If you are going to disconnect the battery, you should be disconnecting the ground wire (black) not the hot wire.

Its not too unusual for a motorcycle battery toonly last one season, especially on bikes that vibrate a lot.

 

Thanks for the greaT ADVICE IT TRIPS ME OUT THAT i DISSCONNECT THE HOT WIRE & IT WILL STAY CHARGED OVER NIGHT & i CAN RIDE ALL DAY & DISSCONNECT THE BATTERY & IT IS STILL CHARGED THERE HAS TO BE A SHORT SOMEWHERE. I LEFT THE WIRE OFF ALL NIGHT PUT ON THIS MORNING RODE 70 MILES CAME BACK STARTED RIGHT UP AGAIN. AS LONG AS I DISSCONNECT THE BATTERY AFTER EVERY RIDE IT WILL STAY CHARGED. IT COULD BE A BAD BATTERY BUT THERE IS SOMETHING DRAINING MY POWER AS LONG AS IT IS CONNECTED. i WISH I WAS A HARLEY MECHANIC BUT IT SEEMS LIKE IT HAS TO BE IN BETWEEN THE SPEEDO & BATTERY.YOU ARE VERY KNOWLEDGABLE THANKS SOOO MUCH FOR THE ADVICE. julz883

 

You either have some accessory that is constantly draining even with the ignition off (add any accessory's lately?). Or you have a short somewhere like maybe the stator.

Good luck!

 

Here's something that might help - locate your fuse block and remove one of the fuses while leaving the battery cables connected. This will discharge the battery if the draw is not on the circuit with the pulled fuse and you will have to recharge the battery. If you pull a different fuse and the battery is charged in the morning, there is a good chance that circuit has a short and it should be easier to locate.

 

Hook an ammeter in line with the ground cable. With the key out, check for a current draw. Remove each fuse until the draw goes away. Once located to a specific circuit, replace the fuse, thenunplug each item on that circuit until the draw goes away. You have located the source of the draw-as long as it is on a fused circuit. Unfused circuits, you would follow the same process-just unplugging the consumers one at a time. Having said all that, your most likely culprit is the regulator/rectifier. A faulty diode will cause current draw, but not necessarily affect the charging function. This could also be spotted using an occiliscope. Good Luck.

 

Sorry Kolni but you are wrong and RHPAW is totally correct. If the charging system ran the lights and everything else after the bike was started then you would notice your lights getting brighter and dimmer as you increased and decreased your engine RPM's, and it would also play hell with the electronics on the bike or your car for that matter.
I just realized this post was almost a month old.

 

The battey also acts as a 'ballast' for the charge system. If you disconnect it while it is running, you can damage the regulator/rectifier. The same is true for alot of the newer cars. A shorted or disconnected battery can damage the diodes in the rectifier and cause a subsequent static current draw.

 

I have to disagree. The alternator runs all of the electrical items on the bike andany left over energy is used to charge the battery. As far as the lightsgoing brighter and dimmer with engine rpm,the voltage supplied is controlled by the voltage regulator so the voltage remains fairly constant.