One thing I HATE doing is chasing down electrical issues. Some of you might remember my Yamaha R1 thread about dealing with electrical issues with charging and my dash cutting out.

Tonight I solved the dash issue. It was a bad connector but I think I'm still going to have to replace a stator or v-Reg. My dash dims when I hit either the front or rear brake but it no longer cuts off. Corrosion on a connector was causing it to cut power to the dash.

The lights still dim when I hit the brakes so I decided to check my other two motorcycles to see if they behaved similarly. It was too late to fire em up so I just turned them to the on position, which turns on the head lights.

My Suzuki SV650S (brilliant machine BTW) doesn't dim its lights at all when I hit the brake but my Honda CB-1 does. I also discovered sometime today my Cb-1's headlight stopped working. I took it out for a brief ride earlier.

Yay!!

Literally less than one minute after fixing one issue on my Yamaha I discovered another electrical issue on my Honda and I still need to figure out why my Yamaha R1 is draining its battery.

Fucking old bikes. Maybe it's a sign to avoid that classic KZ I'm looking at.

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Originally posted by stickman428:

Literally less than one minute after fixing one issue on my Yamaha I discovered another electrical issue on my Honda and I still need to figure out why my Yamaha R1 is draining its battery.

In case you don't know (I think you probably do), amp meter between the battery and cable and start unplugging shit until the draw goes away.

Good luck!

I restored a BSA Thunderbolt years ago, before parts were as available for the old bikes as they are now.

The bike was fun to ride when it was running right, but I had so many problems that, when it got caught in a flooded basement garage I just walked away from it.

Your problems sound solvable, though, and the bikes more worth-while than my old BSA.

I hate to admit it, but even now I think it would be nice to buy an Enfield Bullet, just for the sake of owning a classic bike.

Having ridden "classic" bikes (read...old and worn out...) for MANY years, I can only offer this tidbit:

You have to enjoy working on them at least as much as riding them, or it's just not worth the effort. It helps that you actually CAN work on them. They're relatively simple and everything is easily accessible, at least as compared to today's bikes.

I got to the point where I got tired of the 1:1 work on 'em/ride 'em ratio and bought a new bike. I've put the last of my golden oldies up for sale because riding the new bike is SO much more enjoyable and I've only got so much time left.

Not really a claasic, but old motorcycle.

Owned a Yamaha Big Bear Scrambler, a tank of an attempt of an off road bike. The clutch was always going out, or slipping, and the local Yamaha repair shop was awful.

Rode the bike more un the winter than the summer the 2 years I owned it. Later, I found out it was a thud of a motorcycle, but I had long sold it.

PHPaul, I do enjoy working on them but it does get to be frustrating when I fix something and two other things break. But honestly to me the challenge in diagnosing and fixing the problem is kinda fun, so long as I'm not constantly diagnosing and fixing issues. The internet certainly makes fixing and researching my moto problems much easier.

I've been giving a lot of though to buying a newer low mile BMW R Nine T as a modern classic to get my retro fix but not have to deal with reliability issues. Modern fuel injection just makes motorcycling so much more enjoyable and stress free. I love my older bikes but other than the SV650 I don't trust any of them for anything more than short rides out to the country.

In that golden moment of exuberant naive youth the Honda CB77 Super Hawk 305 was my own joyous perfection.

It met all my needs circa 1966 and I actually somehow squeezed enough cash to buy one new for about $700 IIRC. Add scrambler bars/high pipes/better tires/50,000 miles/college/marriage/life goes on so finally somehow sold it.

No service interruptions despite hard off-road use and multiple 1000+ mile journeys.

Much nostalgia & a decade later had to have another one.

Amazing how aged/underpowered/nitpicky rough running/out of the zone that model had become.

It still amazed me how much performance the 28HP seemed to provide at the time. I still like the looks of the model.

I own 19 old (62-69') Triumphs. 50 years ago I worked as a Triumph and Yamaha mechanic to put my way through school. As much as I enjoy wrenching on and riding these old scooters, I'd need two assistants to have all 19 be roadworthy at the same time. Positive earth

It's true; you have to enjoy working on them. Plus hunting and fabbing parts/pieces you can't find.
If you enjoy riding get a new or late model bike to "breathe the wind". That way you can enjoy both worlds. It's what I'm doing and it works really well for me.

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Originally posted by aileron:
I own 19 old (62-69') Triumphs. 50 years ago I worked as a Triumph and Yamaha mechanic to put my way through school. As much as I enjoy wrenching on and riding these old scooters, I'd need two assistants to have all 19 be roadworthy at the same time. Positive earth

Funny....long time ago I worked for a Ferrari/Alfa Romeo dealership and very quickly noticed the Alpha owners all seemed to have multiple cars (in an odd way), when I asked the owner about this he told me that owning multiple cars is the only way you can have a chance that one will be running at any given time...in his time he drove for Alfa professionally, he knew his shit

I had several oldies bikes over the years. I got tired of fixing and riding. And even if you could find parts, they are extremely expensive. I got even more tired of getting some one to pick me up when the bike quit on the side of the road. Same experience with Brit cars. I said good bye to the old and now stick with the new.

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noticed the Alpha owners all seemed to have multiple cars (in an odd way), when I asked the owner about this he told me that owning multiple cars is the only way you can have a chance that one will be running at any given time...

when I was a Citroen ID19 owner/operator I learned the same lesson....in fact bought parts from & gained maintenance skills from another Citroen guy who kept SEVEN inert donor cars on station around the block where he resided in PDX, in anticipation he'd always have the necessary parts on hand............

It sounds like you have a ground issue. Get out the multimeter and have someone hit the brakes and test each connector. You can also test output of the stator, and output of the voltage regulator. At my age I would rather have one new (ish) motorcycle that's far superior in power, handling, and braking, than 3 old ones that I would have to spend my time wrenching on instead of riding.

Fixed!!! A Facebook group I follow has a few Cb-1 riders. They all echoed what my internet search said, which is that the starter switch has a switch built into the unit that briefly kills the headlight when starting to save juice. Sometimes that switch gets stuck killing the headlight. It was stuck and now it's fixed!!

My favorite moto in my collection now has a clean bill of health again! Yay!!

Now back to the YZF R1's electrical issues.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: stickman428,

I feel your pain man. My V65 Magna has turn signals that work...sometimes. At one time they worked perfectly and then you would turn the right one on and the left one would actually come on and vice versa. I switched the wires under the seat from side to side and that did it, but they still seem to work when they want to. Ground problem

Yepp aquabird, chasing down a ground problem can be difficult. The R1 shouldn't be dimming the dash when I hit the brakes. I suspect a ground needs to be cleaned somewhere. I'll find it. I will have a new v-reg Tuesday and will be tearing the R1 apart again tomorrow. Thanks to this forums fine members, the internet and YouTube videos I have learned quite a bit about motorcycles. It has been great.

I don't mind the issues too much. It was incredibly satisfying to fix the CB-1 today. I love that little bike.

Once it's done the R1 is going to be a beautiful naked bike with a bit of retro styling. I'm gonna to remove the front fairing and put a big circle headlamp on the front and relocate the dash up a bit to give it the classic look. I'm thinking about using a BMW r nineT headlight. I might keep the tail stock. I like the factory tail and tail lights on the 99 R1. It's going to look great when it's done.

It's something about the experience, the wind in the face and blast you get from a naked bike that is just damn fun. I think this machine will pull off that look really well when I'm finished. Restoring it back to original would be too damn expensive and then it'll just look like every other red and black 1999 R1.

I've restored a few old 60's Musclecars.

Love them, but anymore, at 66 yoa, I don't care for the wrenching as much as I once did. Plus the calls to the wife to come get me with a pickup, "Will I make it" on anything but a short trip, etc.

Last year I passed on several old cars that all appealed, that ALL required work as well. Instead bought a new Camaro SS. Hi Tech IS kind of nice.

Handles and brakes FAR better than anything I was considering. 12.5 sec 1/4 mile all day long, and if I drive at a steady 80 mph on the Interstate; 26 MPG.

Still have my 1983 R-65 BMW Airhead. It has a few issues, so always something to wrench on if I should get lonely for dirty fingers and cracked knuckles.

I owned a '78 Laverda Jota for a number of years in Australia.

Talk about character assassination.

Electrical issues were either bad connectors or grounds; much of the wiring was under the seat, subject to the rigors of the rider.

... tha triple sound can still be heard ...

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Originally posted by 46and2:

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I own 19 old (62-69') Triumphs

Because 20 would be crazy