Bike won't crank..again!
 

Ok I'm gonna explain in detail everything I've done to this bike. I bought it from a guy off craigslist. The original owner wrecked the front end. The guy I bought it from, bought it from the original owner. When I bought the bike it was prefect I freakin loved it, I still do:) (gotta love those twins) even though I would love a 2011 fz8 but anyway. I rode it for days after that perfectly fine. She has a koso speedo and some jetta headlights on it with street fighter theme. He had custom license plate lights that were built into the bolts holding it on. He gave them to me and said brown wire goes to the red one and the green one goes to the black one. Somewhere in there I think I messed up cause I heard a click/pop and now I don't have to pull in the clutch to start it? I noticed one day that the petcock was leaking and replaced it, once again the bike was fine...until I tried to crank it and nothing happened. Replaced a fuse or two and the bike ran like new. Me and the wife went out one weekend, got stranded on it, replaced all fuses and battery and cranked just fine. Couple days go by and it doesn't wanna crank. Took out the battery this morning and noticed that the battery is deformed. There's a bump on the side near where my seat is. I think I'm gonna have to replace the battery. (Bikemaster Tru-Gel). charged it for a few hours. Finally fully charged and slapped it back in and still doesn't crank. This is my second twin. I used to have an 06 sv650 and now the superhawk is teaching me a thing or two, please help.

That's no good.
Although I can't help with the electrical issues, I can tell you that nobody has to pull their clutch in to start the bike.

Ok I've done some reading on the process of how the motorcycle keeps the battery charging and it sounds as if my regulator is bad. A charge comes from the alternator, transfers through your stator, where your regulator makes sure your battery is getting 13.5-14.5v of charge in which case if its over or under those readings, will shut off or turn on your alternator?

Thanks for the reply, the bike has enough juice once its running to stay running, but once I turn it off say over night, it has problems the next day.

R/R is bad, overcharging the battery. Measured, I bet it puts out better than 15 volts. And, if you look at the R/R connector plug, it will be discolored and burned.

Here's hoping that I'm wrong. Nobody else should have to go through what I did.

Sounds as if you have a few issues. First off check the sidestand switch, that should take care of pulling in the clutch to start it. Next, get a new battery and a new R/R. Having a "bump" in the side of the battery case is usually not good.

Where can I order one online? Bike shop is closed til tuesday:(

And I would rather spend more on a good one than to keep buying stock ones that burn out easy. I have a bike master tru-gel battery which is a really good battery and I know I can't have a cheap r/r if I have a good battery, suggestions please?

Ok r/r looks good, what next?

yeah the battery is giving off 12.5 volts when the bike is turned off. Can't test it running because the bike won't start. I can hear the starter relay clicking and it clicks everytime i press start button, i can also hear the alternator turning over but just doesn't have enough power to crank apparently. I bought a multimeter to start some testing so i'm sure i'll run into the problem eventually. It has a FE-303 R/R that looks really clean and the connector is completely free of corrosion and what not so it's fine. I've been looking at other forums regarding this issue and i'm starting to think it's a stator but don't know how to test it properly. The battery is putting out 12.5V isn't that enough to crank? The battery also has a bump on the case now and am thinking i need to replace it. I'll charge it and test it when it's fully charged later on.

You can test battery voltage all day and show it good but unless the battery is storing amperage (which is what batteries do) it won't have enough "power" to turn over the engine. If it is bulging that is a bad sign. Take it to AutoZone and have it tested. that will put a load on it and will certainly reveal bad cells.

You can't tell if the R/R is good by visual inspection. Only way to tell is measuring output voltage when it is running. More than likely your R/R went and allowed the battery to overcharge which accounts for the bulge.

Did you try and jump the bike?

Thanks for the replies RWhisen. You were right!! I looked at the r/r and it certainly is burnt lol. You can look into the connectors and see the red and green wires are burnt and i'm posting pictures along with this to prove it. I'm charging the battery now cause these are hardcore and can be drilled into and still not leak out and still operate. Anyways yeah the battery has a 2yr warranty and so i'm gonna go pick up a new one. Now that i know the problem alls i have to do is order a new one, and as Tweety was saying i don't have a FE r/r i have a SH r/r(which apparently is the inferior r/r). I also need the connector along with new wiring too, ugh. Thanks though.

and no i didn't try jumping the battery

There are a couple of sources for connectors, one being Eastern Beaver and another being.....forgot the name but it was posted recently as someone was offering kudos to them. See if you can search within threads for Eastern Beaver and it should pop up.

thanks!

I very highly recommend getting an R1 R/R, or another good aftermarket R/R (mosfet type preferably). Don't get an OEM replacement. I don't even trust the later finned OEM R/Rs. I had a finned one go bad on me, resulting in the battery not charging. So I would charge the battery up and be able to ride for a couple days, and then I'd get stranded somewhere.

Just read the threads on this forum about it; there are multiple threads explaining it in detail.

I had starting issues a couple years ago and chased the R/R gremlins. No a fun task. After reading post after post, tested stator, R/R, voltages and all seemed good. Cleaned ALL connectors to remove any sign of gunk, and used diolectric grease to protect them. Looked at the wire harness for any nicks. Cleaded ground connection. Tested the starter itself.

What I found to be the problem was in the starter switch itself. Worn contacts were not making contact every time. A bit of solder, a bit of fileing to make a flat surface and a dab of grease.....problem solved.

Sometimes it's the simple things.

Fish