hello all, i recently got back from europe and didn't ride my '92 GS for about 3 months.  luckily, i stored her well and after some hiccupes in the beginning, she started up and rode just fine.  i noticed that after a couple of days though, the bike would just not start.  i mean i would turn the key to on, but no lights, nothing.  i tried charging the battery again, but it was alreaqdy fully charged.  i changed the fuse and everything.  in the morning if i put the battery in the bike, it will start just fine, but by the end of the day, the bike won't start when i try.  i was thinking alternator was discharging battery, but the battery shows full charge.  what do i do? is there an easy way to check the electrical system on my bike without specialized equipment? please help! thanks!

facio

clean the connections on the battery
check the ground
check the (+) to the relay
check the (+) from relay to starter

it will probably be the battery connections

And you're not turning the key all the way to Park? Because, it sounds like something is draining the battery, or the battery is not holding a charge and is going bad.

Quote from: werase643clean the connections on the battery
check the ground
check the (+) to the relay
check the (+) from relay to starter

it will probably be the battery connections

Yeah, ask me about battery connections   tore apart half the friggin' bike over three days just to find in the end it was a positive terminal that I had 'checked,' apparently not quite close enough!   :x

thanks for the input guys.  the battery shows a full charge when i try and charge it, even after the key turned to "on" won't turn on any lights.  anyway, in the morning after i take the battery out and put it in again, it seems to work fine until the end of the day.  i noticed that the nuts that connect the leads to the battery are different.  one of them looks a bit calcified, while the other still has the chrome on it.  could one of these be the problem? what's the best way to check the connections? just visually? thanks guys!

facio

Quotethe nuts that connect the leads to the battery are different. one of them looks a bit calcified

"Calcified" is not good.  You need to scrub all the battery contacts (cable, nuts, bolts, and battery terminals) with a wire brush, until they are shiny.  Once you put it all together and it's running well, you can brush on some petroleum jelly (Vaseline, hair pomade, whatever) to keep it from happening again.

Some batteries show "full charged" when connected to an automatic
charger, but they do not hold charge.

I'd give advice to install the battery to the bike, and check its
behavior with a multimeter or even a 12V 5W lamp connected
through wires to the battery.

- Turn key on: should see the neutral light on, battery volts=12-13.8V. If voltage drops down (lower than 11.7 suspect battery).

- Push the starter button: electric motor should turn the engine. Voltage
drops to 8V, even 4 or 5V if battery is not fully charged.