stated, one step at a time, eliminating that as a possible source of your issue, and then move forward with your testing/elimination process.