Harley Davidson Common Starter Problems Summary and Fixes

There are a few very common HD Starter problems. It starts with pushing the start button on only hearing a "click". It's a quick summary of these problems and the fixes for them

[coreymaxfield]

This video saved me from completely replacing the starter on my '94 Softail. Cleaned up the ground and now she fires right up. Thank

[gotjuice]

NEEDED this video today. Perfectly explained and accurate to what was wrong. Starter was good, cleaned brushes and reinstalled. Power at starter was 12.8v, relay has crap ground wire and l replaced with much larger. Still a click click. Then replaced relay with known good. Cranked right up after 4 yrs of a no start. Now time to rebuild the carb. Thx bro

[mccoyschilleman]

God bless you, sir! Swapped out all of the oil hoses on my brother's 85 sportster 1000 xlx and wouldn't crank over. Was that little ground wire. Thank you for this in-depth video it proved quite valuable!

[michaelarrowood]

Excellent information on the starter issues. Thank you so much.

[harrypierpont]

You said you hope this video helps someone. I have shared this video 3/4 times to the FXR Alpha page . There are over 11, 000 FXR fanatics on that page. Every once in awhile I see a guy asking about his FXR click. I share this video to the page. This video has helped me and at least several other guys on the FB page. So thank you once again.

[stevenmills]

Really appreciate your time and effort in making this vid. I wish I had found it about 3 months ago before I had been able to get a ride to the Harley shop. Now Im out over 500 bucks and Im still stranded with no way to go because I was convinced that it was a problem with my TSSM module that has been OBSOLETE from Harley for years now so I was told. I paid 200 for one from up north Im in Georgia by the way. Now it still doesnt start up because I have to get it to the Harley dealer so they can marry the new part to my 2003 Dyna superglide. They have made the part OBSOLETE now like its unimportant but yet they require me to bring it to them to get it to ever start again when I have to replace the TSSM. IF YOU ARE JUST AS CONFUSED AS ME THEN PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND!!! THANKS AGAIN BRO FOR THE GREAT HELP AND KNOWLEDGE YOU OFFERED FOR FREE!!😊

[JacobAHull-nxrx]

So glad I found your video. You have same set up as me on my 1991 fxrs-sp.. I did a bench test on the starter and it engages great. Now to chase the others problems you mentioned..thks!

[obfuscated]

Good video! I'm an old mechanic and will refer non-mechanics to this video. A heavier conductor is a very good idea. So are the pushbutton solenoid end covers, and the cheap ones (I've installed a variety) work fine. In emergencies you can safely remove the solenoid end cover and use the plastic end of a screwdriver to push the solenoid into contact to start the bike. Either pocket the solenoid core and the long spring which rides on it, or reinstall cover. Denso OSGR starters are metric. The cover screws vary (aftermarket starters often use socket head fasteners) with some being 7mm (that size has no inch-spec wrench interchange). Others look like Phillips but are really JIS on which Phillips drivers usually work. Keihin carbs also use JIS screws so if you work on those have a basic JIS set. Vessel make good ones which are cheap on Amazon etc.

[petespotsin]

I'm working on my father's 95 Harley Electra glide. This is exactly the problem I'm having, I thought it was the starter but the starter is actually working fine when I hot wire it. But this particular problem I have to look into as you say you can hear a click. Me too. So this has given me a lot of helpful information, thank you for posting.

One of the better videos out there for this particular issue on the Sportsters... Many thanks.

[jamesyoung]

Your video saved me from disassembling half my bike for a starter removal. When I attached my multimeter lead to the green wire on the solinoid and attached the other lead to the negitive ground on the battery, then hit the starter switch, to my surprise the bike almost started up while having it up in the air on my bike jack! At this point, I want to belive there may be some corrosion in the green ground wire and I may as well upgrade it to a 12 gauge wire as you suggested. THANK YOU IMMENSELY!!!

[arthurleino]

Starter relay went bad on my 83 FXWG when In Japan. Lucky I was still young. Kick Started it Japan and Philippines. Now I keep electric start good. Thanks for the video!

[markwybierala]

A valuable video. I’m just starting to troubleshoot my 2004 right now.

[stevencybulski]

Thank YOU!! Saved me from hauling my grease barge back home over an hour away! 9.99 at napa, 10 minutes later rolling

[San-dlum]

Thanks again for your video and knowledge and understanding. I have a 74 FLH and it will not start, no clicking nothing. The battery is brand new and fully charged and the starter relay is brand new. Along with brand new points and a brand-new ignition coil and the condenser. Just to be sure I even replaced the starter button as it is 50 years old. In desperation, I checked the grounding wire from the starter relay to the transmission stud and saw that it was very average at best and I'm going to replace that with a heavier gauge as you suggested and we will see if that works. Thanks again.

[silverbullit]

Great video . Step by step and done slowly to understand. Have same trouble with mine right now. Going to get battery checked first.

[fireboyisme]

Very good video. Thank you very much. Simple and well filmed

[lawnboyfromhell]

Yes, amazing how the stupid stuff is the hardest to find, people tend to overthink stuff a lot, good video brother!

[Jeff]

This is a 5-star outstanding video... thanks!!!
You were crystal clear, easy to understand, didn't rush or waste time babbling. You were methodical and left no stone unturned .... however - I went through every step, rebuilt the solenoid, replaced the relay, checked and cleaned all wiring, and my bike still only CLICKS - very loud forceful clicks indeed. The starter simply won't engage.

[vidvidbiker]

Just starting on getting my RK back on the road. Your video has just saved me hrs of head scratching🙄😜😪 - many thanks for posting this.😎