[Matthew Harris]

I can kick the piston through its cycle, the indicator lights come on, turn signals work, but the needle on the ammeter doesn't budge.  Points look okay, they open and close and I put a new battery in.  Where do I go from here?  Thanks!

[Merrill]

check your engine shut off switch ie, kill switch.

[Jon]

This may sound stupid but you did check that you have fuel in the tank and that it is getting to the carb? Older bikes often had a pinhole vent in the filler cap,too much
polishing or dirt can block this and the bike will die.

If you have a kill switch make sure you didn't flick it off and forget.

Check that the plug sparks, if it doesn't check the cap and lead,then the coil,
then the condensor and the points.

Start with the simplest things be methodical. You have a fuel system and an
ignition system if they both check out it should start barring a mechanical disaster.

Don't feel you're being patronised because we've all done it.

[Matthew Harris]

Guys, thanks for the ideas.
Jon, I don't consider your reply patronizing at all.  I am new at all this, and I figure it is something simple but I'm checking everything except the right thing.
Happy Trails!
-Matthew

[Bankerdanny]

Jon is right, be systematic.

The first thing I would do is pull the plug. With the plug wire connected, hold it against the cylinder (hold it with insulated pliers). gently kick the bike over manually. If you see a spark the next move is to check for fuel flow. If you don't have spark then you know the problem is electrical, if you have a good spark, then the problem is fuel.

When you pull the plug, give it a sniff. if the fuel is flowing OK you will probably smell gas on it, that will help determine if fuel is flowing before you check for spark.

[mtrude]

Hello, The ammeter needle not moving is an important clue. The points may be moving but it dosnt sound like current is passing through. Check for a spark as the prevous post mentions. If the bike was running and just quit, and you say the lights work, ( battery fully charged?) I would look for a bad / loose  connection in the ignition part of the wiring harness. Have fun, mtrude

[bob bezin]

does the starter work? if it dosnt try kicking the bike over with the compression release on while pressing the starter .  thats the way i must start my bike ( if i want to use the electric starter) but my amp gauge does show a discharge, when i do this . when its warm the electric start works just fine .

[LotusSevenMan]

Not that inline 'bullet' connector behind the battery that goes to the points is it? Can easily fall apart with vibration and is a known 'weak' point. Done for production ease but I suggest if it is the problem (and even if it is not at this stage) cutting it out and fitting an in-line crimp to elliminate this annoying problem forever!!!
LSM

[IndyJAG]

There is a wire that runs from timing plate to the ignition coil.  This  wire is spliced, reconnected, just behind the airfilter.  This wire shorts all the time on my bike, so making a better connection (resplicing ) is key.  I suggest wiggling the wire, and kick your lever to see if your amnmeter will work.

[baird4444]

does the starter work? if it dosnt try kicking the bike over with the compression release on while pressing the starter .  thats the way i must start my bike ( if i want to use the electric starter) but my amp gauge does show a discharge, when i do this . when its warm the electric start works just fine .

BoB -   what year is your Bullet?  Your starter sounds like the starter cutoff switch. Does it buzz when you have the no start? If so, and your battery is good, have a look at the service bulletin below.
                       - Mike
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Problem
When the starter button is engaged a "buzzing" noise emanates from
the left hand toolbox and the starter does not engage. It mimics a
low battery or a bad starter solenoid. Sometimes the starter may work
fine and at other times it may buzz and not engage the starter.

Background
The problem usually lies with the "auto starter cut off switch" which
is the blue box found in the left hand tool, box. This unit has been
installed on all ES models until very recently. Its original purpose
was to sense when the engine was running and then "cut- out" the
starter. The problem is the unit drops enough voltage across itself
that it may not provide sufficient voltage to the solenoid, thus
causing it to buzz and not engage. The factory has determined that
since most other motor vehicles do not have this convenience feature,
the part is not necessary and causes more trouble than its worth.

Time Estimate
10 minutes

Procedure'
First make sure that the bike has a fully charged battery and that it
does not dip below 10.5 volts under load. A low battery will cause
the same symptoms. It is also possible that the solenoid itself is
bad, but it is more likely that the problem lies with the auto
starter-cutoff switch. If in doubt you can apply battery voltage to
the two leads which activate the solenoid, effectively eliminating
the auto starter cut off switch. If it works when jumpered the
problem lies with the auto starter cut off switch and not with the
solenoid.
1. Disconnect the auto starter cut off switch from the wiring
harness ( it is blue in color).
2. On the wiring harness side of the connector interconnect the
red wire with the white trace and the red wire with the blue trace.
Make sure that there is not danger of the new connection touching
ground and causing a short by using electrical tape to insulate the
connection and placing it out of harms way.

Disclaimer
This bulletin is not mandatory and was written by Kevin Mahoney of
Classic Motorworks. While the factory supplied the direction, the
writing is my own.

[bob bezin]

thanks baird  i have no buzzing but will try the disconnect

[El Rojo]

I had this same problem, except mine decided to quit while I was riding it!  After getting it home, I recharged the battery cleaned the points and plug and checked all of the wiring.  Everything looked okay and I managed to restart the bike.  I took it out for a short cruise and at higher rpm the bike started to sputter and misfire, time to turn around and try again.  I did notice that for some unknown reason, the ammeter sporadically does not deflect while cycling the piston.  I cleaned the points again with a file and contact cleaner and so far, no more problems.

[Matthew Harris]

Thanks for the tips and ideas.  Finally got a day off so I could work on the bike.  Turned out it was a short in that connector on the wire going to the points.  Bike is running best it has run since I bought it and actually got to go for a ride tonight!

again, THANK YOU to you all.

[jonapplegate]

You never did tell us about the bike.....color, style, ...year..ETC...

[Bankerdanny]

it's remakable how many of teh problems that people have with starting and running can be traced back to one of three things:

1. A bad battery
2. bad grounds (periodocally disconnect the battery ground where it attaches at the
    frame and clean the terminal)
3. Short circuits

one would have hoped that after 54 years the Indian's would have been able to eliminate the so-so electrics and the chronic weeping of oil at the head that many of us experience. I don't really need that authentic an experience to enjoy my bike.

[PhilJ]

They did Danny, you just have to buy an AVL.

[Bankerdanny]

Based on what I have read, that only seems to be partially true.

I upgraded to electronic ignition, which was a big improvement.

[PhilJ]

In addition to the ignition I was referring to weeping. My AVL doesn't. Not that some may not, I just haven't heard of them.

[Bankerdanny]

Ah, true.

I thought of that as I was typing. I was thinking more in terms of we iron barrel owners.

54 years of continuous production and they couldn't produce a reliably oil tight engine? That doesn't bode well for Jaguar now that they are owned by Tata. Will they go back to dripping oil/Prince of Darkness days?

[PhilJ]

Let's hope not!