Motorcycle Repair: 1984 honda goldwing, safety switches, starter problem

Question
my goldwing will not start by the start switch   when you press the switch the lights dim but will not roll the engine   however  you can jump across the contacts on the relay  and it will fire right up  would the relay be bad?

Answer
Raymond.. couple of possibilities are:

Bad starter switch... long-standing problem with bikes in the late 1970s-80s. Internal contacts crumble so that the transition from headlight to starter functions fail.

Bad solenoid. Check for power going to the primary windings on the solenoid. If so, either the solenoid is bad or the grounding path through the wiring and some of the safety switches is interrupted.

Loose wiring connections/corroded wire connections and/or bad ground connections in the harness.

I don't specialize in GW models, but there are numerous websites dedicated to that series of machines.

Google: 1984 Goldwing starter problem.....

Bill Silver