My Build

well, I haven't sold it yet, and i'll keep on doing what I can until I do... IF I do. Completing this bike would be more of a pride thing than anything now. I'm going to slow it down, hoping that the reduction in speed will somehow find me more time/money to work on the bike


This is my idea of a battery charger... hehe

That would be a 17 volt 1 amp transformer hooked up to 14 diodes, good stuff.

 

Good on you for sticking at it... I'm sure you will get there

Nice battery charger :lol:

 

If my alternator and battery are dead, will the bike still start up if I bump start it? Since my starter is burned out, I've been trying to start this bike via bump start for a good couple days now.

still nobody biting on the ads on craigslist, I guess I'll have to just finish the bike somehow. I got spark, and I got fuel, but it's still not running, so Im guessing there is something to do with timing.

can somebody please explain how I would do this? My manual has one page of this section ripped and the other is greasy. When I read it, the whole thing about peeking through so and so hole to find the timing marks kind of confused me.

 

Won't start if both the battery and alternator are bad. Sorry. I would lend a hand if I was headed in your direction anytime soon. I can rebuild wiring harnesses for the cost of parts if you care to send it to me with a schematic of your bike. As for testing your bike, I would suggest (trust me, it is money well spent) you get a new copy of the manual you have. Nick or BlueMax might come through for you with one or two pages but it sounds like a few dollars invested will help in both the immediate and future efforts. I can't tell you anything useful I'm afraid, I don't speak 550. I'd like to rectify that in time (PBR, you are my experiment toward this end, hope we nail it).
I'll also chime in that you should keep pressing on the bike but you do need to listen to your folks. Your priority right now should be taking care of yourself and keeping up in school. Do not worry about what you can't fix right now, you will find ways to accomplish the tasks as time goes on. God willing I'll be able to swing by this spring and get you ironed out if your still stuck.
I hope you have gotten a hold of SF_550, he has some working knowledge on 550's and he is local to you. There are a few members in the bay area, you should look at our member list and contact them.
Best of luck to you buddy, don't worry, your not alone in this.