GL1500SE main fuse blow, twice this year. Why?

[TwoBye]

On my '99 GL1500SE trike (CSC) I have suffered from a blown main fuse link, 55 amp, two times this year. The only thing each occasion has in common is that just prior to riding I had to crank the engine for an extended period of time. The bike had set for several days if not weeks without being started. After cranking for a long time it finally started and I took off for a ride to a friends house about 15 miles away. Got maybe 5 miles up the road and the motor died while driving down the road at about 50 mph. Found the main fuse blown but had to be jumped because I have a lithium ion battery and when they die, the are completely dead. Jumped it, started fine and rode it back home with no problem. I can only assume at this point that when the bike finally started the first time was when the fuse got cooked. Bike ran off of battery power until it died. Sound logical to you? And why does the extended crank time blow the main fuse? Thank GOD I carry a spare main fuse. Ordered more when I got back home. Thanks for looking and any help is appreciated.

TwoBye

[3W-lonerider]

check the red plug connection on top of the start solenoid. that should be right beside or above that fuse. should be under a little red boot.

most times they are full of corrosion and cause alot of amp draw, excessive amp draw will blow that fuse.

if it isn't corroded then it may just have a loose connection, which will also cause excessive amp draw.

clean it and put allittle dialectric grease on it. keep in mind a little grease not gobbed in there. dielectric grease is only to keep moisture out.

[TwoBye]

check the red plug connection on top of the start solenoid. that should be right beside or above that fuse. should be under a little red boot.

most times they are full of corrosion and cause alot of amp draw, excessive amp draw will blow that fuse.

if it isn't corroded then it may just have a loose connection, which will also cause excessive amp draw.

clean it and put allittle dialectric grease on it. keep in mind a little grease not gobbed in there. dielectric grease is only to keep moisture out.

Thanks for the info. All good ideas and I will certainly follow-up on them. Ya know, sometimes it's the simple things that we tend to overlook, thanks for making sure I don't make that mistake. Will report back as to what, if anything, I find.

TwoBye

[TwoBye]

Thanks for the info. All good ideas and I will certainly follow-up on them. Ya know, sometimes it's the simple things that we tend to overlook, thanks for making sure I don't make that mistake. Will report back as to what, if anything, I find.

TwoBye

Well I checked and found nothing. No corrosion, no loose connections anywhere that I could find. Still looking around but one thing is for sure, I am starting my trike every day and letting it run until it can idle without choke. Temp gauge never moves but it seems to be better than before. It will start easily and I attribute that to the fact that the carbs don't get to drain off much. Let me know if you have any more thoughts.

[3W-lonerider]

Well I checked and found nothing. No corrosion, no loose connections anywhere that I could find. Still looking around but one thing is for sure, I am starting my trike every day and letting it run until it can idle without choke. Temp gauge never moves but it seems to be better than before. It will start easily and I attribute that to the fact that the carbs don't get to drain off much. Let me know if you have any more thoughts.

ok.. so 1 of 2 things are happening. either the gas in your carbs is evaporating or your battery is being slowly drained over a couple week period.

you said you had to crank it for an extended period of time. 1 thing wrong with that. starters aren't designed to be cranked no longer than 30 second bursts. anything longer than 30 seconds and your really heating that starter up. 2 things to try.

if you have a battery maintainer ( not a battery charger ) I use a c-tec battery maintainer. hook that to the battery for the period of time that it sits. after 2 weeks if it starts right up then we know there is a drain on the battery.

if its still hard to start then we know the gas is evaporating in the carbs.

not sure anything can be done about problem number 2 if that's what it is.

one thing to keep in mind about Honda bikes.

if the battery is low it will crank the engine over like it normally does, but what happens is it throws all the juice to the starter and has nothing left to give to the coils.

I know when my battery is down, because it will act like this. I can press the starter button and it will crank with no signs of wanting to fire. as soon as I let off the start button it will fire up.

if you have a volt meter you could put it on the battery and check voltage should be 12.6 to 13.5 for a fully charged battery. then check the voltage while cranking, that voltage should not drop below 11 volt.

if it is dropping below 11, like say 10 or 9 volt than you have a low battery.

if it were me I'd purchase a battery maintainer for when the bike sits.

a lot of people use battery tender brand. but I don't trust those, iv'e had to many battery tenders go haywire and ended up cooking my battery.

[TwoBye]

ok.. so 1 of 2 things are happening. either the gas in your carbs is evaporating or your battery is being slowly drained over a couple week period.

you said you had to crank it for an extended period of time. 1 thing wrong with that. starters aren't designed to be cranked no longer than 30 second bursts. anything longer than 30 seconds and your really heating that starter up. 2 things to try.

if you have a battery maintainer ( not a battery charger ) I use a c-tec battery maintainer. hook that to the battery for the period of time that it sits. after 2 weeks if it starts right up then we know there is a drain on the battery.

if its still hard to start then we know the gas is evaporating in the carbs. not sure anything can be done about problem number 2 if that's what it is. one thing to keep in mind about Honda bikes.

if the battery is low it will crank the engine over like it normally does, but what happens is it throws all the juice to the starter and has nothing left to give to the coils. I know when my battery is down, because it will act like this. I can press the starter button and it will crank with no signs of wanting to fire. as soon as I let off the start button it will fire up. if you have a volt meter you could put it on the battery and check voltage should be 12.6 to 13.5 for a fully charged battery. then check the voltage while cranking, that voltage should not drop below 11 volt. if it is dropping below 11, like say 10 or 9 volt than you have a low battery. if it were me I'd purchase a battery maintainer for when the bike sits.

a lot of people use battery tender brand. but I don't trust those, iv'e had to many battery tenders go haywire and ended up cooking my battery.

3W,

Great info! I have a Battery Tender (brand) Lithium-Ion battery in my trike. I also have the Battery Tender brand battery tender for the lithium-ion battery and it is plugged in all the time. My trike does in fact crank and won't even think about starting until I let off the start button and then it will fire. I never crank it for longer than 6-8 seconds at a time. The battery is about two years old. I don't think the tender brings it up to full charge as my voltmeter only shows about 12 volt when I start cranking and quickly drops to below 10 volts. But that is only my gauge reading and who knows how accurate they are. But it certainly sounds like you're on the right track. Thanks for taking the time to respond, I really appreciate it.

Thanks again,

[TwoBye]

Also, what is the considered opinion about the best battery I could buy for my GL1500SE trike? Regular, Gel filled, ... ?? Please let me know your thoughts.

[3W-lonerider]

Defiantly sounds to me that your battery is going bad. That battery dropping below 10 volt while cranking is definitely your starting issue. Below 10. Volt its throwing everything it has to the starter and doesn't have enough left to fire the coils. I prefer gel batteries myself. They normally last me 3years. I'm not a big fan of li-on batteries mainly because in my opinion they are designed like a deep cycle. They are designed to have the juice depleted then charged up again. They aren't designed to be charged with an alternator. Opinions may differ on this subject. But thats mine.

[3W-lonerider]

If that battery has lasted you 2 years. Maybe they have improved them to the point that they do work well with alternators now. But i see all these cell phones and toys burning up while charging. I'm just alittle leary of having one under my tush. Maybe they aren't the same material though.

[mhgoldwing]

I have the shorai lithium iron battery and have the special charger for it which I only use about twice a year just to be sure the battery is "balanced" and fully charged. I am not familiar with a lithium ion battery for the Wing but I would suspect it needs a special charger also. ?????

[TwoBye]

I have the shorai lithium iron battery and have the special charger for it which I only use about twice a year just to be sure the battery is "balanced" and fully charged. I am not familiar with a lithium ion battery for the Wing but I would suspect it needs a special charger also. ?????

Yes it does. Mine is a Battery Tender brand and, of course, they recommend the Battery Tender brand charger. I have a Gel battery in route to my home and a new Ctec battery maintainer. Hope this cures my Trike.

[3W-lonerider]

the new battery will take care of your issue. just make sure the battery is fully charged before use.

[CrystalPistol]

Odyssey PC 680 is what I use in both my '85 and my '97 .... last one in my '97 went 2004-2016.

Good pricing at https://www.4wheelparts.com/Electric...&t_pn=ODYPC680

[3W-lonerider]

so did the new battery fix your issue.

[TwoBye]

so did the new battery fix your issue.

Don't know yet, will replace it very soon. I have been rounding up supplies to hook up a 1000 amp Jump Box in my trunk in such a way as to use it myself when needed but also to remove and use it anywhere else its needed. This particular Jump Box can be charged up with a USB connection and I have that already done. Now that its ~cold~ here I'm choosing my time in the garage wisely.

[3W-lonerider]

Yep. Understand. I carry one of those jump boxes to. Compact and they work very nice. As far as the cold. Lets just say its so nice having a heated shed. Course I can't work on the bike in the winter time because i have the tractor and snow blower sitting in there to. One of these days it would be nice getting a bigger shed.

[TwoBye]

Yep. Understand. I carry one of those jump boxes to. Compact and they work very nice. As far as the cold. Lets just say its so nice having a heated shed. Course I can't work on the bike in the winter time because i have the tractor and snow blower sitting in there to. One of these days it would be nice getting a bigger shed.

I can relate. We moved about a year ago and I left behind a heated 16' x 24' workshop. Heated, air conditioned wood shop with ALL the whistles and bells. Had just enough room to open the double french doors and pull the trike inside. If I had some woodworking to do I simply pulled the trike outside. Pretty sweet but alas, a victim of retirement.

At least the trike and 2016 Escape both fit into the garage at the apartment.

[Gideon]

Don't know yet, will replace it very soon. I have been rounding up supplies to hook up a 1000 amp Jump Box in my trunk in such a way as to use it myself when needed but also to remove and use it anywhere else its needed. This particular Jump Box can be charged up with a USB connection and I have that already done. Now that its ~cold~ here I'm choosing my time in the garage wisely.

Brad,

I am drawing a blank. What did you mean when you said you were making a 1000 amp Jump Box. What is a jump Box?

[TwoBye]

A 'jump box' is a small electronic unit that can be used as a 'jumper cable' when your battery needs a little help. Mine is rated at 1000 amp. Mine can also be charged via USB connection so I have mounted it using velcro in my trunk and wired the USB cable to it and plugged it in. Next, I'm going to run some custom made battery cables out of the trunk and connect them to a junction block rated for DC voltage and high amperes. From the block to the battery with more custom made cables.

Reason for the junction block? Well it offers me a location under the seat for other devices to get their power from. All of my 'extra devices' have in-line fuses located closer to the power block yet accessible from the side of the trike without removing the seat. Their is a connection at the jump box that plugs in the cables going to the block connection that can be removed and I will have a set of jumper cables made up with the same connector on it so they can be plugged into the jump box in case another biker needs a little boost for his/her battery. The jump box can also charge cell phones and other items similar.

[Gideon]

I have never seen anything like what you are describing. Please post some photos when you finish the project.

I know some bikers/trikers have taken an extra battery with them on trips when they anticipated an alternator problem.

I also use a Battery Tender. It is plugged into my trike whenever I am not out enjoying the wind in my face. In case of a problem I carry a set of custom made jumper cables.

God bless,

Bob