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For some reason I keep blowing 15a fuse from bat to bike, Doesn't happen all the time, and happens at different times, Alot of times it's when I engage the starter, the other day I was messing with the bike, kept blowing the fuse when I engage the starter, I got it going, it was idleing fine, I reved the engine, it blew, Then I had it idleinhg fine, rev the engine fine, Put it in 1st gear got it moving a couple of feet, blew. I tried hotwirng it, just by-passinf the fuse completely. The terminals got heated up and started melting the tape I put on them, tried it again, ran perfect, terminals did not heat up at all. I've run out of ideas of where to look, some said that that the starter might have a short in it, But I don't see that causeing a problem while it has been running.
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You should definitely not bypass the fuse. Bad, bad things tend to happen.
You should be using slow-blow fuses, which take a couple seconds to blow. So keep in mind what happens before it actually goes.
There could be a short-to-ground somewhere else in your wiring harness. It might be pretty hard to track down. I think that the starter motor is not protected by the fuse, so that's not what causes the fuse to go. The signal that goes to the relay is protected, though. Is there any chance that your starter switch is sticking? I've never had to run down a problem in the harness, so I'll leave that advice to someone else, but it sure sounds like a bummer.
Where's the Jeckler? He's good with these things.
Michael -
Does the bike only have one fuse protecting everything?
I don't have a lot of experience with the single fuse bikes. Having only one fuse protect every circuit makes it VERY hard to troubleshoot.
I agree with Michael that the starter is not included, thought the relay is (in a roundabout way). The starter draws alot more than 15 amps. Bypassing the fuse isn't a good idea, but you proved something by doing it. Slow blow fuses aren't going to do you any good, as evidenced by the tape melting. You definately have a short somewhere. Start by disconnecting everything not needed to actually make the bike run. Start the bike and let it run. Turn it off. Hook something up. Start it again. Do that until you get the fuse to blow. Unhook the last item and hook something else up to verify that it's not simply too much. If you can determine which circuit's giving the problem, you can fix it. Look for pinched or frayed wires.
Another option is to use a VOM and probe for shorts that way.
There is the slight possibility that the wiring is simply old and the connections are corroded, causing a huge increase in reisistance. A good starting point in your troubeshooting is to go through every connection on the bike, and cleaning them.
Good luck. If you or anyone can post a wiring diagram, I might be able to suggest a way to test.
It's for the GS300, right?Comment
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UPDATED:
Here's a 450 from Smoke Riders. Supposed to be for 450L, 1982 and later. Might be different, but it's a place to start. The GS Model Chart shows that the 300 was made in 82, 83, and 85. For what it's worth:
MichaelComment
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Not alot I can add. It looks like the orange wire coming out of the ignition switch covers the whole bike. Maybe look at each connector for signs of overheating. Hopefully that can narrow it down.Comment
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Thnaks for the input, But I guess I have to slowly check wire by wire to see whats going, on, and the 450 diagram is pretty much the same as the 300. Now the only thing I might be answering my own question, How much would the difference in guage of wire affect, right now I got 10 or 12 gauge going from bat to relay, I have 14 with in-line fuse going from bat to I think 16 ga. could that be a goo cause, If it is why differnt times.Comment
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Hey
I've got an 81 GS400 and it kept blowing fuses this summer, I asked around here what it might be and didn't get a whole lot of luck, basically I solved the problem by carrying a bag of fuses with me at all times. Not sure what happened but she stopped blowing them. It was at totally random times, just like it sounds like for you. A couple suggestions I was gonna try was cleaning all the contacts with an emry board(nail file type thign) and putting a thin coating of vaseline on them for protection. Hope it all works out for you. And thanks for the reminder on that, I think I'll clean mine up this winter to try and avoid the same problem next summer. Hey what's the humidity like there? Cause come to think of it, it was really humid this summer at the time of the fuse problem. Knocked out phones and everything.
Good luckComment
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Hey
I've got an 81 GS400 and it kept blowing fuses this summer, I asked around here what it might be and didn't get a whole lot of luck, basically I solved the problem by carrying a bag of fuses with me at all times. Not sure what happened but she stopped blowing them. It was at totally random times, just like it sounds like for you. A couple suggestions I was gonna try was cleaning all the contacts with an emry board(nail file type thign) and putting a thin coating of vaseline on them for protection. Hope it all works out for you. And thanks for the reminder on that, I think I'll clean mine up this winter to try and avoid the same problem next summer. Hey what's the humidity like there? Cause come to think of it, it was really humid this summer at the time of the fuse problem. Knocked out phones and everything.
Good luckComment
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Tommy,
Have you checked the voltage regulator?
Kurt WordenComment
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Sounds like I might have to go wire by wire and clean the contacts and check for breaks, and maybe grease em up, As for the voltage regulator, I did checks for continuity and resistance, that all looked good, Manual didn't have anything about testing during engine run, anything I should be looking for on that????
Thanks guys
Tom
And Humidity out here has been not too bad...Comment
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You need to see if the battery voltage goes much above 14 Volts when revving the motor. If it does then your regulator is bad. I had a problem like this on my 400 due to the negative battery terminal breaking off. Not only did I blow my fuse, I blew every bulb on the bike not to mention the electronic ignition.
Good luck, SteveComment
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Tom,
The charging system consists of the battery, alternator, rectifier and regulator.
The alternator generates an alternating current (AC) which the rectifier converts to direct current (DC). The regulator controls the voltage going to the battery and the load (lights, ignition, etc.) at a constant voltage regardless of engine speed and load.
The rectifier and regulator are combined in one unit. If either function of the unit fails, the entire unit must be replaced.
If you suspect you have a charging system problem, ensure your battery is fully charged and in good condition before beginning any tests. Also, make sure all connections are clean and tight.
RECTIFIER/REGULATOR OUTPUT TEST
1. Remove the battery cover and pull back the boot covering the main battery lead.
2. Connect the (+) lead of a voltmeter to the red (+) lead on the battery. Connect the (-) lead of the voltmeter to the (-) lead on the battery or a clean ground on the frame.
3. Start and run the engine at 5,000 RPM. The voltmeter should indicate 14-15.5 VDC. A reading in that range indicates that all charging system components are operating correctly.
4. If the voltmeter reads more than 15.5 VDC, replace the rectifier/regulator.
5. If the voltmeter reads less than 14 VDC, the rectifier/regulator or the alternator stator may be defective. A No-Load test will need to be performed to determine the faulty component.
6. If the bike fails to start you'll need to check for shorts, isolating shorts is fairly simple and we can walk you through that as well. However, I suspect that your rectifier/regulator is at fault.
The rectifier/regulator for a 1982 GS300GLZ is p/n (32800-44230, RECTIFIER) and is approximately $145.00 from OEM sources.
Best of Luck
KurtComment
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I have had problems in the past with fuses blowing because of bad insulation on the old wiring. The insulation gets brittle and cracks with age so it is possible to get intermittent shorts and places where the insulation is just not up the job of containing the flow in the circuit.Originally posted by TommyG
What I usually do is look at the schematic and find some easy points to break the circuit down into isolated sections. Disconnect these sections to isolate them and the check the resistance to ground. I can usually pinpoint the problem area with this method by breaking the circuit down into smaller and smaller pieces until I locate the problem.
One thing that can send you down the wrong track is after market devices spiced into the original wiring. I spent several hours tracking down a short in my harness but half of the time was wasted because the low resistance to ground that I followed first was due to a tail light pulsator that had been spliced into the harness.
MikeComment
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