Testing the reed switch???

Hi everyone,
My self-canceling does not work. The signal control switch on the handlebar seems to be ok because it can return to the off/center by itself. I also replaced the flasher cube unit thing under the tank because mine got a broken wire. Last, I check the famous reed switch by following bigfitz's instruction... As far as I can see, the switch and the soldering look solidly attached to the case so what next? I check for the continuity circuit with a voltmeter and saw an open (broken) circuit between the two terminals. Should it be a close circuit when not connected to the bike? What is the correct way to test for the reed switch's operation?
Thanks for your help!

 

One other piece you need to look at also is the canceling unit itself. You can locate it attached to the backbone just ahead of the rear tank mount.

Ghost

 

Thanks Ghost. I believe the black cube thing with 6 wire connectors attached under the tank was the the canceling unit that I changed.

 

To test the reedswitch: Put a meter across the leads, then pass a relatively weak magnet past it; you should see it "make" continuity, and go "open" soon after the magnet is removed.

I use a magnetized screwdriver, it doesn't take much and I have a feeling a real strong magnet might hurt it.

They have been known to fail.

 

Thanks bigfitz, you daman!

 

You can actually hear that reed switch opening and closing if you spin the speedo. That doesn't prove it works, but it CAN prove it doesn't, if it isn't clicking, that is. Also, another way of eliminating it as the problem is running a jumper wire across it, easiest is a wire with alligator clips at both ends. Then bypass the reed switch and open and close your jumper wire "switch" a bunch of times, see if they cancel.

In my extensive canceller experimentation, I found the canceller itself to be the problem. Mine worked *usually*, tried a bunch of things, (tested reed switch, cleaned switch gear at bars, cleaned up blinker housings and sockets, etc) finally changed canceller(junkyard part), that made it work *rarely*, went back to first canceller, now it works mostly, again. So not only do cancellers fail, they can fail gradually. At some point I'll try another, newer, canceller, but for now it's good enough.

Edit: I see signal lights mentioned in your sig. Another thing that can throw off canceling is non-standard bulbs in your signals. Make sure you have 1156 bulbs in all your blinkers. Anything different, especially LEDs, and they won't cancel, not without some kind of mod.