Hitchcocks Forum

I got stuck by the roadside today when the electrics of my Sixty5 went dead! The fuze was ok, then I checked the earth connection behind the battery box (a wire had broken there once before) and that was ok, and the rest of the visible wiring also looked intact. So I then ran a by-pass lead direct from the positive battery terminal to the positive terminal on the ignition coil - and lo and behold - it started first kick and got me home! I remembered reading about this tip once before, so when I first had the bike and was assembling "handy things" to put in the toolbox, I included a short length of electrical lead that had small crocodile clips at each end, just in case I ever needed to do it. So it's well worth having a bit of cable on board! With this by-pass in place, all the lights, the indicators, horn, etc, worked normally again, but the AMMETER was not registering. (It was converted to kickstart-only two years ago).

Now I have to fix it properly, so I would welcome any suggestions from the brotherhood as to a possible cause of the problem (I'm not very electrically minded). I'm hoping to find a loose lead or suchlike in the casquette - maybe at the ignition switch or the ammeter? From what I have described, is there something else that could be a prime suspect? (I won't be able to look at the bike further until next weekend). Thanks!

Hi matey--------- I had a similar thing on my 65 a few years back-----did the same thing with the jumper wire-----had the same result. When I got home, did all the standard checks etc and only THEN did I notice that the red ignition cut-out button was in the "off" position !!!! My super-long 1950's style gauntlet had nudged it whilst swiping a bee from my goggles. This was the very first bike I had owned with this device and I had promptly forgot about it. Looking at the wiring diagramme you will see that all the electrics pass through the ammeter. Being careful not to short things out make sure that both the clamp nuts on the ammeter are free from corrosion and are tight. PS Recommend you change your fuse to the "mini-blade" type. More robust than the glass type and readily available at most garage shops, halfords etc.}--------------------- HITCHCOCKS, FUSE HOLDER (MINI BLADE FUSES)


PART No. DESCRIPTION PRICE
92249 FUSE HOLDER FOR MINI BLADE £2.00 ----------------------------- Be seeing you-

Thanks for responding Alan. I had time for further inspection today so whipped the headlight off for a peep inside - all seemed ok in there. Then I noticed after my fiddling, that the electrics were working again (including the ammeter). Then when I moved the steering it went off again! So I gave the wiring harness a bit of a squeeze where it runs tight against the steering head and it came on again. So likely there's a broken or chaffed wire inside the loom at that point (maybe a wire to the ammeter?). Although there's nothing exposed against the frame. I have to use full lock to get the bike into my shed every time, so the loom is probably quite stressed at that point. I'm having the engine out next week for some upgrades, so I'll open the loom then and have a look.

Barry N - YARK! I had this exact same problem a while ago on my Classic 500 - when I put the handlebars on full lock, power off - when I returned them again, either power on or (more likely) a blown fuse. Testing didn't reveal any obvious faults. I ended up just having to look at every bit of wiring and repair the insulation on any dodgy-looking bits. Never did find a definitive solution to the problem, but it went away...I have to say I did some re-routing too to ease the apparent strain on the loom where it went into the casquette, but no idea if this made any difference. Patience is recommended. Cheers TimG

Hi guys ---------- as I said to 'er indoors only the other day--"It's surprising what a good old rummage around in dark, stressed-out places can reveal". Which is why I'm using the workshop now as a bed-sit and computer room !! I'm guessing it was on the R/H lock this happens ?? It's just that the loom runs up the L/H side at the steering head and so would tend to be pulled when on R/H lock. Anyone know how to open a tea bag ??