Forum

[Frank]

Papasmurf, if the starter motor won't work in neutral with neutral light on unless the clutch is pulled in then you have a faulty clutch micro switch.

[papasmurf]

Frank THE OWNERS MANUAL (Page 40) states pull the clutch in to use the electric starter. If you don't do that the starter will wind over but there will be no spark.
I found out the hard way, the bike WILL NOT start on the electric starter unless the clutch is pulled in.

[Norm]

Frank, here is another idea for future problems with these, remove the TCI feed from the existing wiring and feed it through a relay fed directly from the battery. That way you will feed max battery volts into the TCI. You could also use this relay to feed power directly to the coil. It removes all the power to these being fed through all the wires and possible dodgy connectors and switches and we all know how bad they were from new, and they don't get better with age and exposure to weather

[Frank]

Norm, that sounds spot on advice. Papasmurf, the advice in the handbook refers to best practice to reduce the physical load on the starter by preventing the starter from having to turn over half a gearbox as well as the engine. Unless there were wiring mods on later machines the clutch switch doesn't feature in the ignition circuit. It is there to prevent the starter operation if it is in gear with the clutch out. With the clutch out the starter relay gets it's earth from the neutral switch. If it is in gear then that earth will disappear and another one has to be sourced via the clutch switch when the lever is pulled. If it had any bearing on the spark it would make the kick start useless because if the clutch had to be pulled there would be no drive to turn the engine. The engine would also cut every time the clutch was let out.

[papasmurf]

Frank there NO spark when using the starter motor on an Electra X unless the clutch is pulled in full stop end of story.
You could sit there and flatten the battery it won't start because there is no spark unless the clutch is pulled in.
That is how the bike is wired (2006 model.)
(That is also how most bikes are wired these days, if you don't pull the clutch in no spark. It has caused me amusement at motorcycle rallies. When others have forgotten.)

[papasmurf]

Frank the clutch switch does not effect kick starting, as soon as you press the starter button it does.
That is how it is wired.

[Frank]

Well the wiring diagrams on p 85_88 of the manual seem to contradict that, and it is not what I've found to be the case.

[papasmurf]

Frank, well it is the case with my Electra, and as someone has asked for help with a disappearing spark, all he needs to do is bungee the clutch lever closed, put the bike on the centre stand, put the side-stand up, and see if there is a spark when the engine is turned over on the starter.
I have seen a lot of very expert people in tears or stamping on their hat when the cure turns out to be something simple. (Which I suspects applies to most of us here.)

[Norm]

Papa something is wrong with your bike if this is the case, no manufacturer in their right mind(and I include Enfield in this) would come up with such a dumb idea. Frank is correct in his description of how it is wired

[papasmurf]

Norm many bikes now sold in the UK will NOT start on the electric starter unless the clutch is pulled in, there is NOTHING unusual about it.
I have seen numerous people caught out by it.