A mind of its own!!!

[The1Chef]

Hey all Im going to need help figuring this one out.

My bike starts and runs nicely. I have not ridden it but have it idling in the garage while attempting to tune it and after she gets hot the starter engages and wont stop until it has cooled down or I turn it off . If I turn the key off and then on it starts on its own. If I give it 3 minutes to cool down and turn it on its fine, as if there was nothing wrong.

I did do some wiring as some of the harnesses plugs were brittle and broke apart from the wires. I repaired some plugs and replaced some.

do I could have made a mistake or it could have happened on its own I dont know because it wasnt running beforehand.

Thanks,
Andy

[hillsy]

I'd suspect the solenoid is defective. Sounds like it's engaging when it gets hot.

Or your wiring work has created an intermittent short with the starter circuit?

[Designer]

These Solenoids are pretty reliable. And with this being intermittent, I'd start with a test of the Low Amperage Wiring at the Starter Solenoid. It's the wiring that activates the Solenoid .

See if it is energized when you get the constant running of the Starter Motor.

[dmroy68]

I would lean towards the solenoid also. Ive replaced mine twice. First time the bike wouldnt start after i put gas in. Second time the starter wouldnt disengage until i disconnected the battery. Huh just made me think that was after i got gas also. Maybe i should not stop for gas LOL

[Lechy]

I don't know about the 1400's but on an 800 I would be checking the fuel pump wiring and relay.

[The1Chef]

I don't know about the 1400's but on an 800 I would be checking the fuel pump wiring and relay.

Interesting
my fuel pump relay fried itself the first time I fired up the bike and I havent changed it or looked into it because its running off gravity without it

Thanks guys I will check all of the above mentioned

[Designer]

I would lean towards the solenoid also. Ive replaced mine twice. First time the bike wouldnt start after i put gas in. Second time the starter wouldnt disengage until i disconnected the battery. Huh just made me think that was after i got gas also. Maybe i should not stop for gas LOL

Yeah, those Gas Stops are a Constant Source of problems, eh?

Drawing on your experiences you mention, since Andy reports that turning off the key stops the starter motor from constantly running, doesn't that indicate the Starter Solenoid is not "stuck" in the on position?

[dmroy68]

Ive learned that anything electrical will defy the laws of physics, gravity and time lol

[The1Chef]

I would lean towards the solenoid also. Ive replaced mine twice. First time the bike wouldnt start after i put gas in. Second time the starter wouldnt disengage until i disconnected the battery. Huh just made me think that was after i got gas also. Maybe i should not stop for gas LOL

Yeah, those Gas Stops are a Constant Source of problems, eh?

Drawing on your experiences you mention, since Andy reports that turning off the key stops the starter motor from constantly running, doesn't that indicate the Starter Solenoid is not "stuck" in the on position?

So glad its not trying to start while off!! Itvwould probably ride itself 3 doors down and rev the engine to piss off that nagging neighbor

[Herb]

Ive learned that anything electrical will defy the laws of physics, gravity and time lol

Electrical systems are FM. (Fucking Magic)

What is funny is once you find the problem it will make sense.

[The1Chef]

Problem solved.
I blew up the bike!!

ok ok no I didnt

Its the starter button
I have aftermarket housings and use micro switches. A momentary push button for the starter has 2 pins and one of them is loose causing it to make contacts inside the button!
Of course I didnt find it until I rltore tge harness apart again!!

[Herb]

Problem solved.
I blew up the bike!!

ok ok no I didnt

Its the starter button
I have aftermarket housings and use micro switches. A momentary push button for the starter has 2 pins and one of them is loose causing it to make contacts inside the button!
Of course I didnt find it until I rltore tge harness apart again!!

Glad to hear it is solved. Sorry that it gave you such a problem.

[Designer]

Problem solved. I blew up the bike!! ok ok no I didnt

Its the starter button
I have aftermarket housings and use micro switches. A momentary push button for the starter has 2 pins and one of them is loose causing it to make contacts inside the button!
Of course I didnt find it until I rltore tge harness apart again!!

Since I have totally rewired & relocated all components the 1400, I've had a few Electrical Issues in my time. And I have learned to start at the Switches first (if any are involved),...since they are "mechanical" in that they move and interrupt/make electrical flow.

After that, I check Connectors for loose or fallen out Metal Terminals, Broken Wire or Corrosion/ Oxidation,....then look for breaks/shorts in the Wires.

Took me a while to come to this, but using such a Hierarchy does save Headache and Time.

[The1Chef]

Problem solved. I blew up the bike!! ok ok no I didnt

Its the starter button
I have aftermarket housings and use micro switches. A momentary push button for the starter has 2 pins and one of them is loose causing it to make contacts inside the button!
Of course I didnt find it until I rltore tge harness apart again!!

:

Since I have totally rewired & relocated all components the 1400, I've had a few Electrical Issues in my time. And I have learned to start at the Switches first (if any are involved),...since they are "mechanical" in that they move and interrupt/make electrical flow.

After that, I check Connectors for loose or fallen out Metal Terminals, Broken Wire or Corrosion/ Oxidation,....then look for breaks/shorts in the Wires.

Took me a while to come to this, but using such a Hierarchy does save Headache and Time.

Thanks Ed.
I too have redone most of the wiring to make it fit but alot of it is patches because of plug wire breakage and brittle wiring.
I plan on making a custom harness from fresh wire this winter in which I hope to include a complete removal of the safety switches I no longer use. The wiring for those relays make up half of our harnesses.

If you or anyone else has deleted the sidestand relay, I would really appreciate to see the procedure.

thanks again gurus

[The1Chef]

Problem solved.
I blew up the bike!!

ok ok no I didnt

Its the starter button
I have aftermarket housings and use micro switches. A momentary push button for the starter has 2 pins and one of them is loose causing it to make contacts inside the button!
Of course I didnt find it until I rltore tge harness apart again!!

Glad to hear it is solved. Sorry that it gave you such a problem.

Thanks Herb,
I guess I should have started there but I had just rewired it. I guess that because I didnt mount the housing and that it was hanging near the header it actually got hot enough to release the pin from the plastic.
I will mount them before I start the bike again. I didnt have them uo because they needed to be extended to accomodate the new bars but after 12 yrs I just wanted to hear it run lol.

thank you

[Herb]

Problem solved.
I blew up the bike!!

ok ok no I didnt

Its the starter button
I have aftermarket housings and use micro switches. A momentary push button for the starter has 2 pins and one of them is loose causing it to make contacts inside the button!
Of course I didnt find it until I rltore tge harness apart again!!

Glad to hear it is solved. Sorry that it gave you such a problem.

Thanks Herb,
I guess I should have started there but I had just rewired it. I guess that because I didnt mount the housing and that it was hanging near the header it actually got hot enough to release the pin from the plastic.
I will mount them before I start the bike again. I didnt have them uo because they needed to be extended to accomodate the new bars but after 12 yrs I just wanted to hear it run lol.

thank you

In the vast majority of the cases, if something works before you wrench on it, but doesn't afterward, it is probably something you did. In this case it had nothing to do with the work you did. Just one of those freak accidents that will drive you to pulling your hair out or to drinking to excess.