starter

[jon57]

Yesterday i went to start bike. Turned over slow like weak battery. put it on a charger tryed to to start it starter just clicks. Have lights ect. just clicks. with the charger on or off. If i need a starter will a aftermarket fit or can it be rebuilt. 05 Ridgeback.

 

[Loafington]

Check your starter contacts and make sure they are not all shitted up. You might have a bigger problem.

 

[jon57]

Thanks Loaf, forgot to mention that all connections are good.

 

[Loafington]

The ones inside your actual starter. Sometimes the contacts inside the starter itself get crappy. They can be cleaned to a degree but if they are too worn or damaged, then they need to be replaced, if they can be replaced. It could very well be the battery. If the battery is too weak and cannot hold sufficient capacity, then as soon as you call for a demand of volts and amps, it will peter out and will not have enough ooomph to turn the engine over. It will have enough voltage to give you lights and whatnot seeing how they don't draw much amperage. I hate to see people just start changing parts for the sake of changing parts until the problem goes away. That is a waste of time and money. You can have the battery load tested and see if it is up to the job. If your charger does not supply a high amperage charge, and the battery is kaput, you still will not have enough to start the bike.

Check the surface charge of the battery, it should be over 12.5 volts. If you don't at least have that after charging it, you could have a bad battery/cell. If you have a good charge and it still won't start, run a jumper wire from the positive terminal on the battery to the relay terminal on the starter. Make sure your transmission is in neutral first or you will have another problem real quick. If the battery is good, and the starter is good, the motor should turn over. If that is the case, then your problem is relay, start switch, or a bad connection somewhere.

 

[V]

Loaf made a good point, before you start pulling into things have your battery load tested. Just cause it shows 12 volts or more doesn't mean its still got its amps. Made this mistake myself before after replacing a starter


V

 

[jon57]

Thanks Loaf, Ill try that. let you know how i make out.

 

[RVH]

jon, if it turns out to be the starter let me know. I highly recommend the Accumax starter after all the chit I went thru solving my problem.(do a search of my post)....On another note, how long have you had the Indian and what motor is on it? I have an 01 Scout with the 107" S&S. Its completely stock except for Martin Bros pipes and the jetting.

 

[jon57]

jon, if it turns out to be the starter let me know. I highly recommend the Accumax starter after all the chit I went thru solving my problem.(do a search of my post)....On another note, how long have you had the Indian and what motor is on it? I have an 01 Scout with the 107" S&S. Its completely stock except for Martin Bros pipes and the jetting.

I have a 01 cen. scout 88ci. vance&hines pipes,

 

[Gas Man]

Yeah is the battery original? It needs to 12.8 volts off the charger... then it still needs to maintain good voltage thru the starting. There was just another member that had a similar problem and when he changed the battery to a new one... it started right up.

You said the connections are good. Which ones? Your battery connections? Have you did a "BBChopper" check/clean?

http://www.bigdogbiker.com/forums/technical/2901-starter-click-click-click.html

But the problem has to be either the battery or starter...