more trouble....

so I went and got a new battery and it started right up It ran fine for a few weeks and then sat for a couple of days in the cold and then wouldnt start again so I went and got a charger and threw it on until it said it was charged. It took a while to turn over and after a very explosive back fire it started. I took it around the block a few times to warm it up then turned it off and now nothing, it wont start! Could this new battery be shot of could it be something more major???

 

Check your alternator brushes.
If they are beyond the service limit ... the battery won't get charged and you'll cook the Regulator and fry the Alternator Stator.

These XJ-Bikes aren't the one's that Yamaha sold with tiny nuclear reactors providing the juice. The control rods are Alternator Brushes and need to be replaced when below the limit.

Off the top of my head ... shorter than 10 - 11 mm > Replace!

 

I dont have a book, are they hard to find????

 

No ...
Remove the 3 screws holding-on the round cover to the left of the starter.
The brushes are mounted to the inside of the cover.

 

what do you think the back fire is coming from?

 

Most likely excess fuel that has spilled into the exhaust. Fuel goes to the cylinders but doesn't burn and subsequently gets pushed out on the exhaust stroke. Then a hot ember or hot gases ignites it. Very common event when trying to start a bike with low spark.

 

Check your starter brushes also, If you order them both you can save some on shipping. I got mine from www.bikebandit.com From the OEM section.

 

becareful of that back fire situation you could melt or start the bike on fire. just ask todubbad :twisted:

 

Do yourself a favour and charge the battery fully. Hook up the battery to the negative terminal, then put an amp meter in series between the battery and the positive terminal of the starter solenoid. If there is a current present, you have some sort of parasitic electrical draw that's draining your battery when it's off. Most any multimeter can be set to read between a few milliamps and 2 amps. Some will go as high as 10 amps, but a 10 amp draw on your bike should have something smoking when it's off. It doesn't take much of a drain to flatten a motorcycle battery. If there is a drain when the bike is off, you can try taking out one fuse at a time to see which circuit the draw is on and go from there to narrow it down. Could be a bad kill switch or something.