| Author | Message | ||
     Doglanta |
Hi guys, I would like to get some suggestions on things to look for. My son was going to bring over his 2002 Blast this morning so we could change the fluids and get it ready for the new season. About a block away from his apartment the bike died as he was shifting into second gear. He tried to restart it but it would not turn over. He made sure the cut-off switch was not hit by mistake and tried restarting with the switch in both positions. The bike has fuel (fuel cut-off is in the open position) but since the bike will not turn over fuel can pretty much be ruled out anyway. The headlight and warning lights do come on when the key is turned. I have not had a chance to look at the bike yet, he will have a friend with a truck get it to my house in the next few days so I am trying to get suggestions on where to look before it gets here. A couple of things I can think of to look at would be the clutch switch and the sidestand switch. Maybe one of of those took a dump and is preventing the bike from turning over. That would think that would also explain why the bike died while driving. Does anyone have any other suggestions? Thanks in advance for any advice. Doglanta (Ken) | ||
| Sycho |
How about putting the fuel cutoff switch into the reserve position and then try. Couldn't hurt. | ||
| Styxnpicks |
sounds like one of the saftey switches isnt working. you can reverse the clutch diode in the fuse block to bypass those | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
Sounds like you've read up and have it covered! | ||
| Doglanta |
Thanks for the replies. My son did try the fuel valve in all positions before calling me to tell me the bike died. After he told me exactly how it died and that the starter would not turn over I ruled out a fuel problem. Thanks for the suggestion though. Styxnpicks, after you mentioned diode I got the repair manual out again and started looking at the schematics. I see where the clutch lever switch is connected to diode 2. I think that is the best place to start. While I was looking at the factory repair manual (huh, read the manual who would have thought...) I found that it has a large section on ignition/starter interlock troubleshooting. It has some detailed info on testing the diode as well as testing for any wiring problems at the fuseblock. If the problem is in this part of the starter/ignition circuit the manual outlines very well how to test the components. I would love for it to be a diode that took a dump rather then there be a bad switch or a bad ground someplace but I won't know until I tear into it. It will probably be a week or so until he gets the bike to my house but I will update this thread with what I find. Thanks again for the replies and information they were much appreciated. Doglanta (Ken) | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
Its not that complicated. You're overthinking it. Try the basic simple suggestions found here first. It will be a lot easier than going through the schematic and manual test procedures. The kickstand switch is very easy to bypass. The clutch diode is easily flipped. If it starts after one or both of those you know where to look for your problem (if you decide it needs fixing). | ||
| Doglanta |
Hi Gearheaderiko, I definitely agree. Before I have my son haul the bike over to my house I am going to go over there and try the diode flip and while I have it in my hand take a quick test with an ohmmeter. The good news is that if it is one of the three items I suspect first (clutch lever switch, kickstand switch or neutral safety switch) it should not be too hard to find the culprit, and I may be able to do it quickly in the parking lot of his apartment. I am all for trying the easy things first. Hopefully I can update this post with successful results instead of having to pick your brains for more suggestions! Thanks again, Doglanta (Ken) (Message edited by Doglanta on June 01, 2012) | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
http://www.badweatherbikers.com/buell/messages/201 64/55319.html The kickstand safety bypass is to just complete the circuit. You can jump the 2 wires or cut the connector off the switch and join those two wires together (that way you have a permanent connect jumper and can always plug a new kickstand switch back in). Do either or both and you won't have to worry about the neutral safety switch. | ||
| Doglanta |
Wow, the only way you could have made it any easier was if you came over and did it for me.  Before I posted the first time I searched this forum and did not find this post from 2004. Absolutely fantastic and I really appreciate your time and effort. I will definitely update this thread with the results. Thanks again, Doglanta (Ken) | ||
| Ezblast |
loose front ground will do that as well. EZ | ||
| Doglanta |
My son called me and said he tried flipping the diode and it did not make a difference. He also mentioned it looked burnt on the fuse box around where the diode plugs into. I have not put my eyes on any of this yet I am going by what he is telling me. He is going to bring the diode by for me to look at tomorrow and I should be able to check the resistance on it to tell me if it is blown. If not it will have to wait until this weekend for me to see the actual bike. I stopped by the Harley dealer on my way home from work today and ordered a couple of diodes, they should be here around the middle of next week. They were cheap enough to order a couple even if the diode is not the problem. I will update this thread as soon as I have seen the bike and have new info. Thanks again for all the advice. Doglanta (Ken) | ||
| Doglanta |
Thanks Ezblast, I will check the grounds too when I see the bike in person. One ground is from the engine mount to the engine, and the other is the neg battery cable, correct? Doglanta (Ken) | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
Yes. | ||
| Doglanta |
Sorry I forgot to ask this before. Does the sidestand switch prevent the starter from turning or does it allow the starter to turn but not allow the bike to start? Thanks, Doglanta (Ken) | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
It shuts the engine off if the clutch is released, the bike is in gear, and the stand is down. Thats all. But you can see where they're all linked, so bypassing one will also bypass another. | ||
| Ezblast |
It will stop the bike from turning over - disabled mine long ago - lol EZ | ||
| Doglanta |
The plot thickens. My son was going to remove the diode and bring it to me at work so that I could test it. I asked him to also remove the starter relay so that I could test that too. He sent me photos of what he saw. I believe the damaged wiring was to the gear indicator that tells him what gear he was in. It appears the wiring chaffed and probably shorted out. I will need to eliminate this bad wiring from the circuit, and test all the fuses and diodes with a meter just to make sure all are good. Then I also need to remove the gear indicator connector that plugs into the TPS switch just to get rid of everything related to the gear indicator from the bike. Once I am back to the basic bike I can plug all the fuses and diodes back in, cross my fingers and see what happens. I may get lucky and I will be OK. If not I will continue troubleshooting from there. Thanks again for all the advice and suggestions! Doglanta (Ken)   (Message edited by Doglanta on June 07, 2012) | ||
| Doglanta |
My son brought the damaged wiring, fuses and diodes to me at work. I tested the diodes and they tested fine. One of the two 7.5 volt fuses was blown (at first look you couldn't see the break but it couldn't fool the multimeter) and I believe it was the one in the fuse block labeled Ignition. According to the diagram this Ignition fuse goes to the key, clutch lever switch and the system relay. It looks to be that the wire was damaged by maybe being sandwiched between the seat and the battery. The damaged parts of the wiring have some pretty clean cuts in three or four places. I'm still hoping once I get it all cleaned up and put back in place I may get lucky. I will be driving up to his place on Saturday to work on it in person. Doglanta (Ken) (Message edited by Doglanta on June 07, 2012) | ||
| Doglanta |
The problem has been resolved. I removed the frayed/damaged wiring for the gear indicator. That wiring shorted out and blew the 7.5 fuse in the block labeled Ignition. Once I replaced that fuse the bike started right up.  Many thanks for the advice and suggestions, I learned a couple of tings about the Blast. Doglanta (Ken) | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
Yaaay!!! I never had a chance to see the pictures, but thats not the normal way those wires are run (under the tank panel-unless thats the fix-it wires). |
