When I put the solenoid on last time, things got a little smokey. So I went back out tonight with my trusty service manual wiring diagram in hand and attempted to figure out what was going on. I knew that there was some hacked up wiring, but I wasn’t sure how bad it was, so I peeled back the electrical tape.
After tracing some wires around, I found that the solution was actually quite simple: The connector and the solenoid weren’t really matched up. I shaved off the mounting tab (I’ll throw a zip tie on there later) and reversed the direction of connection and there was no smoke or drama.
What I did get, though, was this:
It started right up and ran perfectly. I let it sit until the temp gauge got just in to the white, then I shut it down to test compression. Remember, the dealer/repair shop I bought it from advertised it on Craigslist as having low compression and told me that they were pricing it accordingly:
Now, I did screw up the first time on the first cylinder and forgot to keep the throttle open and got a 90psi reading, so maybe that’s what the shop did, but as far as I can tell, these are good numbers for this engine.
The source of the smoke was also pretty easy to find. When the bike sits, a little oil leaks — I think from the valve cover, but I’m not sure — and drips onto the exhaust. Once the bike burns all that off, the smoke pretty much goes away. So that should be easy enough to solve.
All in all, I’d consider that a pretty successful night in the garage.