1990 VFR 750 Electrical

Installed new starter solenoid last year, problem with wires overheating...worked ok until today 9-17-2017 Wires to the new solenoid overheated and melted the plastic sheath. rectifier got hot too... bike was not driven for a month, (2016)battery connected to a trickle charger... disconnected the charger and started the bike with the seat off... no issues during startup and running ---smooth... There are 4 wires with connectors plugged into the starter solenoid-- the wire connected to the Rectifier got very hot, and so did the rectifier... shut down the bike cooled off the wires... turned the ignition key on grabbed that same wire, without the engine running, the wire got hot to the touch very quickly ... Obviously there is a short. but where? The charging system voltage checks out ok running at 13.77 to 14.00 volts... before I begin blindly replacing things---trial and error-- please help me make an informed decision...

 

You are unlikely to get a short along a wire unless the insulation is damaged, but very likely to get corrosion at the terminal contacts that increases resistance, and resistance cause heat. So start by checking all connectors for corrosion, clean and add a dielectric grease to prevent future oxidation.

The wire from the rectifier to the solenoid is your main feed for all the bike's power, from the solenoid one wire will go back to the fuse panel and from there gets split out to the various subsystems. I'd suggest you pull all the fuses out and check whether the hot wire problem disappears, then add one fuse at a time until you get your hot wire problem, to isolate the fault.

 

I cannot read that post in yellow on my screen

 

Change your colour scheme to VFR Dark, via your profile page, and preferences.

 

thanks for that could not remember how to change the screen colour

 

Thank you!