TOPIC:

When I try to start my '81 KZ550 LTD there is a buzzing sound that may be a wire grunding out, the lights go dim, and nothing happens in the engine. Any help?

Welcome to the site.
Could just be a dead battery.

Have you tried compression starting it? Coasting it in neutral at running speed then kicking it into gear to allow the forward motion to turn the engine.

It does seem that it could be a dead battery, and compressioning could do the trick.

Could as well be that the poor connections on your battery start arcing when you call for the starter. Have you checked the battery and it's connections?

KZCSI

Compression starting worked fine. I also gave it another try and it seems to work intermittently. The bettery is fine and so are the battery cables. I'm guessing it's a short somewhere, although all the tries didn't drain the battery nearly as much as I thought.

Any tips on how to find the short, or is it as hard as I think it's going to be?