2004 Ridgeback died / electrical help?

[Long Island]

During a multiple state ride my 2004 Ridgeback (with PDM upgrade) died on the homeward bound leg.
1st sign of trouble was my tach didn't light up at all for a 40 mile leg of the ride.
upon the next start up it did work.
Next, while pulled over to let the leader reprogram his GPS it died. The start button would do nothing. As if I wasn't even pushing the button. I used my slam button to start it and we were on the road again.
This lasted about 15 miles and it died again. This time on the uphill part of a large bridge (yes- it sucked ass big time). I coasted it back down because this time it wouldn't restart. It was about 80 deg outside.
Trying to get her started only killed the battery and singed my hands from pushing the CR closest to me (need to replace it but was waiting for a bad weather week to not loose ride time)
Jump started it from another riders bike and we were on the road again for about 2 miles (just got over the bridge / died coming up to the toll).
Would not start and I threw in the towel. I didn't want to limp home the remaining 100+ miles 2 miles at a time.
1st time she was on a trailer with me.
Got her home, put her on the tender and she started right up the next morning.
Oh yeah. forgot to mention that the high-beam indicator light would now stay on and the head light is dead.
I visually checked all the fuses and the are good.
I tried the blow dryer on the cam sensor and nothing (how long does it take with the blow dryer to know if it could be the source of my non starting issue?)
Now it starts with the start button as if all was good in the world.
Except that I have no peace of mind to go for a distance trip.
Any ideas?
I plan to start looking for chaffed wires or bad connections. Any particular wires I should check that would cause these kind of issues?

 

[Diesel Dan]

I would start with the Battery and charging system,remove the battery and have it Load Tested, if it drops below 9.50 volts while load testing it,then replace battery, I would recommend a Braille Battery,there heavy Duty and made in the USA:2thumbs:.....

2nd,CHECK the charging system out,make sure stator connector plug is plugged in good,sounds like you have a charging system issue that took out the battery maybe,because you stated you could jump it then get it 2 run for a few miles more... Do this first,then we will dig deeper........Good Luck bud

 

[francoblay1]

Don't forget the Basics..... CONNECTIONS - CLEAN & TIGHT!!!

 

[Five Five]

how old is your battery

 

[Iman]

That happened to me in Myrtle - It was my Crank sensor that went bad - I run with a PDM also

 

[Long Island]

update

I load tested the battery. I bought/installed the battery last year.
13 volts before test.
dropped to 11 during test.
back to 12.5 at button release and then climbed back up to 13 again.
Checked twice with same results.
Connections tight.
While running it reads about 14.3 under throttle (about 200 to 300 rpm)

Where do I find the wires to test the stator? Remember also that I have the PDM kit installed.

 

[Long Island]

That happened to me in Myrtle - It was my Crank sensor that went bad - I run with a PDM also

How long must you blow dry the crank sensor to see if it cuts out?

 

[Long Island]

another problem which could be related is my head light doesn't work (hi or low) but the high beam indicator stays on regardless of the switch position. tested the light by direct wire method and it works both hi and low. could the short or whatever is making the headlight get no power also cause the turn off problem?

 

[Diesel Dan]

How long must you blow dry the crank sensor to see if it cuts out?

Our bikes do not have a Crank sensor Bro,they have a Cam Sensor,Curtis on here from Wild Steed Worx can hook you up with that if you need it.......Sounds like your Battery and Charging system are good.......SOOOOOoooooooooooooo Next I would start looking at grounds,make sure your connections are good and clean and tight, Then test your cam sensor 2 see if your getting a erratic spark signal...........Cam sensor could be breaking down when it gets hot has weak spark while cranking,not real strong looking,mine did 1 time, I shit canned it,and had Curtis send me one ASAP............NOT had a issue since.........

 

[BigDogBro1]

another problem which could be related is my head light doesn't work (hi or low) but the high beam indicator stays on regardless of the switch position. tested the light by direct wire method and it works both hi and low. could the short or whatever is making the headlight get no power also cause the turn off problem?

Check the bulb socket for melting or inner connection shorting they get hot if You're running the H4 type bulb. Buy a ceramic H4 bulb socket if you are.

Under my 2007 tank in the harness is an under rated connector that can go bad for the headlight circuit. The connector is rated at 4 amps max and the headlight high beam draws about 5+ amps.