That little 10 amp fuse from H E double hockey sticks!!!!

Ok, here is the readers digest of it all so far! I bought my 82 Yamaha XJ650 Maxim about 2 years ago. I test drove it when I bought it and it purred like a cat. I trailer it home and drive it right into my room....(dont ask, whole family was thinking the same thing trust me) I started it from time to time with my door open that goes straight out but only just to start it then I shut it right off.
I finally get the time to take it to license it. I get insurance for it go to the court house with title, they tell me it has to be inspected because it has out of state plates and title. Now comes the fun......I try in vain to get it started and it sputters and pops......the battery goes dead. I charge it and it wont stay running. I have a friend who knows bikes come over and he said I have rust in the tank. I take off my carbs, clean the living heck out of them as per YouTube video I looked up. I get some rust remover from AutoZone which worked great for $8.99. Get a new battery and now that little ignition fuse under the seat which says 10 amp but when I take it into Autozone up the street he said "Dang it says 10 amp but that metal thing is huge!" I put a new 10 amp in there and it fries each time.
Now my question, is there any particular place to look that XJ's are famous for rubbing wires bare or connection that will narrow it down a bit to look. I look at that wiring harness and I think "I will never find the problem!" lol...
Maybe something under my tank, cuz it was kinda hard pushing that tank back on????? I'm about ready to sell it for parts.....man! My wife says it definitely doesnt go with our carpet either.....Thanks for any info about this little 10 amp fuse.......listed or labeled ignition! hb2553

 

Does it blow the fuse when you turn it on, hit the starter, or after it tries to run for a little bit?

Try to put the leads on a different fuse, you might have a problem with the fuse block, that is the most recommended electrical upgrade for these bikes.

Either way you'll need a multimeter to test the TCI, coils, plug caps, plug wires, and the general condition of the wiring.

The only bulletproof way to test the TCI is a new, known good TCI though.

I'm not sure about the laws of Nebraska, but I'm pretty sure you were supposed to register it as soon as you bought it, and probably pay taxes on it too.

If you decide to part it out, I gots dibbs on the speedo!

 

Ign fuse hmm, From what you say you worked on the coil wires are under the gas tank and they are on the ign fuse, you may have snagged one when you installed the tank pull it off and look for white wire with red stripe . When pulling tank remove hold down bolt lift rear of tank slightly put your fingers in the large hole so you can pull on the tank and work it side to side use your other hand on the front of the tank to apply rearward pressure. When you install the tank put some lube on the rubber mounts it will slide right on.

 

Thanks for the replies. The fuse blows when I turn the bike on and hit the starter button. It doesnt make a sound or even try to start...Its like the button isnt doing anything. But I did replace the fuse several times and I can see it blow as soon as I turn the key on. And it gets hotter than a pistol too. I just now got home and put another fuse in and one side of the metal clips that hold that fuse on broke off just now, like it had been broken.....another words it just slowly fell off to one side. When I have it turned on I tryed the horn and it works, the blinkers work but I did notice that when the amber light goes on with each signal the green light dims at the exact same time and it never did that before. I am assuming I pinched a wire or goofed up a wire taking off and putting on the tank. I did remove the tank like you have mentioned but didnt put any lube on those knobs when installing it and it went on hard. The battery is still fully charged and new.......hmmm! Oh and fill me in.....what is the TCI? Are you talking about the fuse box under the seat? The whole fuse block maybe......?

 

It definitely sounds like you have a bad wire somewhere. There is a wiring diagram somewhere around here, you need to find it and start going through the wires inch by inch to see where the short is.

Also...I'm pretty sure you mean the first statement that you quoted above...but please pay attention, you are saying two totally different things here. The great thing about the forum is that you can take as long as you like to make sure you statements are as clear as possible. If your questions are clear, your answers will be clear.

 

I'd look first at and near the starter solenoid. It sounds very much like your solenoid is shorted and that's what's blowing the fuse.

One thing you can try is replacing the fuse, turning on the key, and then jumpering the high current terminals of the solenoid (with a screwdriver or something)... which should crank the starter. If everything else is OK, this should start the bike.

 

Yeah, check the starter solenoid, and check the battery. What you would look for is to see if there's any point at which a postive terminal or wire is touching the frame. ALSO, double check and make sure that you don't have the leads to the battery reversed. I have seen that in the past.

Neg. terminal lead goes to back case bolt on engine.Wire should have black casing on it

Pos. terminal goes to solenoid, then from solenoid to starter. Wires should have red casing, though I have seen some that have black and that can cause confusion if you don't realize what you're looking at.

Dave

 

Thanks for the friendly advise! Let me only say this.....I was at work while typing my last post and I am not suppose to be on the computer there soooo actually I didnt have the liberty to take as long as I would have liked....it was more of a rush to get back to work....lol. Also, although it appears that I did say two different things it was because the fuse blew twice when I only turned on the bike ignition and 3 times after I had turned on the bike without it blowing the fuse and THEN it blew only when I hit the starter button. I hope that is more clear now that I am on my home computer where I can take as long as I want to elaborate on my problem. I appreciate all the replies on my post. You've all helped me to narrow down what it might possibly be. :wink:

 

The biggest thing here i thnk you have to solve before you go any further... You HAVE to replace the old crusty fuse box with a NEW up to today's standards one. Blade type fuses would be the fav on this board.

If your clips just fell apart, it's time to replace the old original fuse holders.

THEN work out what may be a shorting issue with ignition.

 

The Factory Fuse Panel is a potential MAJOR Problem for every XJ-Bikes Member.
The Fuse Holding Clips lose their "Hold" ... and ... "Oxidize" to the point of failure.

Solution: Replace the Fuse Panel.

Alternator Brushes are very small and brittle. They wear down and cause Charging System problems.
Measure / Replace Brushes (10mm or less = Replace)

The IGNITION Fuse value is 20 Amps / Minimum (25 Amps OK)

Remove tank.
Find GROUND Wires for Coils
Clean Ground Terminal ends back to bare metal.
Sand Ground Terminal end Contact Points ON FRAME to Bare Metal.

::::::::Stock Fuse Panel Removed::::::::
::::::::ATM Type Fuse Panel Replacement::::::::

 

Thanks all, RickCoMatic where did you get the fuse box shown in the picture? That looks nice and clean. I was also chatting with a guy who has an 82 Yamaha XJ650 Maxim for sale on Ebay that had replaced his old fuse box with a circuit breaker box.. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayI ... MEWAX%3AIT
Well off to check out all the possibilities today.....including finding a blade style fuse box.....now that my ignition fuse holder is toast its gotta be the first thing that gets the boot. Thanks again all......when and if I locate the problem I will post......

 

see what i mean? If the fuse blows without touching the starter button then all that advice about the starter is leading you nowhere.

The fuse box, and any number of assorted items and information can be found at the XJ4Ever post, which is here.

Just click on XJ MAXIM, SECA, AND TURBO PARTS CATALOG....either first to get right to it, or last to read all the other wonderful information about the bikes.

If you're going to have something shipped anyway, it might as well be a manual, which you can also find at the above link.

To order, just email Len at info@xj4ever.com.

 

IMO, a bad fuse box (and pretty much all of the stock ones are bad) will lead to a lot of problems, but blowing fuses is not one of them.

The symptoms posted by the OP sound a bit erratic... sometimes fuse blows just when the key is turned on, sometimes when the starter button is pressed...

The only loads that exists on the ignition fuse circuit when the key is turned on are the TCI/coils and the oil level lamp. Neither of these change when the starter button is pushed. I don't see a single explanation for the two observed behaviors. I would first want to know whether those two symptoms are really correct and that nothing else was being moved around in cases where the fuse didn't blow until the starter button was pushed.

I would also take a meter and check for shorts at the TCI, coils, starter solenoid and oil level lamp... but that would be a bit of shotgunning without a single, more consistent, symptom.

 

Ok, so I went to every auto parts store and had no luck finding a small blade type fuse box. I found one on ebay with 4 way blade fuse terminals. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayI ... MEWNX%3AIT I did sit out there messing with it again. I jerry rigged the ignition switch fuse so it made a complete circuit and turned the key on again......I held my hand on the wire that leads to the ignition switch fuse and hit the starter button which nothing happened, but the wire started getting hotter the longer I puched in the starter button. I know day7a1 is thinking this guy is a Noob for sure but was just making sure it was the ignition. All the other things work fine, the signals, the horn, the head light comes on but the ignition wire gets so hot you cant keep your finger on it. Then I did like SQLGuy had suggested.. I found the solenoid and held a pair of rubber handled pliers and touch the two terminals and the hit started to crank over just like if I had no problems at all. But it didnt start! Oh and I already have a Owners manual for the bike too! It's all chinese to me though.....Now I'm thinking all the rust removal and taking the carbs off to clean the heck out of them might be just another problem.....Dang, this is very frustrating. One more thing I might add is that I did change out the handle bars to my Maxim and had to take all the switches, grips, etc etc off. Now just wondering how much a Cycle shop would charge me to just get it running again.....? Again, thanks for all the help I really appreciate your comments and suggestions.

 

Far, far more than it's worth...and you wouldn't get it running again anyway. Just read this post: http://xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic/t=32686.html

Actually, SQLGuy is much better at electronics than I am, so I have to defer to him, but have you gone through your wiring yet and looked for a bare wire touching ground, or a loose connection? Maybe unplug everything connected to it and methodically plug things in until you find it.

Just in case it's not the IGN wire (i'm sure its LABELED as such) which wire is it, 4th from the left (rightmost)?

You can order fuse boxes from xj4ever (banner at top).

 

Supposedly, some of the common lawn mower starter solenoids are a suitable substitute for the Yamaha one. I'd pull the solenoid, take it to Autozone or Home Depot or somesuch and see if they have a similar 12V unit you can swap in. Should only be a few $$ and easy to find.

 

Well I took off the gas tank again and looked through as much wire harness as I could with the heat out there. I did find a couple of things that might be the cause. I took a few pics and posted them on photobucket. I should have downsized them to put directly in here but I will just provide a link. The first pics are the bar or connection from my battery to the solenoid. The break is on the battery connection side. I was just cleaning the rust off both the positive and negative cables and this side or positive side just fell apart like it had already been cracked....
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s40/ ... cable1.jpg
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s40/ ... cable2.jpg
Here is a pic of my fuse box and the broken fuse bracket.
http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s40/ ... sebox1.jpg
Went to a couple of Motorcycle salvage yards today and even a Yamaha dealership and they told me "Good Luck With That". I will check in here for this part. The end that goes to the solenoid looks like brass or cooper and the other end looks like plain steel....Took it to Ace Hardware to see what they thought it was made of and they said looks like half brass and the other end is steel.....Wow! I asked a couple of autoparts stores if I could just put a regular thick wire cable between the two and they said as thick as that strap is probably not. Hopefully this is all I find on this journey.

 

One thing that caught my eye... You swaped out the handle bars... you VERY easilly could have shorted something within either left or right side control switch boxes... With 30 year old wiring, it doesn't take too much stress to break an old wire from it's connection.

You may find a short in there, best to check, it's not very hard to just pull the controls off and check for broken wire.

SQL is the man for electronics tho, heed his advice.

 

I did a little searching and found the following site with 4-6 & 8 fuse blocks for ATC fuses and also circuit breakers. I will be ordering one for my XJ very soon!
http://www.wiringproducts.com/contents/ ... 7AodVm54sg

 

Didn't read back through the first page....

I replaced that strap from the battery to the solenoid with a battery cable cut down and an end soldered on. Going on two years now and no issues. I bought a short lawn tractor one and an extra end.

Len @ xj4ever has the ATC fuse blocks as well.