Dealing with spark plugs

[Biga]

I think 10 V means you have a bed cell in the battery.

Mad

Resting fully charged 12 volt batteries are around 12.8-12.9 volts, and flat dead ones are at 12.0 volts, so 12.4 volts on a resting battery means it's about 50% charged.

A healthy 12 volt motorcycle battery should maintain a range from 9.5 - 10.5 volts under the load for a good 30 seconds straight. If the battery begins to hold and then steadily drops in voltage, there is a problem. If the voltage instantly drops to 0 volts, that is also a problem. We call this the open cell. On a new battery, this can be a result of manufacturing flaws, but it also may be caused by sulfate crystal buildup.

https://www.batterystuff.com/blog/how-to-tell-if-your-battery-is-bad.html

 

[afm199]

Good day. Here are my findings so far:

I recharged the battery and tested it with voltmeter - I got about 12.9V in a regular state with voltage dropping to 10V when starting up, which seems pretty good.

I swapped the spark plugs back to the old set and used one of the new ones for a spark test - it gave me a pretty consistent blue spark. Manual says to look for a fat spark, not sure if it was fat or not since I don't have anything to compare it to.

I can definitely smell gas when I'm cranking it, so it seems like EFI is working.

I installed a new air filter

If I see a blue spark on startup, is it safe to assume that coils are in good state?

Thank you!
Luka

Forget all that. Charge the battery and let it sit overnight, off the charger, after a full charge. Then take a battery reading, If you are not getting 12.6 volts or up, get another battery.

SV650 RR's are shit and they don't put out enough voltage. You have to understand that SV650s have bad charging systems from the git go. Anyone who has one for years usually replaces the RR. The damn thing puts out 13.4 volts or so, and slowly kills the battery. Slowly.

So when you try to start it, the diminshed battery just doesn't always do the job, plus it takes a lot of cranking power to turn over that twin.

My advice remains to test the RR out put, the stator output, and use a GOOD< NEW fresh battery. Otherwise you're just wasting your time. Forget that 10 volts, forget all that. Let the battery sit overnight from freshly charged, and if it's not holding 12.7 volts, use a new one to start it. If your battery only reaches 12.9 volts WHILE BEING CHARGED, it's dead. It should be in the 13-14 range while being charged.

 

[Tom G]

Not sure if it was mentioned, try jump starting from a car or another bike which you leave running.

 

[afm199]

Here's a photo of the preferred charging setup: A Mosfet RR from a later model 06 and up, CBR600RR. Find one for $30-40 on ebay. Cut your old three prong from the old regulator and wire it to the new Mosfet. Run two runs of #12 wire directly to the battery for charging. The other photo shows the battery run.

 

[afm199]

Sometimes I hate BARF, trying again. Three photos. One shows a CBR600RR mosfet regulator (what you need, bolts right up, minimal wiring). One shows the battery connection, and one shows 4000 rpm charging voltage.

 

[ST Guy]

Not sure if it was mentioned, try jump starting from a car or another bike which you leave running.

I hope you mean only the bike would be running. Still not a good idea.

OP: Definitely try jumpstarting using a car battery in known good condition. If still attached to the car, the engine should be OFF.

If you can't fire up your bike with a jump start, it ain't your bike battery.

 

[ST Guy]

Yes, when cranking over. The bike is not starting. It's not catching at all.

Even though the engine isn't starting or trying to start, does the battery/starter crank it over at the usual speed or does it seem slow?

 

[afm199]

Ahh, I missed that it is a 2005. However, the charging systems on them are problematic too. My suggestion remains to run a charging system test before doing anything else.

 

[Biga]

Even though the engine isn't starting or trying to start, does the battery/starter crank it over at the usual speed or does it seem slow?

How about a quick video?

 

[Lukich]

Mystery was solved over the weekend when I showed my bike to a guy who knows what he is doing. Long story short, my fuel sensor broke down and I ran out of fuel I guess hearing splashing in the tank when you rock it from side to side is not an indicator that you have enough fuel.

Thank you all for your help, I learned a lot!
Luka

 

[ST Guy]

You must feel like my father did many years ago. When my grandmother was given a new '62 Buick LaSabre by her son, we got her old '51 Studebaker. Not long after it joined our stable, my father diagnosed a bad fuel pump because it would run if he primed the carb, but it wouldn't continue running. Off to the local car parts shop for a new fuel pump. After installing it, he primed the carb, the engine fired right up and then died. After a few more attempts, he declared the new pump defective. Off to the parts store again.

He exchanged the pump for a second one. As you might guess, the results were the same. Off it came and he returned to the parts store for a third pump. On went the pump and again, the engine would fire when primed but wouldn't keep running. He then pulled the pump, looked at it and said "I'll fix it". Turned out he meant he'd disassemble the pump, put some shims in somewhere to increase capacity, and then reinstall it. Of course, the car still wouldn't run.

After observing this for awhile, and accompanying him on some of his trips to the parts store, the thought occurred to me to check the gas gauge. I reached in, turned the ignition on, and watched as the needle in the gauge remained motionless. "Dad", I said, "I think it's out of gas." What followed was much mumbling and since my father didn't swear in front of us, much silent swearing. He removed the pump yet again (to remove the shims he'd installed), reinstalled it and all was good. As a smart-alecky teenager, I had a good laugh about it.

 

[Biga]

Mystery was solved over the weekend when I showed my bike to a guy who knows what he is doing. Long story short, my fuel sensor broke down and I ran out of fuel I guess hearing splashing in the tank when you rock it from side to side is not an indicator that you have enough fuel.

Thank you all for your help, I learned a lot!
Luka

 

[Tom G]

I'm at fuel sensor #6 in my 1200gsa. Was recalled, all payed for by BMW. I learned to never trust a fuel gauge, I always reset the odometer after filling up. The worst thing I had to do was walking 2mi through a snowy meadow, go to a gas station and buy a portable container with 1 gallon of diesel. After priming the fuel injection I was able to drive to the gas station and fill up. The fuel gauge had still shown 1/4.

 

[Lukich]

I'm at fuel sensor #6 in my 1200gsa. Was recalled, all payed for by BMW. I learned to never trust a fuel gauge, I always reset the odometer after filling up. The worst thing I had to do was walking 2mi through a snowy meadow, go to a gas station and buy a portable container with 1 gallon of diesel. After priming the fuel injection I was able to drive to the gas station and fill up. The fuel gauge had still shown 1/4.

Oh, that's a great idea, I'm going to start doing that!

 

[ST Guy]

Oh, that's a great idea, I'm going to start doing that!

Start using the trip meter or use diesel?

Once upon a time, only the rarest of motorcycles had a fuel gauge. I always used my odometer. Then I got an ST1100 and the fuel gauge on it never let me down. I wonder how common fuel gauge failures on motorcycles are nowadays.

 

[sjuels]

My old Beemer has an 'idiot light' but no fuel gauge, but it gets 147 mi per tank (leaving another gallon as reserve), and my Multi gets 147 mi per tank, also leaving a gallon as spare, but the Ducati has both the 'idiot light' and a gas gauge, which in true Italian fashion is completely unreliable.
I don't rely on the fuel gauge, and find that miles and planning my rides -works out just fine.

In fact; I love the simple bikes more - not a purist, but matches my mentality.

/Soren

 

[SVJ]

I have to tell you that I'm laughing so hard I'm crying.

Not at you.

With you.

I did the same thing once... but I was the "knowledgeable" one at the time.

What do you call knowledge without experience? BS.

Good on you for 'fesing up!