'78 GS550C New bike owner needs help.

[Anonymous]

I just got the bike for free I don't know how to ride YET but I will. The bike runs but only if I have it hook up with jumper cables to my truck but as soon as I take off the positive side off on my bike battery the bike dies. HELP PLEASE :?

[Anonymous]

new bike

As I am not the mechanic type but I have a couple of suggestions, new battery? take out the battery and see if it has water in it . If not the the batt sounds like maybe the retifier/regulator?You will probaly have to have some one check them unless you know how too or it could be the stator/alternator check the others first...
Welcome to the GSresources you will find much insight and thoughtfulness here.

[argonsagas]

Don't jump yet but read this

WARNING

DO NOT EVER REMOVE THE POSITIVE JUMPER CABLE FIRST.


Jumper cables are to be attached to the individual terminals on the good battery, while only the positive goes on the dead battery, with the negative one attached to the frame or a solid ground position of the bike/car/truck that has the dead battery, and away from the dead battery.

You connect the negative cable last and you disconnect it first.

The idea is to render the sparks that inevitably follow disconnection harmless, as any sparks anywhere near the battery can ignite the hydrogen gas that escapes from the battery.


You unquestionably have a dead battery, so it needs to be filled with water to the proper levels, as already suggested, and given a slow charge (at least overnight) to bring it back up.

Since the bike only runs while your jumper cables are attached, you cannot do any meaningful checks with the charging system until the
battery is charged.

You can, however, do something the bike will almost certainly need, which is to clean ALL its electrical connections, including the fuse holders.

Double check the ground wires, as they often fail, and you may want to add an extra ground wire from the frame to the battery.


Let us know what happens after you get the battery in.

[Pillage]

Do what he says!

Listen to Ron! I've witnessed the explosion that improper jumper cable use can cause. It nearly blinded my brother many years ago.

In addition jumping a motorcycle battery from a truck or car can mess up your charging system especially if the truck is running. (The difference in the number of Amps between the two is considerable.)