ducatipaso.org

delagem wrote:
What kind of total blackouts are you experiencing? Is the headlight getting dimmer, and dimmer, until finally the bike stops? Or is it a sudden "click" and everything is dead?
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If your blackout is just suddenly everything is off, it's not going to be the r/r. I'd start by looking at the keyswitch.

Michael/all-

Thanks. Complete/sudden black-outs. Bike is awaiting faa recertification on other issues (vac leak around carbs, other stuff) so test flights are always close to home. So, for instance, I'm at a red light a few blocks from home, as I turn right, she falls asleep...I casually roll into parking space, take out phone and pretend to text, try to look macho, wait a minute, and it'll start back up and I sweet-talk her home. What good is dating a hot 24year old Italian supermodel if she's always passing out and...never mind...

Here's the best I can tell you about my electrical condition (see pic links at top if interested):
* I'm told it has ignitech ignition and upgraded wiring - got something to work with - gives me hope
* When I got it it ran fabulously (very slow/even idle, power all through curve)
* The P.O only rode little trips and was, I think, relying on trickle-charged battery
* I discovered that daily rides still necessitated trickle charger at night - on one memorable ride, she slowly browned out and backfired and quit
* Battery that came with bike seemed fine - but she has new battery now.
* Battery terminal connections aren’t corroded and have been treated
* The rubber housing of the 30 amp fuse going from stator to battery + terminal was partially melted (with an intact but cooked 30-amp fuse)
* I haven’t yet replaced this fuse housing
* When running (in garage) volt meter consistently shows charging (~14.7 as I recall).
* Charging-related threads say that consistent charging means stator ok, so I'm hopeful that my stator/stator wiring is ok!
* I have serviced the keyswitch module - it was/is in great shape and has dielectric grease and feels perfect
* I have dissembled/cleaned/greased/reassembled every electrical block connection I can get my hands on.
* I have not yet serviced the off/on/off switch but am laboring with the (mis?)conception that this switch cannot take down the whole electrical grid in an instant

I am not afraid to put a new vr on it given that I'm going for bulletproof, and the old ones are known to turn to the dark side, and a new one (mosfet?) can better survive any existing or incipient underlying problems.

You all know this - I can't wait until I trust her enough to ride the big nice routes that are far from the nurturing bosom of my garage! It's my only bike for the foreseeable future and I'm not giving up.

Peace to all. Ride smart.

Well certainly start with that wire and fuse holder for the 30amp fuse. Sounds as if it is going open intermittently. If its melted, it has gotten hot. if it got hot, its because there was too much current for the wire, maybe because some of the strands are no longer there or there was bad crimping, or something else. But the long and short is that it won't cure itself, only get worse. Replace that wire and fuse holder with something MUCH Larger and solder the connections. It sounds as though your charging system works just fine, but the electricity from the battery is finding an intermittent open. Could be the positive side of the battery, or the ground side.

The ground side is just as important, and you would do well to put in a larger cable than stock. I ran two ground cables from my battery to ensure good connection. If the ground tab on the frame is rusty, you will get this kind of problem. A loose bolt will too. (where is the battery grounded on the Paso?) Start with a volt meter and see if there is any potential between the ground on the battery and any other supposed ground on the bike. if you get any voltage difference, you have found some of your problem. Also make sure you have a good ground to your ignition unit, and any relays that have been put in. If your P.O. put in an ignition relay, it could be failing for a host of reasons.

I would get a cheap voltmeter and connect it to the battery and tape it to your tank. Next time your bike blacks out, you can see if there is good voltage at your battery. If you still have good voltage at your battery when it blacks out, you have a bad connection somewhere.

Check the voltage potential from the battery to the other side of your questionable fuse. If there is any potential across that, that wire needs to be replaced.

Wiring problems are notoriously hard to pin down, but intermittent ones are the worse. I installed a voltmeter on my dash of my 98 ST2 to track its bad behavior. Came in handy. I knew it had blown a regulator before it completely died and had a chance to get somewhere before it stranded me again.

Happy hunting. Phil

Duplicate post, delete
Phil

My inline fuse had melted as well. I couldn't even get the holder apart because it was melted together. But, as soon as I removed the assembly it literally came aprt in my hands. I replaced it with one of the jumbo universal fuse holders and everything is much better. It doesn't get nearly as hot.