Bike stalls at anything over 60

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Crab_Cake

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Remember when I was stuck at the side of the road a few days ago? Well I thought that I had fixed the problem by removing the fuel filter and unking the fuel line.

I got on the freeway again and it ran @ 65 for about 2 miles before it started stumbling. You could feel these quick little jerks and with each jerk the bike drops a few MPH.

I pulled off at the next exit and the second I hit the clutch it died; no instrument lights, no blinkers, no nothing. It seemed the entire electrical system was dead. So I pulled over and let it sit for a few minutes. I gave it a few kicks and it started up. I took the back roads home. The bike works exactly fine at any speed under 65.

I have checked the petcock and it is flowing just fine. I have also tried to put it on prime and it doesn't change anything.

The only things that I have recently changed is installing a 32 tooth sprocket, an H4 headlight conversion, Mikes high output ignition coil, and new plug wires and caps.


There have been a few threads with people having similar symptoms but I don't see any solutions. Where do I start troubleshooting?


(also thanks a ton for all your help)
 
It's handy to have a spare TCI box to test with. You can just plug it in and let it hang in a saddlebag.
 
It certainly could. I expect he checked his fuse connections the first time it happened.
 
My fuse box looks like hell. I got a radio shack replacement and am going to install it ASAP. It also looks like my battery is shot. I bought a new one and it's charging right now.

Hopefully with these two things it will work.
 
My fuse box looks like hell. I got a radio shack replacement and am going to install it ASAP. It also looks like my battery is shot. I bought a new one and it's charging right now.

Hopefully with these two things it will work.
 
Jumped to the conclusion it was a kinky fuel line rather than follow the suggestion to look at your fuses eh?
 
xjwmx said:
Jumped to the conclusion it was a kinky fuel line rather than follow the suggestion to look at your fuses eh?
Click to expand...


Pretty good conclusion when finding a kink in the fuel line after something like this happens


Crab_Cake, I can't help except to say i have the same problem with my bike. get up to the 60mph/100kph mark and will sit there for a maybe a mile or more then it will start to splutter and surge and slowly die. If i tried to gun it through the problem it would keep on dying. The last time it happened to me i slowed down to about 50mph and kept working the throttle a bit, (not open right up), and after a couple of k's it came right and ran like a dream at 50mph with no trouble. My bike has points.
 
I was also wondering about the safety relay? Could that be a problem? I did a search but I couldn't find much about it.
 

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jayel said:
some of these carbs have a fine mesh screen under the float needle seat if it was partially plugged with debris it would act that way (running out of gas)
Click to expand...


I've proven conclusively that running out of gas will not turn the lights off. A copy of the report is available by sending $5 to Meet the Press.
 
If lights go out its electrical. Trash the fuse box and buy individual blade type - simple cheap and fool proof. Check all the terminal plugs/connectors in the headlight harness for corrosion. THere's a great big one that powers the everything.
 
650Skull said:
Thank's Jayel, I'll check that when i get into the carbs.
Click to expand...

I would be interested in hearing how a bad TCI on a 80 (separate fused circuits) 20A main, 10A headlight, 10A signals, 10A ignition could kill everything without blowing any fuse or burning wires, it may be a bad TCI but I'm betting fusebox, just threw the carb info out there as a possible cause of not running well at higher speeds
 
Your kill switch could be shorting out. Take it apart and clean all the contacts if you've not done so already. But do replace the fuse panel as well. The kill switch is just another possible cause. The way you lost all power and lights, it has to be electrical and it has to be in one of the main paths like the main 20 amp fuse or the kill switch. Another possibility is the ignition switch. They wear out and everything gets loose inside. Then they start losing contact inside every now and then, just like you turned it off.
 
When mine was doing something like this recently sometimes the head light would go out and sometimes not I cleaned up the fuse area (already had new box), made a twisted connection I hadn't noticed a soldered one, and replaced a board in the ignition with badly pitted contacts. Ultimately it turned out to be a TCI prob.

If the TCI started drawing say 9.9 A the battery voltage would fall to something pretty low that might turn off the head light relay or have some other effect. I haven't studied it, But yeah, if the lights of out, most likely a fuse connection or something else that includes the light circuit.
 
I replaced the fuse box with one from radio shack. I also installed a new battery. The bike runs so much better. It runs smoother and has more power. I haven't gotten it on the freeway but I am pretty hopeful that this was the problem.
 
Well it seems to be working well. The battery must have been the problem. The new battery has helped a lot. The bike has more power at low RPMs now.

Thanks everyone for your help!
 

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