Member Contributer auggius Posted June 4, 2013 Member Contributer Share Posted June 4, 2013 Unfortunately I had to splice in the supplied starter repair kit with my VFRness install. I had some heatshrink tubing for the smaller wires but it wasn't big enough for the larger wire. Is it okay (safe)to use electrical tape instead? Do I need something that is heat or voltage rated? Signed, Electrically challenged in Kaslo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer AnikMankar Posted June 4, 2013 Member Contributer Share Posted June 4, 2013 insulation tape works. Ideally use the non-adhesive insulation will not melt away if it gets heated. Liquid insulation also works. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer auggius Posted June 4, 2013 Author Member Contributer Share Posted June 4, 2013 Okay, wrapped the splices in electrical tape and then made all the connections and tried to start it. No joy. It just went braaaap from the starter area, not the engine. Drat. Re-check everything. Ooops forgot to plug in the stator plug. Remove old and plug in new connector from VFRness. Try again and still no joy. Battery is 11.8V, low yes but would have expected more. Despite the stator plug misstep I was very careful when splicing in the starter repair kit to match up the connector wires. So what's wrong? Signed, Electrically challenged and befuddled in Kaslo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyB Posted June 4, 2013 Share Posted June 4, 2013 Did everything come on? Dash display? Headlights, etc? What does braap mean? Did it turn over but did not catch? Or, does braap mean it made a big spark noise and nothing else. When you tried again, did it turn over and not catch? Could have fried a fuse when you tried the first time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer auggius Posted June 4, 2013 Author Member Contributer Share Posted June 4, 2013 Lights, dash all work. By braaap I meant a spinning sound. It's not a single click as with starter relay. No spark, no engine sounds, no smoke. I looked some more and found this post about starter clutch hub crack. I hope it's not another problem! http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/forum/index.php/topic/56767-gen-4-starter-question At least my DR started up with an assist from the car. Just need a new battery for it. I can handle that! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyB Posted June 4, 2013 Share Posted June 4, 2013 Starter spinning and the engine is not spinning? Sounds like your electrical system is doing its thing. I would suspect the starter clutch, but I am out of my depth on the earlier gen bikes. Can you push start it to check the charging system? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer auggius Posted June 5, 2013 Author Member Contributer Share Posted June 5, 2013 I will try to jump start the bike off the car battery. If that doesn't work I will take the right side engine cover off to check the starter clutch hub. Can I do that without draining the oil if the bike is on the sidestand? Oh one other thing, I also bought a new stator but have not installed it yet. I thought that I would change just one thing at a time. Well two actually, VFRness and r/r. Could that be related to the non-starting problem I have now? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyB Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 If your starter is spinning the engine, then you would not need to jump start it. I suggested push starting it because the starter is not engaging the engine. Jumping it would only be necessary if the starter was turning the engine over but it was too slow to actually catch and start running. Did you remove your starter when you were working on the VFRness install by chance? If so, you may have reinstalled it wrong. That is just a guess. Maybe you should post this in the VFR model specific forum since no one with direct experience with your model is replying. Everything I can tell you is general. When it comes to things like starter clutches, there are probably model specific differences. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tightwad Posted June 7, 2013 Share Posted June 7, 2013 It sounds to me like your battery is too low and the solenoid is trying to engage the starter and the voltage is dropping too far. You can check the voltage drop while trying to start...it needs to stay above 8-9V for the starter to even turn correctly. I get the same sound out of mine when the battery is discharged. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Switchblade Posted June 7, 2013 Member Contributer Share Posted June 7, 2013 Pic's would help alot !!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer auggius Posted June 9, 2013 Author Member Contributer Share Posted June 9, 2013 Okay just getting back to this problem. I rdconnected the battery and same noise but it is definitely coming from in front of the battery so it is not the starter clutch. I think tightwad is right so I will try to jumpstart the bike and let you know how that goes. Update - good news, bad news. The good news is that the bike fired up right away. Yay! The bad news is that I had to shut it down again due to smoke. This time it is oil related, as there seems to be a small leak that is dripping onto the front headers. Damn! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer AnikMankar Posted June 10, 2013 Member Contributer Share Posted June 10, 2013 the smoke could also be due to all the cranking you did... but i could be wrong Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Switchblade Posted June 10, 2013 Member Contributer Share Posted June 10, 2013 Okay just getting back to this problem. I rdconnected the battery and same noise but it is definitely coming from in front of the battery so it is not the starter clutch. I think tightwad is right so I will try to jumpstart the bike and let you know how that goes. Update - good news, bad news. The good news is that the bike fired up right away. Yay! The bad news is that I had to shut it down again due to smoke. This time it is oil related, as there seems to be a small leak that is dripping onto the front headers. Damn! Was it leaking before you started ? And are you SURE its the oil, must be careful of a electrical fire !!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer auggius Posted June 10, 2013 Author Member Contributer Share Posted June 10, 2013 Yes there were a few drops of oil on the floor, and on the underside of the bike. There is definitely a small leak somewhere. I cleaned things up so hopefully it will be easier to spot now. Will fire the bike up again. Hmm, maybe I should say start the bike. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Switchblade Posted June 10, 2013 Member Contributer Share Posted June 10, 2013 Yes there were a few drops of oil on the floor, and on the underside of the bike. There is definitely a small leak somewhere. I cleaned things up so hopefully it will be easier to spot now. Will fire the bike up again. Hmm, maybe I should say start the bike. Oh now your a funny man. Just be sure and have a fire extinguisher just in case . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer auggius Posted June 16, 2013 Author Member Contributer Share Posted June 16, 2013 I'll just wrap this thread up to say that the VFRness install was successful - 13.5V at idle, 14.5V pretty much anything above 2000rpm. I. bought a stator but didn't install it. Voltage has been consistent on my rides. As for the oil leak, yes it's dripping a couple of drops after I park so I am not too worried about it. But there was an accumulation of oil on the pipes that caused the smoking. I will keep an eye on things and monitor my oil consumption. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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