Question-Vision Starting

[Wayne]

Anyone knowing electronics, would it help the cranking power of the Vision to install a disconnect toggle switch to the headlight to use when starting the Vision? I have just finished going through the wire harness cleaning and soldering, and the bike starts up immediately. I have not put the headlight in and I am not sure if this helps the cranking power or not. Thanks Wayne ???

[Superfly]

I noticed that my battery is at 12.5-12.7v in the off position, when I turn the power on, it drops to 11.7-12.0v.  I have thought about running a toggle at the headlamp for the "troublesome days" just as a added measure of protection.

[George R. Young]

It seems to me there's already a headlight interrupt in the starter switch.

I believe it's there primarily to protect the light from voltage surges when the starter motor connects and disconnects, but it also reduces the headlight load on the battery during starting.

[h2olawyer]

If your circuits are working perfectly, (remember HAL?)  your headlight should turn off when you press the starter button.  Mine has worked like that since new.  For a while, the start button would stick part way on & the headlight would remain off - I still check to make sure the button is fully back out before I take off.

H2O

[ProfessorRex]

A trick that I got from Venturers.org:
"Set the choke, put the bike in neutral and push the starter button and hold it there. Then turn the key to the "on" position. The bike will start immediately. Of course now you can let go of the starter button, and the lights will turn on. When my bike has a low charge, or it is very cold out, I sometimes start the Venture this way. .........Scott MacMartin"

I've tried it, but usually I just turn the key, then hold the start button in far enought to turn off the lights, let it sit for a sec, then push all the way.

[Extent]

Another thing (non electrical) for good starting is just to make sure that you don't touch the throttle.  Even cracking the throttle a little while trying to start it can be enough to bypass the cold start passageways.

[supervision]

the best way to start your bike is to use jumper cables from a running car.  I put the pos. cable on the starter post itself . for a place to hook the ground I put a pair of vise grips on a motor mount bolt. when I'm ready to crank the engine I clamp the neg. cable to the vise grip, the reason for using the vise grips is so the process of hooking the cable up will only spark on the vise grip, which causes no harm.  Turn on the motorcycle ignition make the connection of the neg. cable. The starter will run until you unhook the neg. cable.  The car can be running so you get full 14.5 volts, the starter motor loves the high voltage (less heat).  Remember you do not push the starter button when you do this.  I use this method every time when my bike has set for any length of time or starting in extrem cold.  Think how easy this is on your battery and charging system.

[louthepou]

Unless it's really cold there, a Vision with a good starter, healthy, fully charged battery, clean carb and good compression should normally start with the normal procedure. If that's not the case, this may be a symptom of one thing being not the way it should be.

Louis

[Lucky]

Super,
NEVER NEVER NEVER start your bike from a running car!!!!
although the voltages are the same, the car puts out higher amps even at idle.  You'll fry the R/R in a heatbeat!!  I've seen it happen over & over on this board...even did it myself.

if the car needs to be running to start the bike then there are other issues to be addressed on the bike.

--Lucky

[supervision]

  Lucky, using a outside source of current to simply turn the starter will not affect any part of the motorcycle.  When the car is running the higher voltage is an advantage for the motor.    Remember I am not saying to connect the car battery to motorcycle battery, I'm saying hook pos. jump straight to starter post  (no current will feed  back to the bike because the starter relay is not being used)  When the pos. side has been connected first, this makes for no arching on that post.  When you make the neg. connection there will be a small  sparking that's  why I say to clamp a pair of vise grips to a motor mount bolt first, to give you a place to hook the neg. cable that you won't mind getting a spark on.   Turn on the motorcycle key to  supply normal running current for the bike , hooking up the neg. cable just long enough to start the engine..  Sometime I even crank over the engine a few seconds before turning on the  ignition as a prime, preoil..  Dave

[ps2/bikevision]

i jumped my bike that way last year and fried the starter. i was out riding and my battery was junk and wouldnt hold a charge i tried to jump it with the car off and the battery was to low so i tried to jump the starter. i was just learning the bike and found that it doesent like to start when it is warm. i cranked it a couple times and then it wouldnt jump any more. i had to push start the bike to get it home and put my spare starter in and tore the other starter apart and found out that the brushes fused to the inside. it still works but has a dead spot in it now. if the one i am using now takes a crap ill have to have the old one rebuilt.