Help! No power!

[stang07]

apparently, the other end doesn't exist. I have no idea why it's missing. It's ran great, for the last 3 years.

[J4Fun]

I see that rubber cover in the picture protecting connections the other connector could be in there. Hope I’m helping here…

[stang07]

Nope. I can't find it. I may just make a jumper from the connector to the Negative terminal on the battery?

[CheapThrills]

Do you have a volt meter? Check power at terminal with ignition off, and then with ignition on. Post the values.

[Thumper]

Originally Posted by CheapThrills

Do you have a volt meter? Check power at terminal with ignition off, and then with ignition on. Post the values.

What terminal?
Are you suggesting load on the battery (voltage across the pos/neg)?

No lights, no power seems more like fuse or disconnected fitting than low battery charge.

[stang07]

I remember another half to the connector. I have no idea where it went. It ran fine without it. The other end goes to the rectifier. My battery is at 13V. I put a charger on it, just in case. I checked the starter relay. It has 12+ volts in, but nothing out. Maybe that's the problem?

[Megadan]

Originally Posted by stang07

I remember another half to the connector. I have no idea where it went. It ran fine without it. The other end goes to the rectifier. My battery is at 13V. I put a charger on it, just in case. I checked the starter relay. It has 12+ volts in, but nothing out. Maybe that's the problem?

It's a relay. 12 volts in at which positive connection? There is the switched source from the starter button that sends power to the solenoid coil to activate it, and there is the main power from the battery that goes to the starter.

One will have 12V in and out with the ignition on and the starter button pressed. The main battery connection will always have 12V in, but will only put out 12V when the coil is energized with the ignition on and starter button pressed.

[zero_dgz]

FWIW, the ignition cylinder on my Orion is janky, and sometimes I need to fidget with they key in it to get it to close the connections if I've left it sit a while. I suspect it tends to oxidize internally, and one of these days I need to get around to blasting it free of crud and gooping the internals with dielectric grease or something. It's low on the list of priorities.

Anyhow, the key to solving electrical issues on these bikes (and all vehicles, really) is to get yourself a multimeter and make sure everything has continuity that's supposed to. Luckily, there's not a whole heck of a lot going on in these simple bikes, especially the carbureted models that don't have a computer. The entire frame of the bike should be a ground, connected to the negative terminal of the battery. Therefore, you can check everything that's supposed to be connected to ground by sticking one probe in whatever connector it is, and touching the other probe to any bare metal on the frame or anything mechanically connected to it, like a bolt head. You can also ensure your frame is indeed grounded to the battery correctly by doing the same test, but checking between any bolt in the frame and the negative battery terminal itself. I don't know about the Hawk, but every ground wire on my Bashan (very Hawk-like) and my Orion is green.

In order to determine if something "has power" you first have to determine if it's supposed to be live in the first place, i.e. have 12 volts going to it at that time, and check for voltage with your meter between the suspect live connection and ground/the frame/the negative terminal (they're all interchangeable, electrically speaking). If you're trying to check by inserting your meter between, e.g., the positive pin on the ignition cylinder socket and the ignition cylinder itself, you are likely to read zero volts because the circuit is not complete if the cylinder switch is in the off position. Instead, check by inserting your meter between that pin and any available ground.

Most vehicular circuits work by being connected directly to positive voltage all the time, or at least whenever the ignition cylinder switch is in the run position, and whatever switchgear controls it simply completes the circuit by connecting it to ground. This is certainly the case for your starter relay, but it will always read "no voltage out" any time it is not energized, i.e. you are not attempting to crank the engine at that exact moment, which is pretty much all the time. Megadan is correct about your starter relay, and if you suspect your starter and/or relay is borked you can either apply 12 volts to the relay's coil terminals via an external source and see if it clicks, *or* short its output lugs together with something metallic and stout that you don't particularly care about, which will bypass it entirely and should cause the starter motor to crank instantly. Sparks will be involved with that procedure. Make sure the bike's in neutral first...

The starter relay would have nothing to do with your lights not working either, though. I suspect you have either a bad ignition cylinder or its terminals are oxidized/gunked up, you are missing a critical ground connection in the handlebar area, or you have a break in the wiring harness.

You can check for a break in a wire in the harness by systematically verifying continuity between each pin/wire on both ends. The only fun part sometimes is figuring out where the other end is. Set your meter to resistance mode if it's a cheap one that does not have an audible beeper for continuity checking.

Be methodical. Panicking won't help and bouncing around all over the place guessing without actually eliminating all the variables is the one strategy guaranteed to only produce frustration and not results.

[stang07]

I may have found the problem!

https://ibb.co/CnpHK6Y

This connector goes to the switch.
That was it! Back in business!
Thanks for everyone's suggestions!

[Thumper]

Originally Posted by Thumper

Is the switch connected? May be loose. It is probably a 4 wire connector. One should have 12V all the time. And check your grounds... At battery and engine ground.

If you have 12v going into the ignition switch, check the switch and verify that it is closing the circuit (power getting to the CDI). You can use an ohmeter to check the switch.

OH!

The power at the connection was indeed EXACTLY where the problem was. FIRST question...("is the switch connected"), post #4 Oh yeah

This was not unexpected

[bigdano711]

It's always better to let someone else toot your horn.

[J4Fun]

Originally Posted by stang07

I may have found the problem!

https://ibb.co/CnpHK6Y

This connector goes to the switch.
That was it! Back in business!
Thanks for everyone's suggestions!

This post is the best because the OP was good enough to let us know the potential outcome!

[Thumper]

Originally Posted by bigdano711

It's always better to let someone else toot your horn.

This forum has been undermined with new members that post useless or misleading info, often with pages of vacuous garbage that sounds like it could be right. I try to remain humble. i know my limits.

We need to maintain a skeletal structure of real, reliable info. Hey, not always right, but I don't post responses outside of my wheelhouse.

Thank you for the thumbs up.

[bigdano711]

Originally Posted by Thumper

This forum has been undermined with new members that post useless or misleading info, often with pages of vacuous garbage that sounds like it could be right. I try to remain humble. i know my limits.

We need to maintain a skeletal structure of real, reliable info. Hey, not always right, but I don't post responses outside of my wheelhouse.

Thank you for the thumbs up.

Take up golf.

[Do©Hawk]

I'm one of those noobs. I'm trying to figure my shit out. Sometimes I just blurt out thoughts especially when the topic is relatable. I apologize for making things confusing.

I deleted my previous post.