Electrical Help!

[Mleece]

So my Honda cb650 pops the 30 amp fuse on the starter solenoid every time I hook the battery up regardless of if the bike is even on or not! I just replaced the solenoid so I dont think is is that and I just replaced the battery a few months ago.
Any Ideas would be very appreciated!

[davesee]

look over the positive battery cable and make sure it isn't frayed and contacting the frame anywhere. after that, trace the wires from there and look for any breaks where wires or the wiring harness come into contact with each other or the frame. if it's in the harness, you have your work cut out for you...but since it's happening when the ignition is off, i feel like it'll be early in the circuit.

good luck.

[Mleece]

Thanks! Will do.

[Volker_P]

Welcome here!
Yes, check out the cable from battery to ignition switch and the switch itself.
Be alarmed if you find that someone tried to install an (unfused) electrical socket in this power line.
Also have a look inside your headlight. Many plugs are located there, so it is the right place to get an impression of the status of your harness.

[Mleece]

Interesting! So the starter switch never worked in the first place so Im thinking that might be the problem. Any ideas on that? Thanks for the welcome by the way! I kept trying to take my bike into a mechanic but nobody would even take it because its so old!

[cb650]

Yes most assholes think is all old junk. But it is my old junk!!!!!!! And I love it.

[Volker_P]

Time to track the starter button cable to a possible short to ground.
There is a wiring diagram in the manual linked below.

It is a good idea to install a 12V bulb instead of the failed main fuse.
It should be off as long as ignition and parking lights are off but from your description it seems as it would be on now.
So check out what you have to do to get it off, look for flickering when you turn handlebars, move cables and so on.

[Mleece]

You guys are life savers!!! I get back to Boston tomorrow and can start work on my baby. Thanks a million and by tomorrow night ill tell you if it worked!

[Mleece]

So I checked everything and what I have found might suck a lot. Whenever I connect the cable coming from the alternator to the main bundle the 30 amp fuse above the starter solenoid pops! Do I need a new one??

[Volker_P]

Check out the cables in the alternator plug for connection to ground (black, white, three yellow).
None of them should have ground connection!
If all right, check the regulator.

[Mleece]

So the cables are all fine, what is a regulator? (sorry for knowing nothing about bikes!)

[onepieceatatime]

So the cables are all fine, what is a regulator? (sorry for knowing nothing about bikes!)

There is a drawing of it on this page.

It is one unit with the rectifier.
The "alternator" creates 3 phase AC voltage. The rectifier part turns that AC voltade into DC voltage. The regulator part then adjusts, or regulates, the level of that DC voltage to keep from over charging and boiling or exploding the battery.

[Volker_P]

The regulator is the black part with the small cooling fins you plug in the plug from the alternator. There is a second plug to the bike electrical system.
Please have a look in the manual linked below, also a look into the wiring diagram there may be helpful.

The CB650 regulator also contains a rectifier.
As written, the alternator produces 3-phase AC voltage that is rectified by the Regulator-Rectifier (often abbreviated as "RR").
For our bike, the regulation is done by the alternator rotor current. It is provided by the RR by the black and white wires and the brushes to the alternator rotor.

[Mleece]

Interesting, so how does a person check a regulator? Should I just replace it?

[Volker_P]

Not a simple multimeter reading but feasible. On page 16-8 of the manual linked below there is a description of a load/performance test for the RR.