TOPIC:

There is a voltage drop across your battery even with the key off? Is that with the terminals connected to the battery, or disconnected?

If this on a disconnected battery, then it sounds pretty definitive there man. That just should not be happening. You need to find out what is wrong with the system AND it sounds like you need a new battery as well.

If you get the new battery before you fix the system, you stand the chance of damaging the new battery by draining/recharging it a lot. But if you try to check your system with a weak or discharged battery, you will not have the power consistency that you would have from a strong battery (making it easier to check).

As far as any ideas, everything you need is there man. You have a power drain across your battery with the key off. I am guessing that there is a short in the system somewhere. Check that circuit.

There is a red white striped wire coming from your battery, follow it to the fuse block.
Then it turns white, follow it to the plug leading to your ignition switch.
The white wire feeds the brown, yellow and orange with green striping ones from there coming from the ignition switch. etc. etc. It is all in the wiring diagram that I sent you the link to.

kzrider.com/index.php?option=com_docman&...w&gid=126&Itemid=108


Once again, I feel that all that you need to know to is in the thread. I know that I have sent you a method to find problems. Find out where that power leak is.

I still suspect the ignition switch or power wire.

OKC_Kent wrote:

I would check two things now. Buy a small hydrometer for bike batteries at the auto store and measure all six cells on a fully charged battery. If any are less then 100% buy a new battery, you certainly got your money's worth out of this one.. I think this battery has some bad cells that would allow a full charge but not really hold it for long.

Second, there should be a charge coming from the alternator to the rectifier-regulator, which in turn keeps the battery up to full power. Look in the book to see how to measure it for your model, I can't recall what year 650 you have as I type this, but the 77 is different from all the rest. One plastic multi-connection that seems to suffer corrosion a lot is between the regulator/rectifier unit (on 78 and later models) and the alternator. If this is corroded it won't keep the battery juiced up and lots of excess heat, melting the connection, don't ask how I know this.

Good luck and have fun

OKC

I checked stator output last year and while on the low end, it was functioning. I had an issue with the battery not charging and found a broken lead.

>>There is a voltage drop across your battery even with the key off? Is that with the terminals connected to the battery, or disconnected?

Not a sudden large voltage drop with the key off but when I connected the cables, voltage immediately started to continually decrease. When I turned the ignition on it suddenly dropped to 8v. The battery is fine disconnected.

>>There is a red white striped wire coming from your battery, follow it to the fuse block.
Then it turns white, follow it to the plug leading to your ignition switch.
The white wire feeds the brown, yellow and orange with green striping ones from there coming from the ignition switch. etc. etc. It is all in the wiring diagram that I sent you the link to.

I've traced the red/white wire to the fuse block where it turns solid white.........I probably need to take the ignition switch off and start checking there.

Yes, and remember what you are looking for. Predictable, sound wire continuity. It should not leak through to ground, nor should it leak through to other wires (my bikes snafu, that was a tough one to find due to its randomness in which other wires it had made contact with electrically via burned insulation). It should offer zero ohms from end to end, and zero load from end to chassis. Go farther and farther up the line 'til you find that voltage leak. Pretend it is a water hose that has a hole in it, albeit invisible. Keep going up the hose 'til you find that leak.

I would check the white wire at the plug to the ignition after I checked the circuit at both sides of the fuse.

Then check to be sure that the ignition switch is behaving predictably and correctly.

The ignition has;

brown
white
yellow
blue
red
white again and
orange w/green
wires coming out of it.

WHILE THE IGNITION IS DISCONNECTED FROM THE CORE WIRE BUNDLE...

When the key is off
Easy, none of the wires should be connected or show continuity. I.e. wherever you check with your ohm-meter from wire to wire there should always be OL 'zero load'.

When the key is set to on
Turn the key to on and the brown, first white and yellow wires should be connected, i.e. showing zero ohms (not zero load) showing good continuity.
The blue and red should also show good continuity.
The second white and the orange with green should also show good continuity.

Any other wire combination test should show zero load at this point. remember there are two white wires that connect on the other side of the junction plug. don't get them confused.

When the key is set to accessory.
With the key turned to the accessory position then there should be continuity on the first white, yellow, blue and red wires. And there should also be continuity between the second white and orange with green wires.

Any variance from this is a clear indication of a faulty ignition switch, be it dirty or worn out.

I am wagering that you will find a problem at this point, but it is not an absolute. If it is sound up to this point, then we can continue in a further post.

P.S. This so takes me back to when I needed to do this to my bike. It is so worth it in the end man. Remember to have fun with this. And be proud of the work you do, not everyone is willing, or capable of it.

Cheers,

Q

Q..........thanks for the advice. I know how to check for resistance but how do you check for load?

I'm also thinking of removing the other two fuses one at a time and checking voltage drop across the battery terminals.....this may help identify if the problem is in one of these two circuits?

Now you are getting it !!!!

Resourcefulness Reign True !!!

Yes excellent idea.

Zero Load means that the two terminals of your ohm-meter don't "see" or "read' or "sense" each other. They are not touching at all and have got to read each other through the air. This resistance is so high (through the air) that they read it as zero load. There is nothing for them to measure in other words.

Now if a wire is broken (bad, faulty) completely severing the pathway for the electricity, while testing this wire the meter will read across as zero load. This is indicative of a bad wire. It should be reading zero ohms or as an un-interrupted electricity pathway, as would be over a good wire. Cut a good wire with snips, however, and the ohm meter (testing this wire) will change to zero load as the wire's pathway has been compromised.

Zero load across a wire means that the pathway through the meter or the wire (connections included) has been cut or interrupted. Broken bad.

Zero load can also be a good thing in appropriate places. if there is zero load across the brown wire to the white wire on your unplugged ignition switch in the off position, then there is no pathway (as there should not be a pathway there in the off position). Here zero load is a good thing.

Turn the key to the on position however, and those two wires should connect and offer a pathway. It should switch from zero load in "off", to zero ohms in "on" as the pathway is created.

Zero load = No pathway

Zero ohms = Un-interrupted pathway

Happy hunting !!

Oh, load can also mean current. My little meter cannot read amps if I remember correctly. It can only read voltage and resistance.

A load meter that measures power (V x I, I = amperage) is a little spendy for me to have.

Load associated with ohms or resistance merely refers to the pathway, not the flow.

That is an entirely different can of worms.

Cheers

Q