I bought my 1982 GL 500 two years ago - and drove it sparingly in an effort to get back on two wheels after a 16 year draught (had xs1100 xs650 cb175 years ago). The GL would seem to need the battery charged if it sat for a week or so .. so every time I went to drive it - it would usually need a jump. This spring I bought a new battery - and when I installed the POS and NEG cables to the battery and turned the key ON - no power appeared anywhere - not in the gauge cluster or headlight. It appered the battery was dead. I noticed a little smoke from the starter solenoid switch area and that the Red/White wire in the plug in to the starter solenoid switch get hot instantly - so i pulled the main 30 amp fuse. The wire cooled down. Even when the key is OFF - this wire gets hot - and you can see arcing when connecting the battery cables.
When I disconnect the battery and use a two amp charger to the terminals and turn the key ON, the gauges and electrical seem to work fine. When the battery is in - the wire gets hot and nothing works. I noticed that even after pulling all the fuses (horn, lights, turn, stop etc. on the handle bar) that these items STILL work - even after pulling these fuses. ??? So, while running on a 2 amp charger - the accessories work when the fuses are pulled.
But nothing works when fuses in and under the battery power.
Well, this seems to sum up my dilemna. Any suggestions would be helpful. I checked the stator wirings for shorts and continuity - and those seem ok. Grounds seem to be OK.
Can't seem to understand why after pulling fuses the horn, stop lamps, and turn lights still work?
