OK so I've managed to have a little poke around today, battery that was in the bike I can only get a reading of 7 volts, changed it for another battery that I have in the garage, then tried testing a few bits.

Juice is getting to the starter solenoid, to this bolt on the left



Nothing past that, so I checked the solenoid fuse again and it was blown, even though I had replaced it, put in another and that blew immediately as well.

So I'm thinking the solenoid is history as every time I try to replace the fuse it blows?

What do you guys think?

 

+1, even though I sometimes do the opposite but its good practice to get the + connected first and then get sloppy with the - side.


You can check the solenoid by disconnection both the high AMP and low AMP sides. You should get some kind of resistance reading through the coil (low AMP) but nothing through the battery to starter post (high AMP). Also check for continuity from the the coil sides, low AMP to the battery and starter sides, high AMP. You shouldn't have continuity from high to low AMP unless there is a short.

If the solenoid is disconnected and you still blow the fuse look elsewhere.

 

OK, this is getting complicated and I think the very basic volt meter I have isn't up to the job.

What tools do I need, do I need to get one of those multi-meters like this

Large Digital Multimeter hand held tester electrical big volts amps voltage | eBay

Would something like this be any good or is it just cheap junk?

 

Hi Hawk,
sorry didn't pick up your post till too late for a chat today.
Anyway, Further to TBT's suggestion I'll give you a bit more clarity. The bolt on the left in your photo is the main feed from the battery, the one to the right which is still covered in the pic feeds the starter motor. You don't need to bother taking these leads off unless the starter motor is running all the time in which case your solenoid is toast but you'd know that already. Within the solenoid is basically the main power distribution to/from two key areas of the bikes electrical system. From the bolt on the left, the circuit passes directly into the main fuse which in turn splits in to two positive feeds. One goes to the ignition switch and one to the regulator so you will find continuity between the bolt on the left and two other wires (red and red and white). The other two wires connect to the solenoid coil. One will be an earth so can see continuity between that and the chassis. The other will only go live when the starter button is pressed (assuming the bike is in neutral, side stand down etc etc).
I suggest, if you haven't already that you pull the red wire off the solenoid and put another fuse in and see if blows. That narrows things down significantly. If the fuse still blows then you need to have a good long hard stare at your reg/rec. The red and white wire goes directly to it and is actually the wire that recharges the battery. Disconnect it from the regulator (pull the plug off it) and if your fuse is still blowing then its most likely that the red and white wire is touching earth along its length somewhere.
Hope that helps.

 

Sorry Hawk just one more thing. Going right back to basics, have you done anything to the bike since you last had it running? Has anything changed in any way. It seems strange that all of a sudden your main fuse is blowing now if it's only been sitting minding it's own business.

 

No Henry, the bike has just sat there for a couple of weeks, before that it was running fine.

I hate electrickery, so I try not to poke around if I can possibly help it hence the lack of electrical testing gizmo's

Is it worth me buying that multimeter off e-bay do you think?

 

I'd be lost without my cheap electrical tester.
I'd buy one and keep it handy. Great for doing spot checks on all sorts of things, at home and on the bike.

As for the bike problem - it could have been just a spot of damp that got in and shorted across terminals. Given the English climate and time of year..........
But Henry and the boys are probably spot on with the diagnosis.

 

Wonky sticking or corroded solenoid would cause the 30 to blow
repeatedly. Happened to me once until I replaced the dicky solenoid.

New batt and new solenoid would be my initial action items

 

Ok I would like to give a massive big thanks to HenryM for his help getting this sorted and my bike up and running again!
Thanks Henry, you're a true gent and a great friend

Henry took time out today, during a visit to Brighton to 'help' or basically find for me the problem that had killed by bike as dead as a Dodo.

It turned out to be a fried Reg/Rec. Luckily I had a spare attached to a wiring loom I got with an engine years ago.

I put her all back together this evening, plastic welded a broken tab I had discovered and she's purring like a kitten.

Thanks again everyone for all the help and suggestions, this forum is a great place for advice and expertise, but what makes it special is the people and the friendships

 

Tip Top - Henry is the man and always there ready to help with expertise