Have managed to get back to the bike today. Did that resistance check on the back light and with the multiimeter set at 200k I get a reading of 110.2 I gather that is not good. I decided to try something else, so I disconnected the live feed from the ignition to the relay and rigged up a temporary live feed direct from the battery and with the lights on and indicators there is no flickering of the lights so looks like I have a problem somewhere in the harness maybe. This bike sometime in the past has been completely stripped back to the frame and the frame has been powder coated and the original harness has been fitted back but some of the wiring looks it's age although everything works OK. So maybe I should just put up with the problem until the winter lay up then rewire the whole bike. Or I could make that temporary battery to relay wire more permenent till the winter the only problem with that is the indicators will by pass the ignition and be live all the time. suggestions would be helpful thanks.
Why not take that temporary wire from something like the ignition controlled terminal on the ignition switch, then you won't have doh-baits turning it on for you. Probably a corroded bullet connector somewhere in the feed to the flasher unit.
Had another go with the indicators, the ignition switch has 3 terminals 1 input and 2 output wich are live when the ignition is switched on have tried connecting the indicator relay terminal seperately both terminals and it makes no difference the lights still flash with the indicators. the only way I can get the indicators to work without affecting the lights is to wire them independantly of the ignition switch. So I think I will do that for now but fit a hidden switch so that if I am parked up an some clown decides to fiddle with the switches on the handlebars they will not be able to turn the indicators on and thus flatten the battery. This happened to me some years ago when I fitted indicators to an A10 but with it being magneto ignition a flat battery did not stop the bike from starting. My thanks to all those that have tried to help me. I will have another look at this problem during the winter lay up but for now will enjoy riding it.
A lot of this sort of problems can often due to a poor earth some where
Have eliminated an earth problem as indicators and lights have all got seperate earths which go back to a central point on the frame.
Current is feeding back through the circuit some where. You could try fitting a diode in the feed to the indicator switch.
Quote from: bikerbob on 30 May, 2024, 15:04
Had another go with the indicators, the ignition switch has 3 terminals 1 input and 2 output wich are live when the ignition is switched on have tried connecting the indicator relay terminal seperately both terminals and it makes no difference the lights still flash with the indicators. the only way I can get the indicators to work without affecting the lights is to wire them independantly of the ignition switch. So I think I will do that for now but fit a hidden switch so that if I am parked up an some clown decides to fiddle with the switches on the handlebars they will not be able to turn the indicators on and thus flatten the battery. This happened to me some years ago when I fitted indicators to an A10 but with it being magneto ignition a flat battery did not stop the bike from starting. My thanks to all those that have tried to help me. I will have another look at this problem during the winter lay up but for now will enjoy riding it.
When I have come across this problem before it was due to a high resistance across the ignition switch. The more power that was drawn, the more the voltage dropped. Dirty, corroded or oxidised contacts in the switch can cause this.
Usually harness problems are either due to overheating when a short has occurred or when a sharp edge has cut through insulation. More likely is an aged connection that gives varying resistance depending on load. As Derek said could also be into the switch. Spraying on connections with WD40 or CRC 5-56 can sometimes fix it at least temporarily. Worked for me on a Honda CBR600RR, lots of trailers and a 14 year old tractor. Problem is to pinpoint which connection. Measure voltage relative to battery ground at different connections with lights and indicators on. A modern digital multimeter don't work as it updates reading so slow that it probably don't notice flickering. An old fashion analogue voltmeter is ideal. I think a test lamp (not LED) might show flickering.
Hopefully this is understandable as English is not my native language.
Quote from: Mike40M on 31 May, 2024, 01:13
Usually harness problems are either due to overheating when a short has occurred or when a sharp edge has cut through insulation. More likely is an aged connection that gives varying resistance depending on load. As Derek said could also be into the switch. Spraying on connections with WD40 or CRC 5-56 can sometimes fix it at least temporarily. Worked for me on a Honda CBR600RR, lots of trailers and a 14 year old tractor. Problem is to pinpoint which connection. Measure voltage relative to battery ground at different connections with lights and indicators on. A modern digital multimeter don't work as it updates reading so slow that it probably don't notice flickering. An old fashion analogue voltmeter is ideal. I think a test lamp (not LED) might show flickering.
Hopefully this is understandable as English is not my native language.
Perfectly understandable. I'm an electrician and it made perfect sense to me.
Me too. The point about digital versus analogue multimeters is well made. I still have one that was liberated from a Birmingham wiring works by a friend many years ago. The other thing they're useful for is making a rough and ready check of capacitors.
Thanks for all the suggestions, I will bear them in mind. What I have done today is I have wired the indicators drirect from the battery through a hidden switch and everything works OK the lights do not flash when the indicators are on, As I said earlier this harness is the original and has been taken off at sometime when the frame was powder coated and then refitted certain parts of it look tired and there is insulating tape around other parts so I am going to leave it till the winter lay up then investigate all the connections but will probably decide to completely rewire the whole bike for peace of mind everything was working Ok before I fitted the indicators I just want to get out and ride it and enjoy. Thanks again.