Light show...or not

Stephen_Spencer said:

I’ll let you guys know how I get on. Never dull owning this machine ! Wonder if we are ever going to be able to say ................................”Yeh mate, she’s really reliable, for a Norton!”...........

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I don't want to jinx anybody , but I have taken two long trips on my 961 and no problems . Milwaukee to Welland Ont. , and Milwaukee to Dragon's Tail .

Apart from early oil in air box issues. Mine hasn’t missed a beat and just clicked over 15,000km.

Great that you guys are having a trouble free ownership experience, I’m sure that quite a few are. It is difficult to make an accurate assessment of reliability across the entire ownership base as people will generally only seek out Access Norton, I guess, if they have a problem. My issues have been minor (Head temp sensor, oil in airbox, tacho, gear change link bar, irregular starting/tick over). Still lovin’ the Norton though!

Its not been trouble free .

Around 12000 miles on a late 2017 euro4 CR the most annoying issues were bad relays ('the harnesses come to us with the relays attached'), a troublesome starter where the brushes bound up in their holders and a final drive sprocket tab washer falling apart. You could say that the last one was the only one due to the engineering/design and the others due to the purchasing department (SG?)! BTW I have been running a set of iridium plugs for around 7000 miles and it seems to pull ok. The only long running niggle is that it doesn't like starting when cold (< 10C) but maybe like a horse it senses the same feeling from the rider! Still not sure why I don't get any idle problems - sorry all you who do; I'm not smug just grateful....

And still love any opportunity to ride it!

Clive the cold starting issues could be the plugs mate. That was always the first thing I noticed that was telling me the plugs weren’t happy...

Fast Eddie said:

Clive the cold starting issues could be the plugs mate. That was always the first thing I noticed that was telling me the plugs weren’t happy...

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Easy as pie to change out and give a try , gotta love that right ? Like the Harley , the plugs are right there staring you in the face .

Fast Eddie said:

Clive the cold starting issues could be the plugs mate. That was always the first thing I noticed that was telling me the plugs weren’t happy...

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Ok - will do. Tempted to try standard ones next. When my workshop is back above freezing I'm in the process of setting up my Lipo pack which provides power to the ECU and sensors at full voltage while the starter is cranking.

Oooh... sounds a bit posh...

And yes, based on the comments made earlier I’d try standard plugs too. Nowt to lose.

Clive said:

Ok - will do. Tempted to try standard ones next. When my workshop is back above freezing I'm in the process of setting up my Lipo pack which provides power to the ECU and sensors at full voltage while the starter is cranking.

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Can you tell us more about this Lipo pack ? Does it plug in some where else on the bike when you are starting ?

Uses low forward voltage diodes to take over when the Pb battery voltage drops. Charges back up during normal running.
Set me thinking the times when the bike fires when the cranking is slow and tickover/running is just terrible until It warms a bit then I restart everything, after which normal service is resumed....

Clive said:

Uses low forward voltage diodes to take over when the Pb battery voltage drops. Charges back up during normal running.
Set me thinking the times when the bike fires when the cranking is slow and tickover/running is just terrible until It warms a bit then I restart everything, after which normal service is resumed....

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So this stays on the bike all the time ? Does it attach to the battery terminals via charging cable ?

TonyA said:

So this stays on the bike all the time ? Does it attach to the battery terminals via charging cable ?

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Battery terminals. Just working out wiring but basically Pb batt just does cranking and whichever has higher voltage supplies ecu/sensors.

Other idea is a motorsport type power connector to a car battery when starting it in the garage.

Clive said:

Battery terminals. Just working out wiring but basically Pb batt just does cranking and whichever has higher voltage supplies ecu/sensors.

Other idea is a motorsport type power connector to a car battery when starting it in the garage.

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How about those Jump Packs ? They have a large connection plug you attach to the battery and then just plug it in when you need the cold start help ?

Went out to the garage today to start my Norton 961 with a Shorai Battery . Battery Tender set on Lithium (LiFeP04) mode . Disconnect tender , turn on key , toot horn , fuel pump primed , pushed the starter and just click-click-click ... no cranking over. Left the key on , headlamp on high beam (halogen bulb 60W) and tender disconnected . Came back 30 - 35 minutes later , push button starter spins motor starts . The temperature is 28 degrees F . Then , went to the Harley XR1200 (AGM battery) , key on , push button bike starts. Tired of the drama ? Get an AGM battery ....

35 min sounds a bit excessive with the lights on Tony!

IIRC Shoria say about a minute, ie easy to do whilst wheeling the bike out or donning here etc.

Its definitely something that people often overlook, Li battery’s need ‘warming up’ to release their cranking power.

Fast Eddie said:

35 min sounds a bit excessive with the lights on Tony!

IIRC Shoria say about a minute, ie easy to do whilst wheeling the bike out or donning here etc.

Its definitely something that people often overlook, Li battery’s need ‘warming up’ to release their cranking power.

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The Shorai FAQ says about 5 minutes at that temperature. I got distracted doing something else when I left the garage .

Made a big mistake today! Put a picture of my bike on the ‘picture of your 961‘ thread above, waxing lyrical about how beautiful a day it was for a ride. Clearly the ‘kiss of death’!!

Have’nt ridden for a few weeks (biblical rain) but bike has been on charge/maintenance and started ever weekend - it’s how I call my neighbour up for a beer! Started yesterday, first push of the button - battery at 13.2/13.3V, check oil/tyres, lube chain and good to go!

Started this morning at the third attempt (13.1v) C‘MON BEHAVE! It’s ride day FFS!!! First thing I noticed whilst riding was the voltage was’nt increasing at all (not charging) in fact it dropped slightly (normal increase would be 13.8-14.2v). By time we got to our meeting point voltage was down to 12.8v. Coffee waiting for lads and bike would’nt start - turning over but not holding. Ignition off, wait, on, wait, start (7th attempt) it started begrudgingly!

Got 5km into the ride and the voltage started to drop rapidly, 12.7, 12.4, 12.1 - decided to pull onto the highway and head home as there was obviously a problem that was likely to strand me. 2km along motorway and the voltage continued to drop rapidly. It reached 7.5v, gave me a warning of ’low voltage’ and the digital display cut out. 200m later the engine cut out, clutch in and coast to a halt.

I’m thinking total (Shorai lithium) battery failure? Rec/reg toast? Relay failed? Stator Altenator Generator given up the ghost? Pretty relaxed about this latest failure, with an ’I’ll make it reliable eventually“ mind-set. Just a bit pissed that I missed an awesome ride! Any advice from you techno-wizzards would be gratefully received. Steve




Meet Glen, he was awesome and bike friendly - especially kind to my carbon wheels

PS. Just turned the ignition on out of idle (pardon the pun) curiosity - battery has made a partial recovery to 9.5v - curious!! So what would draw current down so dramatically and simultaneously affect charging whilst running? Stator Alternator Generator? Yes, you’re right, I’m guessing!

Well Steve , You have a good procedure in the service manual. Get the or a battery charged fully again to start the bike. You can begin at either the rectifier/regulator or the alternator . Manual states to disconnect the alternator plug (3 prong) and start the bike. Check for ACV of minimum 34 V between 2 of the 3 pins at various rpms . Make sure to check all of the pins : 1 to 2 , 1 to 3 , 2 to 3 etc.. If this proves good move to the rectifier/regulator , follow the manual. We have sourced suitable regulator/rectifiers for low cost , the stator is a different matter. I have seen Electrix UK advertise the Norton rotor and stator for sale on their website before. Or give Coote's a call they had some last year. Check for bad connectors and wiring too by ohm check and visual . Try to enjoy it.

Stephen_Spencer said:

Pretty relaxed about this latest failure, with an ’I’ll make it reliable eventually“ mind-set.

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I admire your self control sir.