Battery Light , OD Light and other Gremlins

[Kevin B in Illinois]

I have issue with my OD light staying on, also will only start in neutral,(won't start with clutch pulled in) and can't remember how to get wire to make the battery light got out with a different non sensor battery. Several other Gremlins on this bike ,but these are the ones I want to tackle tonight. Thanks,

Kevin Braddy
IPVMC
President

[Chris near Kansas City]

Connect the battery sensor wire to the orange wire of the turn signal relay. It should be hot with key on.

Chris

[Kevin B in Illinois]

Figured that one out, last night. Thanks for the help Chris. Now for the OD light staying on all the time.

KB
IPVMC
President

[Wylee]

I have the opposite problem. My OD light won’t come on now.

Wylee

[gearheadfla]

I have the opposite problem. My OD light won’t come on now.

Wylee

My OD light don't work either, but my cruise does, IN EVERY GEAR. Carl said the PO may have bypassed it or there is a little switch deep in the bowels of the rear engine area, to fix it would be a real pain, so I will just leave it be, sorta wished it worked, I keep looking for 6th gear, if I ever find it I will report it here.

[Wylee]

Yeah! I miss it. sometimes I shift again to make sure in in 5th gear. Bummer.

[Kevin B in Illinois]

Gremlins are being solved. So the issues have had something to do with the previous life of this bike as being in a polebarn machine shed for 7 years and having a family of mice make it their home. Seems this mice chewed through wires and the part that I referred to as "other Gremlins" was the brake light not working. After combing through the obvious areas , a special team of 4 IPVMC members started troubleshooting the bike and after 1 hr the bike and brake lights as well as the Back Off LED brake light were fixed. The issue was multiple problems. Problem 1 . relay behind headlight Problem 2. wires leading to relay chewed through and not making a connection. Problem 3 wiring of Back Off light's connection to brake lights had come apart due to age and mice chewing on the taped area exposing it. Bike is slowly being resurrected and coming back from the coma that it has been in for the last 7 years. If you see me on the road this is a 1990 Voyager XII with IPVMC 7 plates. Thanks to my IPVMC brothers for the excellent help with this issue.

Kevin Braddy
IPVMC
President

[Kevin B in Illinois]

Update on the Gremlins Electrical and otherwise. Having discovered many chewed on wires. I have a new harness that I am installing(have installed) . While doing this I started looking at the speedometer wires etc. that have been giving me issues and removed the radio and speedometer. Cleaning the bike as I go. Found another small mouse skull / remains hidden deep inside the harness area and it will become a keychain momento for this restoration. Found out the OD light stays on due to it being wired up to run cruise in any gears from original owner ( I spoke with him, since he is the reason I wanted the bike,,one of my best riding buddies WRONGWAY...lol ) . Hoping the bike will be finished by the end of the year. Good Times...and my wife has been a great help ..wiring the bike as I drank lemonade and listened to music and remembered good times that I have seen this bike go to.
She is an excellent Voyager XII restorer...from the practice on the bikes I've owned. Tommorrow is our anniversary , 12 years since our honeymoon at the Red River Rally. Still riding and dealing with Voyager XII's and the mysteries that make these bikes addictive. At least I saved one from being parted out on Ebay.
More details to come with pictures.

Kevin Braddy
IPVMC President

[Kevin B in Illinois]

She seriously ran the wire harness / replaced the harness after I removed all the tupperware. NOT JOKING....she saved me from a stroke. Seems patience is something needed for this task.


Kevin Braddy
IPVMC
President

[SgtSlag]

My wife helps me drive -- and that is the reason we tour... I need a break every two hours, or so, and so does she. Having a wife who shares your passions, and your pleasures, is something to be thankful for. My wife laughs about our biking: "If someone had told me, before we got married, that I would be driving motorcycles, I would have laughed in their face!" She's had her endorsement for seven years, having taken the riding safety class a couple of months after we bought our first bike, a 1979 Honda CB750K. I mod'ed it for touring, and we took our first big tour as a trip around Lake Superior! She loves touring! I have the perfect wife -- for me. I am very thankful, every day... Especially on riding days. Cheers!

[Kevin B in Illinois]

I totally understand. My wife rides also and tells me I ride Old Men Bikes. She has always been a wheelie popping bike riding lady. One time when we were riding logging roads , I kept having her ride my BMW R1150GS Adventure and switching to her VStrom (thinking that I would be able to leave her on the trails. She continually left me and had to wait for me to catch up. There isn't a bike that she can't ride and when she first started riding, I realized that due to her 36 inch inseam she would be able to ride anything. (we have the same inseam and I'm 6ft 4) . She definitely can ride the twisty roads and is able to impress me each time we ride. One of these days I may surprise her with a new BMW S1000RR or a Ducati Multistrada that she has been eyeing.

She is a keeper.....and has always let me have multiple bikes....

Kevin Braddy
IPVMC
President