Motorcycle Repair: Honda 650 Nighthawk, fault finding guide, honda 650

Question
I bought a bike from a friend a few weeks ago.  He put a new battery in it just before, but only charged it for only a few hours.  It of course ran down, and I charged it fully overnight.  It lasted one week.  I push started it, but when I used the turn signal it died and would not start again.  Even pushing it.  Is there a way I can test to see if the charging system is working?

Thank you William

Answer
William, there are several versions of 650 Nighthawks, so am not sure which one you have; SOHC or DOHC.

Go here and print out the troubleshooting guide to help sort out your charging system questions.
http://www.electrosport.com/technical-resources/library/diagnosis/fault-finding-...


Before you begin, you MUST get a fully charged battery in the system. Early SOHC 650s had problems with the rotors, assuming that the brushes were in good shape, the stator connector wasn't fried and the reg-rectifier was okay.

Bill Silver