Starter acting funny..

[Guest]

For the 2 months that I have had the bike, the starter has every once in a while been weak to push the motor over when the motor is turned to a certain area. Today at the gas station the starter would get stuck, I would let off the button and you would hear the starter gear make a whirring noise as it spun backwards, then I would try again. After 3 tries it started the bike. So as soon as I parked at home, I shut it off and tried again, and this time the starter would keep getting stuck and not turn the motor at al..to the point that the starter would hardly move.

Honestly it feel just like the battery is really low but none of my lights are dimming or anything, and I haven't left anything on that might have drained the battery low. I'm gonna put it on the charger and see if it makes a big difference then go from there, what is your opinion?

EDIT: After charging the battery, the starter is turning nice and quick, and the bike starts right at the touch of the button. The battery must slowly be losing charge over time, sign of my stator going bad? The battery is hardly 2 months old.

[koolaid_kid]

I would check voltages first. They include:
On the starter solenoid. The 2 large posts, one side connects directly to your battery and should be a soild 12V all the time.
The other one connects directly to the starter and should be 0V when the starter button is not pressed and matching the battery post when the button is pressed.
The small starter button terminal. It should be 0V when the button is not pressed, and 12V when the button is pressed.
If you have and inductive current multimeter or can borrow one, place it on the large cable going from the solenoid to the starter. Press the button and take a current reading.

[motokid837]

I threw it on a battery charger, 12volts-2amps, for a few minutes (after having it act sluggish) and not only were my dash lights brighter, but the starter consistently started the bike each time I tried. I guess maybe the battery was low and I wasn't realizing it.

I am leaving it on the charger overnight and am gonna keep riding it to see if this happens again, I have gone around 5-600 miles since I have last had the bike on a trickle charger overnight. So now I am wondering...is the bike not charging the battery? Or is it.. but not as well as it should be? You'd think if the bike wasn't charging the battery at all, I would have noticed a dead battery a long time ago...what do you guys think is my next step?

[JTGS850GL]

You might want to consider that the charging system is beginning to fail. What is the voltage across the battery when the engine is at 5k RPMs? Better yet, do all the test suggested here:

http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/showthread.php?p=1272192#post1272192

and report back all the results.

[Big T]

2 amps is too high a charge rate for the battery

You may have boiled the water out of the battery

[motokid837]

You might want to consider that the charging system is beginning to fail. What is the voltage across the battery when the engine is at 5k RPMs? Better yet, do all the test suggested here:

http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/showthread.php?p=1272192#post1272192

and report back all the results.

I will check, but the battery is as new to me as the bike, just two months old.

[koolaid_kid]

Never charge at over 1.5 Amps. 1 Amp is even better.
Always use a battery tender style charger, sometimes called automatic, which shut down when the battery is fully charged.

You absolutely must find out why your charging system is so frail.

[motokid837]

Never charge at over 1.5 Amps. 1 Amp is even better.
Always use a battery tender style charger, sometimes called automatic, which shut down when the battery is fully charged.

You absolutely must find out why your charging system is so frail.

Thanks guys, the battery does say on the label on top "1.2A for initial charge" and "quick charge at 2.4A" ...either way, I just went and put it on a trickle charger so it can sit on that overnight. I happened to notice a very small amount of white crusty stuff on one area of the battery top where we initially filled the battery, I know thats not good, but not sure if its a sign of my issue.

[koolaid_kid]

Nope, it is just just corrosion from the acid you spilled.
Take some baking soda and mix it thoroughly with a glass of water. Pour it on the battery and let it work, then wash it off.
Be sure and remove the battery first. Do the same wash for the battery box as well.

[TurtleSlow]

Hi mate,

Mine was doing just as you describe and it turned out to be a weak starter motor. I put a new one on and it spins over like a top.

Cheers,
Muz

[motokid837]

Hi mate,

Mine was doing just as you describe and it turned out to be a weak starter motor. I put a new one on and it spins over like a top.

Cheers,
Muz

Thanks for the input, but after I charged the battery, the starter turns nice and quick as it should. Which points me to a bad stator if the battery is slowly losing charge.