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Mr_cuell
| Posted on Monday, May 30, 2005 - 02:16 pm: |
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Last night I was cursing Buell and the crap reliability. Now I am cursing myself and my own stupidity, arrogance, and every adjective that describes a moron. See post titled "XB died today??!!" and notice first bit of advice and my sophomoric response. Someone asks if the battery is tight and I say "yep" without even checking, because, why the hell would they be loose, after all they LOOK tight. Yada yada yada, can't ride on my first day off since March (I'm in swimming pool service) and today all the shops are closed. While messing with the tender which has been telling me all night the battery is topped off I notice TADA - the damn terminal screws are loose. BA-boom bike fires right up. Lesson: 1. Mr_Cuell is a moron 2. Take advice when offered, I found out I am not nearly as smart as I think I am.
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Ted
| Posted on Monday, May 30, 2005 - 02:24 pm: |
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lol, welcome to the humility club. At least there's no harm done. |
Metalstorm
| Posted on Monday, May 30, 2005 - 02:28 pm: |
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At least the bike is running well. That's gotta be worth eating a little crow. I guess I'm lucky, I found out I'm not nearly as smart as I think I am years ago. Luckier still, I get reminded of that on an almost daily basis. |
Mesafirebolt
| Posted on Monday, May 30, 2005 - 02:35 pm: |
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On a ride with my Fat boy ridding buddy, he shut his off when we stopped for gas. The "bolt cranked right up but the harley wouldn't even light her eye. To make a LOOOONG story short, battery terminals on harleys need locking nuts on them! |
Metalstorm
| Posted on Monday, May 30, 2005 - 02:58 pm: |
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I feel compelled to tell my best dumb story. My Sporty was having trouble starting once upon a time ago. The battery was good & the terminals were tight. I figured it had to be the starter relay so I replaced it. It still had the same problem. Then the power stated dying. When I wiggled the ignition switch it would come on & off so I said "Ahha! It's the ignition switch!" I got a new switch & hooked it up. Now there was no power at all. "WTF?" said I. I tested the battery again and it was good. Cables were tight on terminals and there was no corrosion. I was stumped for a couple days then I happened to notice the pos cable where it connects down below. It was completely severed from corrosion! Doh! I felt like such an arse. I got a new starter relay (not much$$) and a new switch ($70!!!) & all I needed was a $12.00 cable. |
Daves
| Posted on Monday, May 30, 2005 - 03:41 pm: |
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Once you get used to it, crow doesn't taste half bad. As long as you put enough BBQ sauce on it! Or refried beans. I've had a taste a time or two myself and expect to have crow served up nice and cold to me again in the future. It's just part of life. Glad it was nothing major. Rule #1 Always check the easiest, dumbest things first! |
Reepicheep
| Posted on Monday, May 30, 2005 - 07:09 pm: |
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Mr. Cuell... I think I was the one that said to check the loose battery terminal... if not this time, I have said it plenty of times before. There are two possibilities why I would give this advice. 1) I am a brilliant engineer capable of psychically diagnosing remote motorcycle failures. 2) I, after dragging out all sorts of tools, removing all sorts of connectors checking all sorts of voltages and currents, finally worked my way back to the battery, where I found a loose connector. I will leave it as an excercise to the reader to decide which is the case |
Tucsonxb9s
| Posted on Monday, May 30, 2005 - 07:30 pm: |
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Dang Reep...I didn't know you were psychic! |
Reepicheep
| Posted on Monday, May 30, 2005 - 07:38 pm: |
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That would not explain the callouses on my forhead from the forehead-slaps though :0 Most common phrases heard in the Kilgallon garage: 1) Oh. That makes perfect sense. In hindsight. 2) Doh. 3) Whoda Thunk? 4) I guess I really *do* need to go get the service manual just to do an oil change. 5) *Now* whered that thing go? 6) Hot Damn! No parts left over this time! You get the idea... |
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