Speedo/Tach going whacko

[ChopperJeff]

A few days ago during a ride my tach and bright light indicator LEDs all started going nuts, with them flickering on and off, going bright, then dim, etc. It was like watching a light show! However, my speedo and odometer all worked fine.

But then yesterday I start the bike, and there are NO LEDs lit, AND neither the speedo or the odometer function! In fact, even pressing the little rubber button thing to switch from odometer to trip meter mode does not function.

I then hit the kill switch, turn the key off, then back on, allow the speedo to run thru its diag routine, then press the rubber button thingy and lo-and-behold it changes to the trip meter mode as expected. I'm thinking "Oh, must be OK now", so I proceed to start the bike. After starting the bike, the odometer/trip button doesn't work any more, and sure enough, the speedo and odometer are not working.

I then shut it all off, restart, and all is fine... except for the tach which still thinks it's a set of Christmas tree lights flickering and flashing all over the place.

This morning though I could not get the damn thing to work at all even after about six tries.

I guess I'll yank the tank and check the connections and such, but has anyone else gone thru this?

I had the speedo recall done about 6 or 9 months ago and all was working well after that.

If wires/connectors all check out, maybe I should just order a new speedo/tach and replace the silly thing, and hope that's it. :bang:

 

[Raywood]

CJ, this has been covered quite a few times and I think that each time it has come down to a weak battery or bad ignition switch.
How old is your battery and are you keeping it on a tender?
I concur with checking all the connections including the one inside the speedo bucket for a tight connection. I would fill them with dielectric grease also while you have them apart.

Good luck,
Ray

 

[ChopperJeff]

Thanks Raywood!

The battery is fairly new having been replaced late last year and is not showing any signs of being weak (IE: strong starts and voltage reads good). I don't use a battery tender as I ride every day (almost 42,000 miles on '05 Chopper). The ignition also has not shown problems as again, it always starts OK and hasn't turned off on me unexpectedly like in the past when it went bad.

The How-To I ran across here on how to tear into the speedo should come in handy... I might just be doing that.

I wonder if the starting of the bike causes it to go nuts as the vibration may be shaking something loose. Hopefully I'll locate a bad connection some place and all will be good.

I'll keep you guys posted.

 

[Raywood]

Did you ever get the larger speedo mount? I think it was Fibersnake that pulled his apart and found broken wires on the back of the tach board. He simply re-soldered them on and working fine now.

Hope you get it fixed soon,
Ray

 

[ChopperJeff]

Yes, I got the larger speedo mount when the speedo recall was done, along with a new speedo. Maybe I'll start by yanking the speedo apart... I'm getting tired of pulling the tank off.

 

[Gas Man]

If you are pulling the tank.. might as well shrink wrap everything while you're at it!!

Not a sticky but its in there
http://www.bigdogbiker.com/forums/how/218-how-where-shrink-wrap-your-wires.html

 

[ChopperJeff]

Sometimes things are just embarrassingly obvious.

Just before heading out on vacation I pulled the seat in order to check the battery voltage. Once the seat was pulled I saw a wire going from the negative post to one of the EHC connectors barely hanging onto the negative terminal by a thin thread of wire. Repaired it and now the speedo/tach work fine!

Funny how we assume from the start that something complicated must be going on. I DID pull the tank a while ago, and took the speedo apart in order to check the connections, but for whatever reason I never bothered to pull the seat and check the wires there.

Oh well... live and learn!

Thanks everyone for your input. Next time I'll be SURE to check ALL the obvious things before jumping to conclusions!