I encountered a weird problem yesterday: my bike wouldn't pedal start after a long ride (30 or more miles). After 20 minutes of trying to start her, I inadvertently hit the kill switch and this did the trick - the motor turned finally. The thing is I have to keep that button pressed or the motor cuts out. There is clearly a short somewhere, but how do I find and fix it?
Bike only starts and runs if kill switch is pressed.
- Thread starter ccr1der
- Start date
easiest thing to do is disconnect the kill switch. to kill it you need to stop and the let the clutch out, or use the choke to kill it.
it's a common problem for the stock kill switch to fail.
it's a common problem for the stock kill switch to fail.
The short is in the switch and I don't know where you would find a replacement.
You would have to replace the whole throttle.
Sick Bike Parts has a couple of nice stand alone kill switches or do like Baird says and live without it.
Checking for spark at the plug is one of the first things to check if your motor won't start.
You would have to replace the whole throttle.
Sick Bike Parts has a couple of nice stand alone kill switches or do like Baird says and live without it.
Checking for spark at the plug is one of the first things to check if your motor won't start.
First I'd like to know how you have your ignition circuit wired. We're assuming you have a Chinese 2 stroke engine. It always helps to tell us some basic information.
If you have the black to the black wire and the blue to blue and the kill switch wires, color doesn't matter spliced into the blue and black and the white wire, if you have one, is insulated away from any metal contact, then we can start there.
This problem has come up in the past and it was eventually traced to a defective magneto coil. If I recall the blue wire was the culprit and it was broken somewhere in the coil windings.
Replace the magneto coil, wire it as described above and you'll be good to go.
I'm a firm believer in having and using a kill switch. They aren't just a convenient way to shut down the engine but a safety device in the event you have a carburetor or throttle cable malfunction. They also need to be located where they are easily reached without taking your hands off the bars.
Tom
If you have the black to the black wire and the blue to blue and the kill switch wires, color doesn't matter spliced into the blue and black and the white wire, if you have one, is insulated away from any metal contact, then we can start there.
This problem has come up in the past and it was eventually traced to a defective magneto coil. If I recall the blue wire was the culprit and it was broken somewhere in the coil windings.
Replace the magneto coil, wire it as described above and you'll be good to go.
I'm a firm believer in having and using a kill switch. They aren't just a convenient way to shut down the engine but a safety device in the event you have a carburetor or throttle cable malfunction. They also need to be located where they are easily reached without taking your hands off the bars.
Tom
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Thanks for the quick replies folks! I'm waiting on a new throttle assembly and will just disconnect the kill switch in the mean time.
Sounds like you kill switch turned into a dead-man switch.. not a bad idea, but somewhat impractical.
I don't know about other kits but the kill button on Skyhawks is held to the throttle body by a little screw and comes out.
I haven't seen a way to buy just that but it gives you other options if that is problem.
I too am a firm believer in a thumb kill button and a throttle with a crisp snap back for that matter, wrecking and having the bike fall on you still running especially when the drive chain is playing Texas Chainsaw Massacre on your calf until you push the kill button tends to do that and a lesson best avoided to learn the hard way without a kill button.
