turn signal woes

[Steven May]

OK, start by knowing I am an electrical dumbass...so I go for a Sunday ride, and my turn indicator lights up and stays lit. The left front is lit up bright, the right front lit but not so bright, and the rear left is lit...rear right is not lit...possible starting points? switch? Right rear bulb? Why does the left not flash but the right will?

 

[Fire-medic]

Check your grounds and connections on that side affected.

Remove bulbs, check for corrosion, sand to bright metal if found, use dielectric grease to help stop further corrosion. Check for corrosion or broken strands at wire crimps and connectors. Do not hesitate to use a new bulb in-place of a suspect one. I once chased my tail over a headlamp bulb that was defective, BNIB. "It can't be bad, it's brand-new!" But, it was.

 

[maleko89]

+1 to the Above. Last thing to check would be the relay.

Mark

 

[Fire-medic]

+1 to the Above. Last thing to check would be the relay.

Mark

 

[JMax92]

Something to keep in mind (if relevant for your bike). My 1992 has dual filament globes in front, single filament in rear. The wiring to the front set has three wires; earth, live and flash similar to a brake light meaning the front indicators glow dimly all the time and flash bright when turning.
When you remove globes, look inside to see if the mount has one or two contacts, and make sure the globe is the same. If you have dual filaments be careful to install them the correct way around, you can tell which way by looking at the metal pin sticking out the side of the globe.
Sounds to me like there is a bad earth in your setup, or a dual filament has shorted across the live and flash terminals.
I would open all the covers, turn the lights on and remove one globe at a time. If no change refit the bulb and try the next. Then swap front left to right, and rear left to right, see if the problem swaps sides.
If the problem moves as you swap globes, get a new globe (or set if you cannot work out which one). If the problem does not move, you have a wiring fault, check that all connections are clean (and if your front set are not normally glowing all the time, that the third/live wire has not somehow shorted to earth).
I found my third/live wires disconnected (probably a compliance issue when imported to Australia) so they were just tied back and loose. Easy to reconnect if you want the front to glow and make you a more visible rider.

 

[Steven May]

thanks guys for the advice, it was a very simple thing to fix...some of the wiring under the seat had come unplugged...thanks for all the effort, I love this forum!