starter--battery ??

[noeld]

I bought a 89 fxr last year & it has always had a cranking problem but has always started till a couple days ago
it has new buttons & work well
when I hit the starter button can fell & hear the starter gear engaging some times the motor will turn over sometimes not or hardly at all but after a few times would turn over good & start
the other day when it would not start I charged the battery but still would not turn over good enough to start
I jumped it with the car & it started rite up so turned it off then went back out later to ride & when I hit it it did that engaging but no crank hit it again & started rite up still hooked up to car battery so anybody got any advice besides new battery
thx noel

 

[Slo-Ryd]

Simple advice NEW Battery. A Harley battery is usually only good for 4-5 years max and in many cases less. Make sure the battery cables are clean & tight on both ends and I'm confident your starting woes will be a thing of the past.

You'll also get advice to load test the battery, but I will bet dollars to donuts that the battery has seen it's service lifespan :s

 

[Jack Klarich]

Simple advice NEW Battery. A Harley battery is usually only good for 4-5 years max and in many cases less. Make sure the battery cables are clean & tight on both ends and I'm confident your starting woes will be a thing of the past.

You'll also get advice to load test the battery, but I will bet dollars to donuts that the battery has seen it's service lifespan :s

Al has u covered here, cheap insurance on new battery, make sure to fully charge it before you ride

 

[Jennmarr]

One more thing to look at if the problem persists after you verify/replace the battery is the starter solenoid. The setup from those years is susceptible to damage from a low voltage condition. Additionally, the age of the part can contribute to the issue.
When the solenoid is energized it drives a copper washer against a set of contacts. Sometimes they don't make solid contact and arcing occurs. Over time the arcing erodes the contact faces and promotes corrosion. Once this starts to happen the cycle continues to feed itself. The worse shape the contacts are in the more often it arcs and the more it arcs the worse the contacts become.
Some of the solenoids used can be disassembled and the contact points cleaned, but if it has had very much arcing, it's best just to replace the solenoid.
Good luck.