1980 GS 450-wont start

[djg42]

Hello,
My bike died while driving. My main fuse was blown, but before i realized that I was trying to push start it to get home. It woud start-but then quit. At one point, i was revving the engine to try and keep it going, the headlight got bright and then burnt out. Now I have replaced the fuse and the electronics work(minus the headlight)
and it trys to start but there is no spark. It was starting perfectly before this whole ordeal. I have a multimeter but need some direction. How can i figure out whats broken and get it starting again?
Thanks!

[zacheriaj]

Hello,
My bike died while driving. My main fuse was blown, but before i realized that I was trying to push start it to get home. It woud start-but then quit. At one point, i was revving the engine to try and keep it going, the headlight got bright and then burnt out. Now I have replaced the fuse and the electronics work(minus the headlight)
and it trys to start but there is no spark. It was starting perfectly before this whole ordeal. I have a multimeter but need some direction. How can i figure out whats broken and get it starting again?
Thanks!

It is more than likely your regulator, rectifier went bad. I have one for a gs550 that might work but i would ask bassclif or someone on here who knows better than i do. If you want it though, ill send it to you for $40 shipped. Basically whats going on, is your voltage regulator "regulates" how much electricity that is produced from the generator actually makes it to the electronic components and the battery. If it is bad, (which i have never heard of your situation but i would assume it could happen), it won't shut off the electrical output when it passes 14.4 volts DC. your generator actually produces much more than that especially when you rev it. that is why you have the regulators. Car alternators are the same exact thing. something to look in to.

EDIT: i wouldnt mess with the bike until you find out what is wrong with it. If it is what i explained, you run the risk of blowing stuff up. like your ignition system "if it isnt already fried", and/or your battery. which could cause serious injury.

[djg42]

Thanks-Ill probably take up on that. Im going to attempt to the go through the procedure from the manual to test regulator tomorrow.

[zacheriaj]

Thanks-Ill probably take up on that. Im going to attempt to the go through the procedure from the manual to test regulator tomorrow.

Ok. Just let me know if you need it and ill get er in the mail to ya. PM me if you'd like.

[BassCliff]

Greetings and Salutations!!

Hi Mr. djg42,

You'll want to check/clean/repair/replace every electrical connection and ground on your entire bike, from head light to tail light. Then go through the troubleshooting procedure in the Stator Papers. It's all explained below. Let me say "Hi"...

Here is your very own magical, mystical, mythical, mind-expanding "mega-welcome". Please take notice of the "Top 10 Common Issues", the Carb Rebuild Series, and the Stator Papers. Now let me roll out the welcome mat for you...

Please click here for your mega-welcome, chock full of tips, suggestions, links to vendors, and other information. Then feel free to visit my little BikeCliff website where I've been collecting the wisdom of this generous community. Don't forget, we like pictures! Not you, your bike!

Thanks for joining us. Keep us informed.

Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

[chef1366]

Probably blew out the igniter

[djg42]

Hello,
Thanks for all the help-this is an awsome forum.
Thanks Bass cliff-Im starting the tests from the Stator papers.
First thing I did was to check the battery, which seems ok.
Keys off-12.9
Keys On-12.14
Trying to start-11.4

Next thing ill do is test the resistance of the stator and regulator connections. According to the manual the connections are below my seat. There is a pile of ancient looking wires here and Im not sure how to tell which ones are the rectifier input and which ones are the stator output. Can anyone point me in the right direction here? Some of the wires have actally lost their color.


PS-Anyone know if the GS550 regulator would work for m 80' GS450?

[djg42]

Ok-im pritty sure i have found it, i think it goes into that black rubber/plastic bag. How do I get to it? The one yellow connector is outside but I can see the rest are inside the bag. And how about teh plastic sheaths around the connections i where i need to test? How do i get in there? Thanks!

also-here is a video clip of me trying to start the bike if thats helpful to anybody.

http://s837.photobucket.com/albums/zz293/djg42/?action=view&current=GS450-starting.flv

[Steve]

Well the FIRST think you need to do is to turn that petcock away from the PRIME position.
It should be pointing down (ON) or forward (RES) unless you are actually trying to prime the carbs.

Next, the rectifier/regulator (r/r) is the thing with all the fins on the left side of the battery. Follow the wires that go into it, you will probably see a bundle of four wires and a separate ground wire. One of the four should be red, that is the output wire, the other three are the inputs. If the bike is still totally stock, two of those wires will go directly to the stator wires, the third one will disappear into the main wiring harness, then come back to the third stator wire. Change that so all three r/r input wires go directly to the stator wires. You can also find the stator wires by reaching under the carbs, there are a couple of wires that go under the starter cover. One is the power to the starter, the other is the bundle of stator wires.

Now that you have identified the connectors, you can do the tests to see if the stator and the r/r are good. If necessary, yes, an r/r from a 550 should work in your 450.

I know you said that color identification is hard, but BassCliff has a 450 wiring diagram on his website.

.

[djg42]

Thanks. I think i have fond where the stator/regulator connections are- but each connection is in one of these plastic covers. What do people do to get into them to disconnect/test them?

[chef1366]

Just pull them apart.

[zacheriaj]

Just pull them apart.

Yup. they are bullet connectors just pull them apart. Shine up the male end with some fine sandpaper and spray some electrical cleaner in the female and on the male and reconnect. make sure the ignition is off or the battery is disconnected as the elecrical spray might be flamable.

[chef1366]

Yup. they are bullet connectors just pull them apart. Shine up the male end with some fine sandpaper and spray some electrical cleaner in the female and on the male and reconnect. make sure the ignition is off or the battery is disconnected as the elecrical spray might be flamable.

I'd replace with spade connectors. Use dielectric grease on the connections.

[djg42]

Thanks. I was unable to get a reading on on eof the connections when testing the regulator. But I was told a bad regulator wouldnt prevent the bike from starting-could it?

[zacheriaj]

Thanks. I was unable to get a reading on on eof the connections when testing the regulator. But I was told a bad regulator wouldnt prevent the bike from starting-could it?

Like chef said, you probably blew the ignitor. talk to chef im sure he has one for you. alot cheaper than a new one which runs around $400. prolly cheaper than one off ebay too. Before you try starting it with the new ignitor though, replace the R/R first so you dont blow it again. Look on the bikecliff website and test the ignitor, coils, and anything else that could have been blown by the overload in current.