I am re-wiring my deceased Father's custom that he built from the ground up with a Harley Evo 1997 Softail crate motor. He wired it himself and it always seemed to have gremlins so I thought that using the Ultima harness would be the best route.

Has anyone on here installed this harness before or know of any shops in the Columbus Ohio area that have experience with the installation of this product?

I did a mock hook up of everything before doing anything permanent and some of the functions are not working such as; all of the the turn signals, brake light (actually always on, never off), and the starter does not power up when I hit the start switch. I ran power from the battery straight to each turn signal and they all work. I also ran the switches in line and the lights worked. When I hit the start switch the oil/neutral indicator lights dim. Twice the starter started to power up but died just as fast. The tail light always stays lit up bright like the brake is on all the time.

I could really use some help on this. I have an e-mail to Midwest Supply but they are not the best with getting back to me, nor have I found a phone number to technical support.

 

by the way, the last straw that made me decide to re-wire the bike was the starter was turning over without the ognition key even being on the bike. I figured I had a short somewhere and decided to just re do everything.

so.... I am starting to think that the starter is the problem and not the harness. Any thoughts?

Turn signals still don't work though.

 

alright no takers.

I heard back from the manufacturer. Their tech thinks it's just a ground issue. I don't know. How can the starter be any more grounded?

 

I cannot comment on all your issues BUT I can answer the question of the starter grounding. A ground wire is not necessicarily proof a component is "grounded", for instance the connectors may be corroded or poorly joined resulting in a "partial ground" or a high resistance ground. I would check the starter ground with a multi-meter to ensure you have a good ground.

 

Could someone tell me (show me would be better) exactly where the starter is grounded on a softail.

Nothing is corroded and the battery is grounded to a bare metal spot on the frame.

I could really use some advice. Summer will be over soon and I still don't have my Dad's bike running again.

 

Ok, I have trouble shot some things and now I have everything working as long as I have the front brake circuit OPEN.

The starter would not engage because the start button was on a bind and would not push in all the way. Now I have the bike running.

I hit the front brake switch next since I already had the housing open. When the brake lever is in it's normal position, it is pushing against a spring loaded switch in the handlebar controls that opens the circuit. When you pull the brake lever, the switch pops out completing the circuit. The weird thing is when I push the switch in to break the circuit, the brake light works properly and the turn signals work properly when I push their switches in. When the switch is out, the brake light and turn signals do not work. The switch/wiring is working exactly the opposite as it should. What is wrong here?

One other thing is I don't have any fluid in the rear brake reservoir because it is leaking and needs rebuilt. When the rear brake lever is pushed, nothing happens. I am assuming that the rear brake light relay works by sensing brake fluid movement. Am I right?