Kiwi_Roy

That's great, Guzzi created another electrician Can you identify the wire on the schematic. I'm curious why we got those symptoms. What Year is your bike? Does it have an electric petcock or is that fuse left empty?

You mean under a gearbox bolt not bolted to the seat release lock, I ask because that's how I found mine under a wimpy screw.

Why don't you have the battery terminals greased? Scrape them clean and apply some Vaseline, Try the direct wire to the regulator as I spelled out see how it regulates like that. The headlight circuit has about 1/2 Volt drop, even more with larger headlight bulbs, the load can upset the delicate balance. It would be better if the regulator had its own dedicated relay to switch the black wire Measure the battery to black wire Voltage and get back.

The black wire and the regulator case are key When the black wire is less than 13.8 relative to the regulator case it turns charging On When the black wire is above 13.8 relative to the regulator case it turns charging off The black wire is about half a Volt less than the battery so the battery ends up at about 14.6 Volts So you see the regulator doesn't set the battery Voltage directly, only by association. Try this Take a length of wire from the battery + and wrap it around the male pin of the black white pair. this bypasses the bike loom and relays, should make it regulate correctly. You can't leave it that way but it will test the components without the headlight relay in the mix. My 2001 is even worse, it has 2 relays in series so the regulator is even more flakey, I finally gave up and installed an after market direct connect type, no more problems. IMHO the Ducati Energia regulator is a good one, it's Luigis crazy wiring that's the problem.

Make sure your start and headlight relays are in good shape, if there is too much resistance in the contacts it will overcharge. Measure the Voltage at the regulators black wire, it should be just about 1/2 Volt less than the battery with the engine reving. Swap a couple of good relays into position 1 & 2 then re-check. As others say ground the regulator properly.

So Jim, what Guzzi is most like your helicopter. I know not to call it a chopper again LOL Sent from my shoe phone!

yeah, that, too. That's right, I hunted everywhere for a 1/2" deep socket then I found a readily available normal length 32mm 3/4" drive socket fits easily over the shaft. I ground a couple of flats for my 12" Crescent. I was worried that the socket might mar the shaft so I wrapped it with a few layers of masking tape If you wanted to use a torque wrench perhaps weld a 1/2" drive deep socket to the top of the 3/4" or extend it with a length of 3/4" pipe and a regular 1/2" drive.

Docc, It looks like you have taken the screws out of the fuse holder, that's not necessary just grab the fuse block wiggle and pull it will pop out of the grommets. I found that out after trying in vain to undo the screws, I got mad and wrenched it out, "so that's how you are supposed to do it"

The old pots have something in common with your Guzzi ignition switch, the grease goes hard and holds the slider off, any solvent will soften it again, heck I've even used gasoline in a pinch.

Those pressed steel crimpers are miserable to use, get a pair of Klein 1005 like most electricians have. https://www.amazon.ca/4-Inch-Crimping-Cutting-Insulated-Non-Terminals/dp/B0006M6Y5M/ref=sr_1_1/168-9876531-6889516?ie=UTF8&qid=1482785768&sr=8-1&keywords=klein+crimping+tool I see Scuds about #5 oops they moved to #3 on the page, they look good too, probably make a nicer job of the insulated crimps Klein tools are pretty hard to beat.

I'm not sure if the sensor can be serviced but a new one should last a while, lots of owners just disconnect it. If you look at the sketch I posted you will see the stand switch is connected across Relay 3 30 & 87 pins (Tp-b to TP-c) a temporary fix is to wrap a bare wire around relay the relay pins. If you plug an Ohmmeter into the relay socket with the key off the reading will sort of indicate the health of the switch, the reading should be

What Docc says, if the bike is in Neutral Relay 3 shorts across the stand switch When the stand switch eventually went on mine it stalled as soon as I put it in gear, it also showed up as the "Go WInkie" light flickering in an erratic fashion. I wrapped a strand of bare wire around 30 & 87 pins of relay 3 to short out the stand switch and kept on going. The same can be accomplished by poking a short wire into the relay socket 30 to 87 ---- 30 ---- 87 | | | 85, 87a, 86

Is the balance pipe up near the head or under the gearbox? Copper crush type? Can you take a picture?

Yes, the regulator doesn't set the battery Voltage directly, it sets the Voltage between its black wire and the regulator case, it only happens to control the battery Voltage by association, if the case is not grounded properly it can be pushed to below ground potential and so the battery goes down accordingly. Note: This applies only to the OEM or after market ones that sense the Voltage at the headlight circuit. What might be a really interesting experiment, remove the OEM Ducati Energia regulator from the chassis and just leave it connected to the battery by the black wire then with the bike running measure the Voltage between regulator case and chassis at different revs. Measure the battery Voltage as well then solidly ground the regulator and repeat the test. Dow Corning DC-4 is not as good as Vaseline, how could I threaten my camping buddy with a name like that LOL

No your setup will be fine as long as the main battery ground is intact (battery negative to chassis) Starter return current will normally go from the starter thru the chassis and back up to battery negative thru the main ground wire. But if the main ground is missing the return current will go direct to the regulator case or thru your new wire to the regulator case then the only way it can get back to the battery is through the original you think is No 16. It will be ok for a few seconds then melt it's insulation and melt into other live wires in the loom shorting them to chassis. Here's a picture, the black wire is to the left of the injector, all the insulation is gone off it and from the colour it's been red hot.

The Aluminium case is a better conductor, far better than a No 4 copper wire. I have been suggesting that a strip of Al sheet metal from the regulator to a timing case screw might be even better than a wire because it's the same metal all the way and it might look nicer but I haven't done it to mine as I have an after market regulator that doesn't need the case grounded I have a new extra headlight ground connected to one of the chassis bolts under the tank

Scud, I know of at least 3 VIIs that let the magic smoke out of the loom, the main ground connection back at the gearbox gets loose or perhaps it breaks connection at the battery terminal because of lead oxide. When you go to start the 160 odd Amps to the starter tries to find it's way back to battery Negative, the main grounds disconnected so it finds the regulator is connected to the battery and goes that way, the small black wire gets red hot and melts into the other wires in the loom. I have thought about disconnecting the small black wire and forcing the regulator return current through the chassis but I'm reluctant to do that for the following. Suppose the main ground is disconnected, the alternator Voltage 60+ gets to the ECU and other sensitive stuff and could cause an expensive mess, at least this alternative small wire lets the battery clamp the voltage to a safe level. When the bike is new chances are it's getting a good ground through accidental contact with the regulator bracket, when this goes rusty and it has to rely on the small black wire the Voltage drop caused by current flow lowers the battery Voltage. BTW when mine worked loose it still cranked but slowly, luckily I figured out what had happened before the smoke started. I found the main ground lug under the small screw holding the seat release lock, it worked loose with constant use of the release, it's now under one of the gearbox bolts where I can keep an eye on it. Guys probably think I'm rabbiting on when I say to use Vaseline on the battery terminals but it's stood me in good stead for 50+

You can test most items from under the seat, the start button can be tested in a roundabout way, this sketch shows where the wires terminate. Around 2002/2003 Guzzi changed the wiring to run the Start relay-30 through the ignition switch (worst idea ever IMHO)

Congratulations on the new bike, you do know its obligatory to post a picture don't you? What type of battery is it? The bike shouldn't normally have any parasitic current draw unless it has some accessories like a GPS or an after market Voltage regulator a standard VII of that era can sit all winter without needing a charge. Here's a couple of schematics to start with, your bike may be somewhere in between. http://www.thisoldtractor.com/guzzi007/schematics/1999_V11_sport.gif Note the bullet connectors (59), You can use your meter to test the start button at the clutch switch (17) http://www.thisoldtractor.com/guzzi007/schematics/2004_V11_Sport_Catalytic.gif Note the bullet connectors (60), You can use your meter to test the start button at the clutch switch (17) Starting problems are very common with these bikes but we need more information to get you on your way. Does the fuel pump run for 2 seconds when you turn the kill switch off and on again?

It's probably not the button, can you describe what happens when you push the button? How you answer gives us valuable clues as to the problem You have to pull in the clutch lever, the switch mounted on it is wired in series with the start button. When you turn the key on do you hear the pump run for about two seconds, that must happen before the start button is activated. The pump priming indicates the power is getting as far as the ECU. When you push start do you hear a faint click under the seat? (the start relay picking up) Will it crank when you wiggle the bars? (there are a couple of bullet connectors under the tank that work loose) We'll soon have you running if you keep the communication going.

Perhaps that joke needs explaining? When I was a kid the idea was to tie a string around your tooth, tie the other end to the door knob and slam the door.

A replaceable wear item? Just how often do you intend to fall off LOL

I think the clicker out of a Bic pen is about the right size. You used to be able to buy the microswitches at Radio Shack, they come with a lever and roller attached but that's easily rid of.

Hey, you had metric money long before most others. Sent from my shoe phone!

95% of the pictures are on the English pages Sent from my shoe phone!