Sucks man....

If I were closer I would bring you some brews and join you in cursing at your bike... :dthumb:

Went ahead and ordered the starter solenoid relay for shits and giggles. Twas cheap enough to do it for the shits and the giggling.
Hopefully it doesn't show up on Valentines day.
It would be an awkward moment when the wife asks "Is that for me" and I'm forced to answer: "No that's for the fat bitch in the garage"
The danger is that she would assume that she is "the fat bitch in the house" even though she is not fat.

Should have tried my quick and dirty test first.

Fat bitches like it quick and dirty...

Or so I've heard.

Ok...new starter solenoid is in.
Battery at 11.999999v
Just a click from junction box.

Can't devote too much time to it this weekend.
Next steps
1. Disassemble starter switch. Stare at its innards. Perhaps unload a can of electrical cleaner on the guts
2. Continue removal of all bodywork

Awesome thread, I'm having similar problems with my F4i. Rode it up to pick my son up from school on Friday and ended up having to push it home.

Before you get too far into it, re-check the battery and do a load test. It may show 11.99999v on your multi-meter, but batteries are fucking liars and are not to be trusted.

Put the tester back on, then hit the starter switch. If the reading drops more than a couple of volts, the battery may have a bad cell (or 6...). If you do have some bad cells, you aren't going to get enough cranking amps to get the job done, and what your ass needs is a new battery.

JC

Ooooh....good tip

I would be lucky to get my neutral and oil pressure lights on with a battery reading of under 12.0 volts. Forget about cranking.

Yep. This happened with my car. I was driving one evening this summer and turned on the lights and the car died. I thought the alternator was shot, but it was a bad cell in the battery. Apparently, the alternator in my car was fine, but simply doesn't put out enough juice to run the A/C compressor, cooling fan and lights all at the same time. Turning on the lights was all it took to kill the car.

I should probably add that the aforementioned load test, needs to be done on a fully charged (or as fully charged as you can get it) battery.

Load testing a partially charged batt, will result in false readings and conclusions.

No Worries makes a good point. You should be reading somewhere around 12.75 on a topped up batt, especially if you're trying to start a very cold (sub-freezing) bike.

JC