viking_rider

Rice Paddy worked out awesome. Great staff and I got a pretty good price (compared to Iron Pony) and it was in stock and new. Very happy with them and will probably look to them in the future for some parts if needed. As I'm still new at this, I wanted to run by what I've found so far to make sure there is nothing I'm missing. I installed the new RR and there is no more leaking from the main fuse which is good. Keep in mind, I got a new battery and something weird about it is that it's fully charged, resting state voltage is around 13 - 13.5 volts which is pretty high is it not? It stays this way when the bike is started at idle but when I roll the throttle, the voltage goes down to about 12.5 - 12.6 volts and remains there. When I let off the throttle, it goes back up to the 13 range. My manuals says that when I check the connection to the stator, it should read between like .32 and .4 something Ohms. It does read at .6 but then again my meter sensitivity is at something like 200 Ohms and doesn't go any lower so perhaps that is a problem too. Is .6 considered high? It is the same between the white wires of 1 and 2, and 1 and 3. I just don't want to go out on the bike again and get stranded. Everyone has been great so thanks for the advice here. At least I feel like I'm learning a lot!

Perhaps this verifies that I am crazy but I found out my battery was still losing charge while sitting. I did some more diagnostics and found out that the main fuse was drawing power from the battery. Found out it was coming from some wires going to the RR (when I unplugged the wires going to the RR, the AMPS leaking through quit). I removed the RR and the rubber on the back actually has been burnt through and the coating to one of the wires is slightly worn away. I'm guessing that the RR is bad as it was smoking when I started the bike again and I could see the regulator. It did get very hot. Does anyone have any recommendations as to where I can get a good priced RR? Just so you don't have to look back, I have a 94 Virago xv535. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. This bike is getting way more expensive than anticipated!

***Update*** Not sure what the problem was the first time I tried it but I tried again here and the voltage increased when I used the throttle up to about 14.2 volts. It did that several times so I guess everything looks pretty good here. If something happens I'll update the thread in case someone in the future has a similar problem. Hey everyone! I hate to revive a dead horse here but wanted to update and perhaps get a few more suggestions. So Scott was great and got me up and going but I still found my bike dead days after riding it (was gone for the weekend). Invested in a multimeter and found out the battery was putting out 5 volts. Tried to charge the battery and the charger wouldn't charge it. Decided I needed a new battery so I got one today from Iron Pony, charged it up fully, took a wire brush and WD40 to my connectors to clean everything real well and hooked her back up. The bike started and the battery was putting out about 12.2 volts. I ready somewhere that when when applying the throttle, the voltage should actually go up to between 13.5 and 14.5 volts. Voltage did go up but only slightly to about 12.4 volts. The more I revved, the higher it went but it was very, very little. 12.4 was as higher as I got. Is this normal or do I need to do some more diagnostics? Although I'm enjoying learning about my motorcycle, I'd rather be riding it. Thanks for any advice!

I am new to biking and will always wear my helmet so that I don't die. I want to start riding my bike more to get me to places I actually need to go to rather than just joy riding but I was wondering, what do you do with your helmet when you get to your destination? Do you take it with you? Do you leave it at your bike? Do you lock it up? I didn't spend a ton of money on my helmet but it is a nicer one I got a good deal on and wouldn't want to lose it. Just wondering what all of you do. Thanks!

I had NinjaScott tow my bike and take a look at it and I must say he was awesome to work with. He was quick to come get my bike, looked at it almost immediately, and got everything taken care of the same day actually. He's a nice guy as well so I'd highly recommend working with him if you need some help with motorcycle issues. So what was the issue? It was pretty simple actually. I think I was overwhelmed with all the advice I got to be honest but I'm glad I had someone take care of this for me while I'm still learning the bike. I guess a grounding wire was loose which caused a fuse to blow which then probably drained my battery. I rode the bike home and everything seemed to be working just fine so we'll see. I didn't notice any smoking. Talking with Scott, the smoking might have been some gas from the overflow. I did just fill the tank up the day before I started seeing the smoke. Thanks everyone for the advice and thanks NinjaScott for getting me rolling back on the road!

As much as I would like to figure everything out on my own, I think I'm going to go with Scott who said he can tow my motorcycle and he also has experience working on bikes so hopefully he can figure things out. I'll definitely keep things up to date here for anyone who might have a similar situation in the future. And thanks Aerik for the help and advice getting me to the forum. Let's hope I don't have to apply for bankruptcy just to get my "new" bike fixed.

Thanks Aerik! I do appreciate all the help (from recommending this board to the towing). If either of you are free today then I could do it anytime today up until around 7:00 PM. Hell, if your friend owns a tow truck company, I'd rather pay a friend of the forum than someone else. I live in victorian village near 1st and Neil Ave. The bike is about 2 miles west over in Grandview on a side street. I actually think it would be entertaining to see this done the old fashioned way!

Thanks everyone for the responses. First things first, I gotta find a tow company to get my bike back home. I already feel like nervous leaving it where I did even though it's a quiet side street. Any good companies to recommend? It's only a couple of miles away from my house. That way I can at least work on it at home. I've had a few people relate me to the regulator/rectifier. Based on what I heard I'm going to focus on this area next to see if its the problem as the smoke was definitely coming from around that area. Anyone know what might be causing the neutral light to not come on? Just wondering if this might help me pinpoint what's going on. Will the starter not work with a charged battery if the rectifier/regulator is out?

Hey everyone! I was directed by someone to post here as I'm having some issues. I just bought my first motorcycle last week after going through the MSF course and getting all my license stuff taken care of. Three days and about 20 miles later, she's dead. Needless to say I'm chomping at the bit to get the bike running again and disappointed at the same time as I don't have much money left to fix it as I spent it on the bike. So here's what happened. Started the bike up Saturday and everything seemed fine. It wasn't until about 5 miles on the road at a stoplight I realize something is smoking. I park the bike at a parking lot and notice it's coming from the left side (see picture below). Now later on when I checked the area after it cooled, I did touch a small droplet of liquid near the fuel on/off valve and it did smell like gas. Whether or not that's what the smoke was I'm not sure. I'm color blind but it was white-ish. Maybe some blue, hell I'm color blind. I decide to ride the bike home. Not but a mile later I notice the bike is losing power despite me not letting off the throttle. I don't remember hearing any weird noises or anything, just lost power until it fully shut off. It did appear the battery was dead at the moment as the horn would barely start. I charged the battery overnight and just got back from an unsuccessful start. The horn now works so the battery is hooked up correctly. The neutral light will not come on despite being in neutral. The other dashboard lights do work though (turn signal). When I hit the starter button, I hear nothing. Of course now I'm noticing all the motorcycles out there and its frustrating not being able to ride. It's also frustrating knowing my bike is on the side of the street a few miles from my house. If you have any suggestions, PLEASE let me know. I want to ride!!! By the way I have zero experience with motorcycles. If you do have someone that won't charge an arm and a leg to look at my bike, I will appreciate any referrals. I'm not really sure who I can turn to. Thanks everyone! Josh