harley davidson road king motorcycle

maintain your battery and check your charging system!

9 times out of 10 the reason why your bike will usually not start because the battery condition or loose connections. A survey failure is less likely but still possible.

I will be on the two here.

First look at the battery connections. Check to see whether clear and the easiest to fix problems first. A loose connection, poor ground etc. will likely cause of intermittent operation of the starting and charging systems. If you have a loose connection and / or corrosion, clean the connectors with a wire brush.

Before re-mounting a little grease to the contact points. The fat helps to prevent the white corrosion residues building around the battery.

Try it and start it up now. You do not have a problem? Go to the mall and buy yourself a small electronic multimeter. (Make sure that both AC and DC volt-functions, as well as a continuity (or ohms)-function. Remove the battery and put it on a counter. Set your multimeter to volts DC. Measure the battery voltage, by using the red lead on the positive and the black on the negative.

The voltage should read around 12.5 volts (higher is OK) When the voltage is less than this, there can be a bad battery. Note, I say, "" may "here because the wheel of the charging scheme could be at fault. In this case, the battery probably will be OK.

Make sure that the electrolyte in each cell of the battery is good. Add only distilled water in the cell with a low level. (Of course you can not use water to a maintenance-free battery) Charge the battery overnight with a slow charger. Motorcycle batteries can not compete with a quick free. Make sure that the charger only charges in the amount of 2 amps or less.

Install the battery and try and start it again. If they still do not buy a new battery and the problem probably will be corrected. If it starts and runs like a charm, then you need to find out why the battery went dead. You need to ensure the charging scheme.

With the engine running, the meter leads on the battery. Rev the engine a little. The tension increases with engine speed. A voltage of about 13.5 to about 14.5 should be displayed. If the voltage remains constant and / or slowly, or if the voltage rises above 14.7 volts the charging system is not working.

What are you doing now? You have two things to check. The stator and the regulator. The stator creates an AC voltage. The regulator is the AC, DC voltage and also maintains that voltage at the proper level.

The stator can be changed with the function of your Ohm meter. Locate and remove the plug for the stator on the front of the engine block. You will see two or three needles inside.

The low-ohm meter, and measure the continuity between these pins. 5 ohms or less is what you are looking for here. Set the device to its highest setting. With 1 lead to a metal part of the bicycle check for continuity at each pin. You should be infinite meters, or no continuity. If these tests departure then your stator is fine. If there is an error in one of these tests, then see your dealer

The controller is the easiest of all to verify. The regulator is of solid state electronics and can not be opened. Replace the regulator if anything about the check collection system, or if an overload situation.

On most Harley's you do not know whether the collection is beginning to fail. The evidence shows that if you dim the light or they will just not start. There are aftermarket accessories that you can install on your bike will tell you that the current state of the charging system.

Save a few bucks here! With a simple multimeter with any electronics parts store, you can mistake in your shop and check your battery and most likely fix the problems themselves.

NIVON Keith is an avid Harley Davidson Motorcycle Enthusiast! Its website contains information on all things Harley Davidson. http://www.everything-harley-davidson.com is a great resource for all who share a common passion for Harley Davidson motorcycles. Take a look at http://www.everything-harley-davidson.com for more information.