Re: Backfiring and uneven idle
 

Well, today I tried checking the wires you mentioned, 5th_bike. I wasn't completely sure I was checking the right ones. Is this where the orange wire you mentioned was?
http://photos-h.ak.facebook.com/phot...16455_3658.jpg

I noticed the place the orange wire connects has no terminal inside (middle top on left). I wasn't sure where the ground end of the black/white wire is? Kind of new to this.

The first "green connector" I was referring to was here (on the right side):
http://photos-b.ak.facebook.com/phot...16457_4391.jpg

After putting everything back together the bike is running great. I don't know what I did? Maybe the first connector wasn't tight enough or something. It could be a fluke. It acted fine a few weeks ago after I cleaned out the gas tank then it went south, so that could be the case.

Re: Backfiring and uneven idle
 

You could have just had some slight corrosion on the connector pins and the actual act of reseating the cable cleaned the problem up.

Re: Backfiring and uneven idle
 

Talk about the long way round! I'll be very glad if that's it! If nothing else I'll have a clean carb, gas tank and new plug :).

Re: Backfiring and uneven idle
 

I am totally convinced that you had a bad connection somewhere in that kick-stand circuit. The most likely place is the switch itself but an associated connector could easily be the culprit. I hope so; that way you won't have to stand on your head to remove the switch. :)

Re: Backfiring and uneven idle
 

No, the connector I was talking about, between the relay and the side stand switch, only has two connector wires in it, according to the electric schedule. Maybe it is the green connector, but I'm not sure. However it is possible that the ground wire from the side stand also connects somewhere at the yellow one that you pulled apart (just speculating...)

I know what you did - you fixed your bike ! :tup:

Don't forget to tell your kid ! "Bike broke, daddy fix bike !"

So it was a bad contact issue after all. Easy was on the right track there. I hope it will work well from now on. If the irregular-running-when-in-gear ever comes back, you now know what contacts to unplug, and clean, or just jiggle a bit, in order for them to make a good contact again. I'm also glad that your sidestand relay survived the many 'on/off' switches it made during the irregular runs. Lastly, in 20/20 hindsight I should have written what I kind of wanted, but my posts were already long enough, and I didn't want to get any false hopes up: "Chances are your bike will run fine after you just undo the connectors and plug them back together again"...
PS Oh, I kind of did (quoting me): "Try loosening all contacts for the side stand wiring, and tightening them again, then try your bike."

End well all well, and happy and safe riding ! :rawk:

Re: Backfiring and uneven idle
 

I just rode back from work. I rode about 12 miles today (to and from work). The bike is running great! At first the horn didn't work, but after about 5 minutes it was working fine. Another contact issue, I guess. Thanks to the carb cleaning and everything else I did it is running much better than it did before. Feels like new!

Thanks so much for all your help everyone!

P.S., 5th_bike, I didn't do what you first suggested because I didn't know what "contacts" you were talking about. I kind of learned as I went. Now I know better. :)

Re: Backfiring and uneven idle
 

Well, months later, and the bike is doing it again :cry: . It's not as bad as it was originally, but I'm 99% certain it's still the side stand kill switch. Bike is fine in neutral, and sputtering in gear. Stalled out on me a few weeks back and had to be hauled home. Bike would start and run fine in neutral then die as soon as it was kicked into first, just like before.

I WD-40'd the connectors and all, and it improved slightly. I haven't found any instructions on bypassing, but at this point that seems like my only option. In our previous discussion I got a little lost with some terminology. But if you good folks can bear with me again I'd like to take another crack at this problem.

Re: Backfiring and uneven idle
 

Replace the sidestand switch, dont' try and bypass it. There is some kind of diode (?) in the switch that goes bad (?) and it won't run if bypassed.

Easy, do remember the details?? This has been :horse: Do a search for sidestand.

:2tup:

Re: Backfiring and uneven idle
 

I know, I know :). I did do a search and found sportpsyc's "Update on strange electrical problem" thread. He didn't even bypass it, it was just bad connections that apparently worked again when he put them back together, just like me. At this point I feel like I just want to get it fixed so I can confidently sell it to someone else. Electrical issues are too complex for me. Like when you say replace the switch, which actual physical part are you talking about? The button? The connector? The relay or the whole assembly? I'm really not trying to be a pain, I just don't know.

Re: Backfiring and uneven idle
 

:plus1: :plus1: :plus1:

Those are all the details you really need to know!! :tup:

Ron: GET A NEW SWITCH!
In the mean time, unplug and re-plug the connectors that go to the switch. If that fixes it AGAIN, then you need to inspect and clean those connectors
BUT
I really think at this point that it is the switch......or the connectors ON IT.

Did somebody say "Get a new switch" ?? :roll: