I Need Electrical Help for RC24

Hello, I am new to VFR's and motorcycles as a whole and I picked up a project 1986 RC24 because I though it would be fun (it isn't) and I am having trouble with electrical, it could be that it's having a hard time since it sat for a while but I have replaced the wiring harness, fuse, ignition (actually new), turn signals (only has rear + one front), spark unit ecu thingy, and dash from a f2. When i try to start it, the starter relay clicks/whines, for the most recent attempt the starter finally sounded like it's doing something + the fuel pump "pumped" a pump (now fuel just flows through) + the turn signal no longer flashes (it is on and when i go to indicate, the light goes out) and the brake light no longer lights up (only consistent dim). So, my question to everyone is: ideas on what could be wrong and where can I get actually new electrical + parts? also, should I disconnect the starter from the relay/solenoid and jump it to try to get it started?

Edit: to answer some of the questions:
- battery is about 6 months old, I recharge it every time it has died (twice now) back to around 12.5 volts
- engine is not stuck, I WAS able to turn it with a socket
- I do and HAVE studied the wiring diagram (I have a couple parts from mixing up the wiring)
- from what I understand, the VFR750f and 700f have interchangeable parts including electrical, the 700f2 has some differences with the main harness and controls
- main ground IS connected
- when I bought the bike, it was a mess of only red wires, no ignition (there was a red switch), and the spark unit was fried

Also, do not worry, I have taken a riding class and I do practice with a slower bike

 

How good is the battery? Your symptoms sound like just not enough battery current to do the job.

Does the engine turn over manually i.e. with a socket on the end of the crank or in gear turning the back wheel (with the spark plugs out)?

 

ok Mr. crazy !

a healthy battery shows a voltage of about 12.6 volts, and owning a simple multimeter is necessary for bike maintenance. its ok to use jumper cables from a car battery for temporary power.

you will need a vfr service manual (with a wiring diageam) and need to study it.

its doubtful that u needed to replace many of the things u did. there is a green wire ground up front that should be checked and bolted to frame, front right side. you must have a 12volt battery charger as well as the test meter to do bike work.

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good luck, bud. my theory is that a vfr700 is not a good bike for any inexperienced young beginner. good idea to ride a smaller bike for a year or two on the street, or get a training class, then step up to a 700 with some of the experience you need. others will have a different opinion, debated over the years.

dont ride crazy , kid, ya hear ?

 

1. Sounds like the starter clutch is defect (mechanical issue).
2. Many of the mentioned electrical issues could relate to changing the harness to something incompatible with the bike.
3. If you get it started many other age related issues may appear. Be prepared to spend a lot of money to get it professionally repaired.
4. or to dedicate a few years to the project and do it yourself while educating yourself to a classic bike repair man.
5. New spare parts for this bike are generally unobtainable unless normal wear parts.

My advise: get another bike.

 

Did you get brand-new factory OEM stock wiring harness from authorised dealer? If not, it's used and potentially has as many if not more breaks and problems than your original one. So it needs to have every single wire tested and measured end-to-end to verify nothing is broken and that each and every end-point connects to proper destination. Yes, every single wire and both ends tested and verified, post the numbers. For that effort, and fact that you got incompatible harness, best to put original harness back on. Then do testing on correct harness. Again, every single wire measured for continuity. The '86 has cam-sensor which no later bike has, so it cannot use any other bike's harness.

As mentioned, you need to get factory service manual used by dealer mechanics to repair this bike. Then follow troubleshooting flowchart procedure:

WidgetXYZ doesn't work
- measure input voltage on blk/wht wire
- if voltage > blah, measure purple wire
- if voltage < blah, measure green wire
- measure output voltage on zebra wire
- if output voltage > erp, go to section II
- if output voltage < merp, go to section XI
- measure resistance to ground of grn wire, ohms=???
- etc
- etc

Uses boolean logic and process of elimination to narrow down inspection areas to exact problem. Work on only ONE area at time, and fix it completely before moving onto next. Make list of ALL non-working things after restoring original harness and post it here. We can prioritise tasks and do upstream ones that may solve multiple issues. Such as dead battery causing multiple electrical and starting issues. For example, do this right away before anything else:

1. measure battery power with everything OFF, volts=???
2. measure battery power during cranking, volts=???

You cannot let battery drain and charge it, this up/down cycle destroys it! Best to use smart multi-stage charger that maintains battery around 95-97% fulltime for maximum battery power and lifespan. This is good unit, keep it on battery 24/7 until you get bike running. https://no.co/genius2

Here's link to wiring diagram: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1H2nHHfyeN3ms4Yy1Ql-SSpbNeLz3PnRU/view?usp=sharing
Print 15-20 copies out on larger 11x17" sheets. We're gonna trace individual circuits with highlight markers starting from source (battery) to end-components such as winker-bulbs or ignition coils. Tracing wires helps you understand how circuit works, goes into brain differently than just staring at it and getting confused. You CANNOT fix any electricals until you understand exactly how each circuit works. Once you understand how circuit works, it's easy to trace actual wiring on bike with same hands that did highlighting on paper and anything different or wrong will immediately jump out at you... aHAH!!!

You're not alone, we've ALL been where you are now many moons ago. We're giving you summary of our experiences and how you can fix this with the least amount of effort and time. But there's lots of background skills you need to learn.