Tech review of the Harley Davidson charging system. Here’s an easy way to make sure your battery is charging. Everyone is at your house and ready to ride. You saddle up and CLICK, your Harley-Davidson does not start. Bob and Mark review an easy way to check your battery and make sure it’s staying charged.
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More on Electrical Troubleshooting
Bob teaches you how to service the spark plugs on your Harley’s engine. Although you can clean and service your old spark plugs, Bob recommends just buying new ones because they are fairly inexpensive. You should purchase gapped, Harley-only spark plugs which usually come with a gap of 38-43,000th of an inch. After applying some anti-seize to the threads of the new plugs, you can thread them into the cylinder by hand and tighten them with a torque wrench and you’ll be good to go.
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Unless you have a kick-start, you’ll need a battery to get your Harley started and to keep it functional. Bob shares some tips on Harley battery replacement and upkeep.
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In this quick demonstration of the Harley Sportster battery removal, you’ll learn how to remove your bike’s seat and side cover so you can check on the condition of your battery and its operating components. It is strongly recommended that you remove the negative cable of the battery first and replace it last when servicing your bike. If you remove the positive cable first, you risk causing a dangerous spark if the battery comes in contact with your bike’s frame. Bob has been dealing with these batteries for years and removes the neg from the battery. If this is your first time, we highly suggest removing neg from ground stud on the crankcase boss(see images)with wobble extension.
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Bob and Mark put an older Sportster up on the lift to show you how to service the front and rear brake calipers. They teach you which parts to remove, clean and replace, and discuss the components of the single piston-style caliper assembly and how they work.
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I have a 02 Harley Buell Blast 500 and I hooked up battery backwards and my wires smoked up white. I quickly switched battery around and connected correctly and again all my wires went up in again in white smoke so I unhooked battery and put on trickle charge. Is my electrical system going to be okay.
Dear Brian,
Thank you for your patience. In response to your question-
Unfortunately, there is a possibility that this may cost more to repair than the bike is worth. Especially if you can not complete the repair yourself.
It depends on the extent of harness damage and whether or not your ECM was damaged.
You may not be able to determine if the ECM or any other electrical components are damaged until the harness is repaired or replaced.
Suggest replacing or repairing the damaged harness. Then, test for all electrical functions.
https://www.fixmyhog.com/video/simplifying-electricity-002170/
https://www.fixmyhog.com/product/overview-of-electrical-systems-part-1-download/
https://www.fixmyhog.com/video/welcome-to-fix-my-hog-electrical-002169/
https://www.fixmyhog.com/video/watts-law-002179/
Sincerely,
Mark
Fix My Hog