Electrical woes...

[rktmanfj]

if you can turn the bars and make weird things happen then that is a huge problem... it really shouldnt be that hard (or expensive) to track down what is being tensioned/abraided/shorted and what is not..... personally i would be looking really hard at (focusing on) the wring and switches going to and associated with the handlbar kill switch /start button.


JMO,

Kookaloo!

Very good point Frank makes, as well...

Which is pretty much what I said in the first reply, as well.     

[racerman_27410]

if you can turn the bars and make weird things happen then that is a huge problem... it really shouldnt be that hard (or expensive) to track down what is being tensioned/abraided/shorted and what is not..... personally i would be looking really hard at (focusing on) the wring and switches going to and associated with the handlbar kill switch /start button.


JMO,

Kookaloo!

Very good point Frank makes, as well...

Which is pretty much what I said in the first reply, as well.     

I almost didnt post anything at all just because you did already post this advice (and were seemingly ignored)... i was just trying to get the fella back on track since he left the obvious problem/ answer laying and went searching for something else.

KOokaloo!

Frank

[rktmanfj]

if you can turn the bars and make weird things happen then that is a huge problem... it really shouldnt be that hard (or expensive) to track down what is being tensioned/abraided/shorted and what is not..... personally i would be looking really hard at (focusing on) the wring and switches going to and associated with the handlbar kill switch /start button.


JMO,

Kookaloo!

Very good point Frank makes, as well...

Which is pretty much what I said in the first reply, as well.     

I almost didnt post anything at all just because you did already post this advice (and were seemingly ignored)... i was just trying to get the fella back on track since he left the obvious problem/ answer laying and went searching for something else.

KOokaloo!

Frank

Yeah, I know.

I just don't get it when people do that.     

[SlowOldGuy]

If you're blowing the bulb, you've got a different problem.

Usually bulbs blow from being heat cycled too much (rapidly turned on and off) of if they are subjected to a lot of vibration.

Check the mounting tabs on your headlight shell/reflector and make sure they are not broken

As Rich said, the headlight relay will solve the wiring problem for the headlight at least and let you ride.  It's as cheap as 2 $5 relays, a few crimp connectors, a couple feet of 12 or 14 gauge wire, a $3 fuse holder and a few hours of your time.

DavidR.

[andyb]

if you can turn the bars and make weird things happen then that is a huge problem... it really shouldnt be that hard (or expensive) to track down what is being tensioned/abraided/shorted and what is not..... personally i would be looking really hard at (focusing on) the wring and switches going to and associated with the handlbar kill switch /start button.


JMO,

Kookaloo!

Very good point Frank makes, as well...

Which is pretty much what I said in the first reply, as well.     

I almost didnt post anything at all just because you did already post this advice (and were seemingly ignored)... i was just trying to get the fella back on track since he left the obvious problem/ answer laying and went searching for something else.

KOokaloo!

Frank

Yeah, I know.

I just don't get it when people do that.     

This post needs more quoted stuff.

[rktmanfj]

if you can turn the bars and make weird things happen then that is a huge problem... it really shouldnt be that hard (or expensive) to track down what is being tensioned/abraided/shorted and what is not..... personally i would be looking really hard at (focusing on) the wring and switches going to and associated with the handlbar kill switch /start button.


JMO,

Kookaloo!

Very good point Frank makes, as well...

Which is pretty much what I said in the first reply, as well.     

I almost didnt post anything at all just because you did already post this advice (and were seemingly ignored)... i was just trying to get the fella back on track since he left the obvious problem/ answer laying and went searching for something else.

KOokaloo!

Frank

Yeah, I know.

I just don't get it when people do that.     

This post needs more quoted stuff.

There you go.

For those who are (obviously) ringing in without reading the entire thread, there are multiple sub-threads going on here.

That said, Andy, got anything useful for any of them?     

Well, do ya?       

[FJmonkey]

if you can turn the bars and make weird things happen then that is a huge problem... it really shouldnt be that hard (or expensive) to track down what is being tensioned/abraided/shorted and what is not..... personally i would be looking really hard at (focusing on) the wring and switches going to and associated with the handlbar kill switch /start button.


JMO,

Kookaloo!

Very good point Frank makes, as well...

Which is pretty much what I said in the first reply, as well.     

I almost didnt post anything at all just because you did already post this advice (and were seemingly ignored)... i was just trying to get the fella back on track since he left the obvious problem/ answer laying and went searching for something else.

KOokaloo!

Frank

Yeah, I know.

I just don't get it when people do that.     

This post needs more quoted stuff.

There you go.

For those who are (obviously) ringing in without reading the entire thread, there are multiple sub-threads going on here.

That said, Andy, got anything useful for any of them?     

Well, do ya?       

The only reason I am posting is that I don't want to feel left out of this epic thread. I wonder how many more sub-posts this will go before a moderator gets fed up with it?

[fintip]

Haha. Okay, guys, made some progress.

So the first night of this thread, I walked outside to see if I noticed anything in the dark, maybe some wires rubbing or something. There's some information I should add in at this point:

I have been pulling my battery and using it to work on/troubleshoot the ninja 750 in my backyard. As a result, I was putting the battery back in my bike when I had to leave, usually in a hurry, and so was only hand-tightening the screws. On other bikes I've had, I've never experienced a resulting problem from this, but the FJ vibrates more than other bikes, I guess.

So I went out the other night, and when starting, saw a spark near the battery. I investigated, and it seemed it was just at the ground lead. So I intentionally loosened the screw a bit to see what I could get, moved the lead around the loosened screw... And saw lots of sparks (surprise! heh).

Anyways, decided to make sure to keep those tightened down properly. Spent the next day chasing stuff around. I did pull apart the starter button to investigate there, but there was nothing of interest, only, since the spring is a custom job, I have a feeling I made the action in my starter button a bit worse, if anything. I cleaned everything up real good and such, but everything was fine. No rust, solders all good, a small amount of dirtyness over contacts, but nothing that didn't really wipe away with my finger.

As night is falling, I go and grab the spare headlight off the ninja, and pop it in the FJ. I ride off, still daylight out, going dark. Blinkers aren't working, huh. As it gets dark, I realize every single light on the FJ except for my speedo light and 'hi-beam' is blown. Including fuel and oil lights in the dash.

Culprit? Very likely all those sparks I made last night on the battery, no? Since it all seemed to happen suddenly, while off the bike. On the other hand, I am back to having the dim/bright thing with all lights, irrespective of bumps. So I think that was an unrelated issue. I'll let you know if any more lights blow while keeping the leads tight, but I doubt they will; I still suspect that my brushes are getting low or my regulator is going bad. It's usually dim, and occasionally brightens up, I should add--not the other way around.

Will look into the relay mod anyways.

Thanks for the help, nice that you guys keep trying with a hopeless case like myself  

Kyle

[Mark Olson]

Haha. Okay, guys, made some progress.

So the first night of this thread, I walked outside to see if I noticed anything in the dark, maybe some wires rubbing or something. There's some information I should add in at this point:

I have been pulling my battery and using it to work on/troubleshoot the ninja 750 in my backyard. As a result, I was putting the battery back in my bike when I had to leave, usually in a hurry, and so was only hand-tightening the screws. On other bikes I've had, I've never experienced a resulting problem from this, but the FJ vibrates more than other bikes, I guess.

So I went out the other night, and when starting, saw a spark near the battery. I investigated, and it seemed it was just at the ground lead. So I intentionally loosened the screw a bit to see what I could get, moved the lead around the loosened screw... And saw lots of sparks (surprise! heh).

Anyways, decided to make sure to keep those tightened down properly. Spent the next day chasing stuff around. I did pull apart the starter button to investigate there, but there was nothing of interest, only, since the spring is a custom job, I have a feeling I made the action in my starter button a bit worse, if anything. I cleaned everything up real good and such, but everything was fine. No rust, solders all good, a small amount of dirtyness over contacts, but nothing that didn't really wipe away with my finger.

As night is falling, I go and grab the spare headlight off the ninja, and pop it in the FJ. I ride off, still daylight out, going dark. Blinkers aren't working, huh. As it gets dark, I realize every single light on the FJ except for my speedo light and 'hi-beam' is blown. Including fuel and oil lights in the dash.

Culprit? Very likely all those sparks I made last night on the battery, no? Since it all seemed to happen suddenly, while off the bike. On the other hand, I am back to having the dim/bright thing with all lights, irrespective of bumps. So I think that was an unrelated issue. I'll let you know if any more lights blow while keeping the leads tight, but I doubt they will; I still suspect that my brushes are getting low or my regulator is going bad. It's usually dim, and occasionally brightens up, I should add--not the other way around.

Will look into the relay mod anyways.

Thanks for the help, nice that you guys keep trying with a hopeless case like myself  

Kyle

you tried to run your fj with a loose battery connection ?   

please refer to your quote at the end of your posts.

[rktmanfj]

if you can turn the bars and make weird things happen then that is a huge problem... it really shouldnt be that hard (or expensive) to track down what is being tensioned/abraided/shorted and what is not..... personally i would be looking really hard at (focusing on) the wring and switches going to and associated with the handlbar kill switch /start button.


JMO,

Kookaloo!

Very good point Frank makes, as well...

Which is pretty much what I said in the first reply, as well.     

I almost didnt post anything at all just because you did already post this advice (and were seemingly ignored)... i was just trying to get the fella back on track since he left the obvious problem/ answer laying and went searching for something else.

KOokaloo!

Frank

Yeah, I know.

I just don't get it when people do that.     

This post needs more quoted stuff.

There you go.

For those who are (obviously) ringing in without reading the entire thread, there are multiple sub-threads going on here.

That said, Andy, got anything useful for any of them?     

Well, do ya?       

The only reason I am posting is that I don't want to feel left out of this epic thread. I wonder how many more sub-posts this will go before a moderator gets fed up with it?

Or David R gets fed up with it, or others quit trying to help because the Op is trying everything under the sun but what's been suggested to him?     

[Arnie]

The "reed switch" is IN the speedometer.  It is used to count the distance you travel as part of the self-cancelling turn signal feature that the early FJs have.  It is not related to all the other problems you are asking about.

Arnie

Unrelated, what is the 'reed switch' for, and where is it? Somewhat unrelated, but just saw it and realized I couldn't place it and didn't know what it was for.

[fintip]

Thanks for that, Arnie. I knew it was unrelated, but I look at the diagram, and my curiousity just builds. However, you've piqued it again--they removed the self-canceling feature from the later model FJ's?

Also, the adventure continues.... Last night, I saw/heard sparks inside the fairing 3 times, and every time, the bike's whole electrics died. Once, it actually killed the bike, because it had just started and wasn't moving, just doing a low speed u-turn. The other times, just turning the bars again got electricity going again, and so it just continued running and picked up off its own momentum when the flow of current resumed.

Guess I'll be taking the whole fairing off, and checking things out carefully, moving the handlebars and trying to think it out.

I just can't help but wonder if my perpetual starting issues and my dim/bright light fluctuations are also related to whatever I'm going to find, or if this is really that compound an issue.

Thanks again, at this point I'm just updating for posterity's sake.

[fj11.5]

im sure i said it before, but it could be the wires leading to your starter relay/ flasher unit / whatever else it its for, behind the left side of your fairing 41-71? black relay thingo, , the noise could be it cutting in and out when the power is on and off, also effects the starting,  , as effie has the same issue some days when starting, its in the wiring leading to the relay unit,  as replacing the unit never solved it,  i dont have the lighting issue as you do, ,

[rktmanfj]

I just can't help but wonder if my perpetual starting issues and my dim/bright light fluctuations are also related to whatever I'm going to find, or if this is really that compound an issue.

Your short circuit certainly is at least partially causing it.

If you're talking about when coming off idle, it's a regulation issue, which is common.

[fintip]

I'm sure, and yes, you've said it, and I believe that is indeed the issue, just haven't had to take the fairing off...

But I just found this thread: http://www.fjowners.com/index.php?topic=7684.0

I wonder if that's my issue! The horn wires! Because, I've had some horn funniness lately. First off, to replace my headlight the first time, I removed the horn, and then put it back on--evidently not in its original position, which evidently matters. I didn't realize it until later, but I noticed one night that I couldn't lock the handlebars one way, thought it was wires that had been misrouted perhaps. Next day, I found out it was the horn. So when I replaced the headlight a second time, I moved the horn to a different location that I thought was better.

Well, evidently I did something wrong, because as I parked it later that night, the horn fell off the bike. It had ripped the mount off. What's odd is I had noticed that the mount looks like it has two spots for horns to be mounted, and that one of them already looked torn like this one did...

Anyways, those wires are dangling at the moment, which would coincide with my horn...

Where would they spark to? Would those cause the entire system to shut down briefly? About to go mess with them and see what I can make happen...

Also: What are the bulbs that go behind the tach/gas gauge in an '86? About to go to Autozone for some purchases, would like to get those at the same time. Can't find it in Clymer's, and searched the forum (which is actually, accidentally, how I ran into the thread listed above) for some ID #, came up dry. Actually, is there some place where all of the lights' bulb types are listed?