83 GS650GL - Main fuse doing funny things!!

[Guest]

Hey Guys,

Been a while since I've posted hope everyone is hanging on during all the craziness this world has turned in too! lol

So was out riding the other day and had some issues popup that left me stranded and had to trailer the bike back home to diagnose. What happened was normal ride in town no crazy revving or anything and i notice a slight lack of power then when turn signals on other lights flickering so pulled into a parking lot and sat there idling to try and figure out what was up and idle perfect, so thought maybe was just my imagination. Turned off the bike to go into the store, came back out and turned the key and got nothing, no engine click no instrument lights nothing. Crap!...pulled the seat off and checked fuses right away but they all looked intact, fiddle with some wiring to see if anything had come loose or was grounding out but no help. So called the wife and she brought some tools along and i did some parking lot maintenance lol. battery tested perfect sitting there at 12.8v, its less then a year old AGM battery. tried removing my phone holder/charger off the battery in case that was causing problems, still nothing.
Gave up there as it was getting late so threw the bike on a trailer and brought it home, that evening started checking deeper into it, removed the fuse panel to test it and seems good. put it back in with a new 15A main and turned the key and the damn thing came to life! So out of curiosity i put the original one back in and lights on was able to fire up the bike no problem...So that was confusing...So the next day i took it out with the same 15A fuse in there, ride started off normal and then same issues started happening, made my way home quick parked it and turned it off, tried right away to turn it back on and nothing again, no lights nothing. Pulled the 15A main out, put the exact same fuse back in and fires up LMAO....now im thinking my fuse panel may be going on me! So now ive put a brand new 15A in there to see if maybe that fuse is just flaky and just waiting for the weather to clear up to test out that theory. In the mean time was wondering if anyone else has eve come across weird fuse issues like that. I know its old electronics, almost as old as me lol and could just be failing on me as well, I did by the current one on Ebay a couple years ago as the other was melted by the previous owner that tried working on it lol...on that note also wondering if anyone has ever upgraded their fuse panels from the OEM glass tube fuse panel to something more robust?
Thanks for any help and knowledge you guys can pass along!

 

[Gorminrider]

Peculiar for sure. I can't say I've had that one..but the previous melted fuse panel and replacement suggests the issue wasn't fixed. Look really closely at the wiring under the seat looking where "mods" were maded- you'll have to get a handle on the circuitry with a wiring diagram and be sure that it is all set up correctly from Battery, through key to fuse panel, starter motor and all that...be sure at least the fuse panel is isolated from ground etc etc etc etc etc.

Check the key-switch too. It's important to your symptoms

You can BYPASS suspect areas temporarily...that is, put your own fused jumpers in to replace suspects temporarily....you can use a test-light to find where power is "flowing" (ie remove a turn signal and put one end to ground (frame) and one end to suspect's supply connector...simple things first.

 

[Guest]

Thanks for the suggestions, I will check into those! I'm slowly coming to terms with the fact that the bike is almost as old as me and the wiring needs to get redone, definitely not looking forward to it lol, but every time i open the headlight my head starts to hurt:dejection: thinking i might try and go the minimalist route and try redoing it all with a new fuse panel with just the basics.

 

[Eli69]

If it happens again try wiggling the key. I have a similar problem on a GS1000. I spray some PB Blaster into it occasionally. Seems to keep things working.

 

[Guest]

If it happens again try wiggling the key. I have a similar problem on a GS1000. I spray some PB Blaster into it occasionally. Seems to keep things working.

Interesting! Ill give that a try if it happens again! Been crappy out so haven't had a chance to get out on the road.

 

[BigD_83]

Some guys have replaced their fuse boxes with ones from Eastern Beaver, and there was a solid state power box put together by member posplayer, but I cannot remember if there was one for the 650. I have one for the 550ES, but lost my garage before I got it installed. It is a solid piece of kit and a worthwhile upgrade.


https://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/search?q=SSPB&searchJSON={"keywords":"SSPB"}

 

[Guest]

Hey guys,
So after a ton of troubleshooting and research I found a few things that were possible issues, decided to pull all the wiring off a redo it all! What a mess lol but finally got it done! Forgot to take step by step pictures but here's a few showing finished product and some progression. Overall it wasn't even too difficult of job to do, Thanks to everyone who's posted info on similar upgrades they've done to their bikes. If it wasn't for all the info i picked up from this forum I doubt i would've been able to tackle it!
So other then re-running new wires for 90% of the electronics I added a new fuse box, a couple in line fuses and made a simple electronics tray, which i need to redo one day to fit everything as some parts had to be mounted on the bottom due to lack of space. I also replaced the headlight to an LED, replaced the ignition switch with an OEM replacement from Z1 and also did another tear down of the carbs putting it through an ultrasonic cleaner and replacing gaskets, O-rings and hoses. Been on a couple longer trips already and the old girl is running great!

 

[Guest]

Progress...

 

[Guest]

Also progress...

 

[Guest]

Cleaned up...

 

[Guest]

Underside of tray...

 

[Guest]

Cables wrapped up...

 

[Guest]

Finished product!

 

[Gorminrider]

Herculean task! Nice work! and Now you can have a new career redoing other old bikes, if you can stand it

 

[Guest]

ride: Thanks! Was actually just talking about that with the wife...she wasnt totally happy with how much time i spent in the garage working on it, but it was actually quite relaxing of a task having to focus on it...already looking for a next project bike!

 

[rphillips]

You found a few things that were possible issues, did you ever zero in on the thing that caused the orig. problem fuse, fuse panel, bad connection? Always liked to see actual culprit, rather than doing a few things and it's fixed, that way if it happens again, you'll (we'll) know where to look first... Either way, job well done, Congrats.

 

[Guest]

Thanks rphillips! No unfortunately I couldn't narrow it down 100%. Although I am very confident that it was my ignition switch, as I had found that during the re wiring process the cable running from the ignition switch to my rear light was not working anymore. I tested cables and connectors with a power probe tester so I knew everything after the ignition switch was good, so to me its seems like something shorted out in the switch causing it to malfunction...as for the cause of that I couldn't say, may have just been age or could have even been related to the original melted fuse panel. But i agree with you on knowing a cause, I've been documenting everything replaced or upgraded! There's actually only a couple original parts left for electronics, Solenoid, CDI and handlebar switches. Which I'll probably end up replacing at some point as well as they are looking quite old and distressed. The CDI is going to be tough one as I haven't found any OEM replacement option yet, just used ones on eBay going for way to much lol.