LuckyLeprechaun
XS650 Enthusiast
I just got my first bike, a '76, about a month ago, and have been tinkering with it to try to get it ready to ride in spring. I tried to kick-start it one day, and seemingly ran into a lot of electrical issues and couldn't get it started. I'm going to post all the information I can provide, sorry if it's too much or muddies the waters as to the non-start issue, because we could always be dealing with multiple issues. I'm definitely no wiring expert, so excuse me if what I write doesn't make complete sense or I have to ask for clarifications
1. As far as I could tell, kicking it over with a full battery, I had no spark(at least for the right hand cylinder)
2. I was told that the electric starter didn't work, which I didn't really care about, and pressing the button, sure enough, nothing happened. However, if I jump direct power to the main starter wire on the starter relay the starter motor makes noise, but doesn't engage(doesn't turn the engine over). I also tested the relay itself, and I believe that it is in working order. Also, if I use a voltmeter and put one prong on the solder that holds the blue/white wire on the back of the starter button and the other prong on the solder that holds the blue/white wire to the relay, it says I have continuity even with the button not pressed.
3. I have headlight, taillight, gauge lights, high beam, and high beam indicator. I don't have brake light, turn signals, neutral indicator, stop lamp indicator, or horn. The horn does work with direct power, but not by pressing the button.
4. I took apart, cleaned, and tested the kill switch, and it seems to be working.
5. If anyone has a nice full wiring diagram, that would also be great, i'm working off of one for a '75, but at least one thing is different, the ignition coil wire colors, so who knows what else could be different.
That's all I can think of for now, I tested continuity and power on a bunch of things today, but it's been kind of mind-numbing and I can't really think right now. Like I mentioned before, this is my first bike and I am by no means an electrician, so I don't really know how things are connected together or what the readings are supposed to be, so I could be missing something blatantly obvious. Any help would be really appreciated right now, it's starting to drive me crazy.
**Edit** I can't believe I didn't mention this earlier, but being so brain-dead yesterday it completely slipped my mind. Between the coils and the neck there is a 6-plug female connector not hooked up to anything. It has a white end that looks like it would plug into another white plastic end. I have looked all over and not seen anything that it obviously mates to. It is set up like so:
O - White O - Red
O - Yellow O - Green
O - Black O - Blue
1. As far as I could tell, kicking it over with a full battery, I had no spark(at least for the right hand cylinder)
2. I was told that the electric starter didn't work, which I didn't really care about, and pressing the button, sure enough, nothing happened. However, if I jump direct power to the main starter wire on the starter relay the starter motor makes noise, but doesn't engage(doesn't turn the engine over). I also tested the relay itself, and I believe that it is in working order. Also, if I use a voltmeter and put one prong on the solder that holds the blue/white wire on the back of the starter button and the other prong on the solder that holds the blue/white wire to the relay, it says I have continuity even with the button not pressed.
3. I have headlight, taillight, gauge lights, high beam, and high beam indicator. I don't have brake light, turn signals, neutral indicator, stop lamp indicator, or horn. The horn does work with direct power, but not by pressing the button.
4. I took apart, cleaned, and tested the kill switch, and it seems to be working.
5. If anyone has a nice full wiring diagram, that would also be great, i'm working off of one for a '75, but at least one thing is different, the ignition coil wire colors, so who knows what else could be different.
That's all I can think of for now, I tested continuity and power on a bunch of things today, but it's been kind of mind-numbing and I can't really think right now. Like I mentioned before, this is my first bike and I am by no means an electrician, so I don't really know how things are connected together or what the readings are supposed to be, so I could be missing something blatantly obvious. Any help would be really appreciated right now, it's starting to drive me crazy.
**Edit** I can't believe I didn't mention this earlier, but being so brain-dead yesterday it completely slipped my mind. Between the coils and the neck there is a 6-plug female connector not hooked up to anything. It has a white end that looks like it would plug into another white plastic end. I have looked all over and not seen anything that it obviously mates to. It is set up like so:
O - White O - Red
O - Yellow O - Green
O - Black O - Blue
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