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1982 gs1100glz starting issue.

  • Thread starter Thread starter bigdaddygb
  • Start date Start date
bigdaddygb said:
ok here is more info i just found out... guy i bought bike from stopped by this morning. had a few extra parts for me such as the clutch safety switch.... apparently he took it off because he didn't like having to hold the clutch in to start the bike.. which much like a car.. if you have it in gear is going to lurch out from under you.. or sheer of teeth in your starter. So i asked how he bypassed it and we took off head light to find he took both wires and attached a resister inline between them. now i checked this for continuity and found it was fine. wire was fine all the way back to the starter relay. so that is ok. now i have 1 wire that comes back from the ignition switch (keyed switch) and runs back almost all the way to the battery where it splits off into two ( more hacking) one wire goes down to the fuse block the other goes to the reg/rec.. this wire got separated last night while i was checking to see if it was the reg/rec. and since it was getting dark i left it loose. i went ot check to see that starter was infact turning over engine and not just free spining (pulled spark plug and check to see piston moving up and down) and it did some how i hit the other red loose wire and must have sent power back up to the switch and have nothing now. no matter where i turn the key i have no power. i pulled the plug in the head light bucket and check cont. and yes wire is fine to plug.. it's good up to switch... after that.. nothing.. i think i shorted out switch. since i am buying land end of this month i will have to wait till after that to get parts for it. I have checked all the fuses and none of them are blow.
Thanks guys.:cry:
Click to expand...


I really doubt that you ruined the ignition switch, If you are in doubt you can take the electrical part off the bottom of the switch and take it apart and clean it up, just copper contacts . These are a very primitive switch and very durable
 
hjfisk said:
I really doubt that you ruined the ignition switch, If you are in doubt you can take the electrical part off the bottom of the switch and take it apart and clean it up, just copper contacts . These are a very primitive switch and very durable
Click to expand...

Agreed, ignition switches are pretty durable, would probably blow a fuse or melt a wire first.
With the switch on the first postion, you should get 12 volts to the hot terminal of the starter relay. That 12 volts feeds the starter motor when the ignition button is pushed in, without it the starter motor does nothing.
Check that and see if you got your 12 Volts.
 
ok will check it out and remove the resister and plug it directly into one another. as for the solenoid i have not yet done that, but i will.
Thanks for the help so far guys, i really appreciate it.:)
 
ok check solenoid and it works when i just the yellow/green wire to the positive terminal. also have power to run/stop switch, and to button when it is pushed... BUT... nothing is moving... thinking it may be in wire from button to relay... not sure will check maybe tomorrow.. getting cold again.. and i don't have a garage.
 
bigdaddygb said:
ok check solenoid and it works when i just the yellow/green wire to the positive terminal. also have power to run/stop switch, and to button when it is pushed... BUT... nothing is moving... thinking it may be in wire from button to relay... not sure will check maybe tomorrow.. getting cold again.. and i don't have a garage.
Click to expand...
Sounds like you are on the right track now.
 
bigdaddygb said:
.. thinking it may be in wire from button to relay...
Click to expand...

Now that's what I'm talking about. The wire from the starter button, that runs into the headlight bucket where it connects with a splice connector to the wire that goes to one side of the clutch safety switch, which connects to the other side of that switch when the clutch is pulled in, then runs down to the starter relay. That problem prone wire with all it's connections and switches has got to be good for your starter to turn over.
Tie back your clutch lever and check continuity from the starter button to the yellow wire with green stripe (I believe) on the starter relay. If you don't get continuity, you have an open connection somewhere along the length of that wire.
 
well ok. i did all that and still nothing. i did find that my fuse box had some bad connections in it because when i went to turn it on today i got nothing... and I mean NOTHING.... lol so i traced it back to fuse box.. check fuses.. and endup popping it apart and cleaning the contacts off from the brown tarnish and check cont. then and found it was good... all was good till i hit the starter button a few times... everything went out again. I did feel the solenoid click like it wanted to do something but i got nothing. i popped off little y/g wire and touched the + on battery and it turned over.. plugged it back up and like i said everything went out. starting to get dark and i am ordering a new (used ) wiring harness tonight. Then we'll see once i have it on. Thanks again guys.:clap:
 
Remove the fuse box from the bike, pull off the back cover and let us know what you find. It can get fried or have loose connections there

Also, you probably want to pull apart the right handlebar switch and clean the starter button and kill switch. CAUTION - there are small springs and parts underneath the plates. I use a 2 Qt ziplock and disassemble inside it. Keeps those small parts from springing off to never never land
 
i did pull the fuse box apart. tab arms inside were clean. just the ends had a little tarnish on them. fuse end clips are i ngood shape not loose. put it all back togather and reinstalled fuses. i found a few wires he had all screwed up late last night, I'll probably just run new wires for the parts fro mthe wiring diagram i have fro mthe welcome package i was given :D. Thanks by the way. I will get it done hopefully this weekend. Trying to sell my boat to help pay for land i am buying for our new house. :o
 
well started to rewire the bike tonight. Tired of all the BS i have found so far. I think P/O was having trouble with starter found a few fried wires.. couldn't get it to start and had someone hack in another Suzuki's wiring harness ( wire colors weren't even close ). So I took the wiring diagram and have been following it to the T. Making connections it says should be there and removing ones that shouldn't. found a few from the starter button that weren't connected right, and a few that were missing all together. The clutch switch had been taken out all together. According to the diagram it's labeled as the starter disconnect switch, so if I take out that switch then it goes from the button right to the starter relay. I have been soldering every joint i had to make and have reused connection blocks soldering on to the tabs and crimping them down to make sure they stay on. Every wire gets tested from end to end once it is ready to be put back in block to make sure I don't have any bad connections. So far I got about 6 wires done.... from head light to fuse box area.... 999 more to go..lol hopefully I will get a fairly warm weekend so I can get it done... i figure another 6-8 hours total for wiring and buttoning up the parts and it'll be done. I'm not rushing I'm taking my time and making sure it is right the first time. ;)
 
You will not regret going through all the wiring and fixing it up.

I have had a quite a few cases where the glass fuses just seem to make the power disappear. When you move the fuse, power suddenly appears. Make sure you have new fuses fitted and have slightly sanded the brass part that touches the fuse on both sides.
Those clips need to be tightly in place if even one is slightly loose it is due to overheating and melting the plastic base of the fuse box slightly.
 
The fuse box on mine has the spade fuses not the glass tube ones. And yes i know what you mean about not regreting fixing it up. I can't wait to get it up and running. :cool:
 
well another half dozen done tonight before storm hit. man it was all messed up ( not the words I would have used) slow but surely... even in the cold damp air.... yeeee hawwww..... now they are talking possible snow??? huh.. it's almost April..... don't care i'll be wiring in the snow... under a tarp of course...lol
 
What alot of work.
Luckily my wiring is really nice, only had to demodify the rear turn signal lights from a saddlebag type of thing.
While you're doing your wiring check your grounds, making sure you good good surface contact, like on you starter relay post, battery post, starter post, and where they mate to the frame and engine, a dirty ground is like an open connection, even if you get continuity it may not be capable of handling any current when a load is applied. Also check your postive posts, like on the starter, battery, and starter relay. All contact surfaces should be nice and shiny and tight, I use a file to clean them up. Things tend to work better that way, no high resistance connections and resulting voltage drops.
 
Yep going through the whole wiring system including the grounds. one wire at a time. Not sure what wire size is as like i said P/o had someone hack in another bikes harness that had 2 different wire sizes.. some are bigger than my original wires at the connections and some are the same size.. verrrry frustrating.. but well worth it in the end.

I'll get it done soon enough... wife says that's what i get for buying a bike for $400.00 well when i get it done I'll show her..lol and ride off into the sunset.. ( at least till she calls me for dinner....:lol: )
 
bigdaddygb said:
Yep going through the whole wiring system including the grounds. one wire at a time. Not sure what wire size is as like i said P/o had someone hack in another bikes harness that had 2 different wire sizes.. some are bigger than my original wires at the connections and some are the same size.. verrrry frustrating.. but well worth it in the end.

I'll get it done soon enough... wife says that's what i get for buying a bike for $400.00 well when i get it done I'll show her..lol and ride off into the sunset.. ( at least till she calls me for dinner....:lol: )
Click to expand...

I hear the same stuff from my girlfriend and my friends, to some degree they're right though, but if the bike you want is a GS, and an old one, where are you going to find one that's new? or doesn't require some work?
So, it's a labor of love, sometimes very frustrating, at times rewarding, some people just like working on them, I just like riding them. I've reached the point where I'm working on them less and riding them more. There will always be "another" project with them though. So, as long as they get
better in time and I can ride them I'm happy. But it was alot of time and effort and money to get them where their at today.
 
i hear ya on the money part i also drive a 79 jeep cherokee.... so i know all too well about the money part..lol
 
well i went back out tonight after a day full of sick kids crying.. and worked on the bike some more. I will take pics to show how it is right now tomorrow ( as long as no rain or heavy winds...) Figured I work on the fuel sending unit wiring since it was only two wires.....LOL.... yeah ok... well pulled the float unit out to find ja P/o cut or had someone cut the power wire off the fuel sending unit right at the connector where the wire touches.....grrrrr....:mad:... ok deep breath, pry wire holder open, scrap off plastic coating, remove wire casing, strip wire casing off wire from fuel gauge unit, twist wire solder wire to connector on fuel sending unit... and shrink tube it and ad liquid electrical tape for water proofing.... ahhh done... ok now for the test....
ohm test.. .16 empty... 0.00 full... ok it's working... hook it up.. turn on lights i have wired up.... nothing.. hmmm :confused: maybe ground..... ground the unit out..... walla :clap:..... gas gauge works.... YES!!!!! now i have to deal with the grounds on the bike. all the ground lines are all messed up i even think p/o wired in a hot line and that's a big no no.... only 700 more lines to go ..lol :D
 
You are getting there!
When everything works properly again you will be quite chaffed with yourself!
 
ok here it is now... good news is i got it to turn over today. horn works now.. lights are back on.. still have a lot to go through.... so tiring and it makes my eyes hurt... all these colors.. :eek:
 
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