Electra Solenoid

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The solenoid on my electra has two large posts for the large black wires from the starter and to the battery. It also has a male "slip-on" connection attached to the battery wire post which I assume takes the yellow wire from my new harness since it has a comparable female slip-on connector. My question concerns the remaining small post and the what, if anything, connects to it. The wiring diagram calls for a fourth connection to the solenoid by a brown wire. However I have no extra brown wire in the solenoid area in my harness. Is there supposed to be a brown wire on the small post and where does it come from?

Jack

Solenoid

Hello Jack.

As far as I know the solenoid on an Electra is a standard Lucas item the same as fitted to loads of old British cars so the "small post" is the live 12V feed from the starter button and the solenoid simply earths through it's mounting. Anything connected to the heavy battery feed post will be live all the time.

So where does the yellow wire in your wiring loom go to?

I don't have an Electra or the wiring diagram so Peter H or Al O can probably give you a better answer.

Patrick

The yellow wire goes to the start button. When I connect a wire directly from the small solenoid post to the other side of the starter button I can turn the motor over with the solenoid. But then I only have lights when the starter button is pushed in.

Jack

Electra Start Solenoid

We are part right here, the YELLOW does indeed go to the starter button on the handlebar, the other side of the original WIPAC Triconsul switch becomes live when ignition is on. Via the WHITE wire.

As it says above then the starter solenoid can be pulled in as the other side of the solenoid coil is EARTH inside the solenoid.

The BROWN wire is the 12V feed into the bikes wiring via a fuse (not on wiring diagram) so the BROWN wire is fed from the 'post' but this same point must have the Heavy Duty 'starter' cable from the battery connected to it. ie the Brown and HD starter cable are common. You can take the BROWN (via a fuse) straight from the battery terminal but do make sure the HD starter current has priority over the BROWN.

Another new issue. If you have a reproduction WIPAC Triconsul handlebar switch the RED button will not switch to another connection(WHITE) it will switch to earth as per traditional horn/mag kill and the starter solenoid will not 'happen' if it has EARTH on both sides. So you have to fit a STARTER RELAY, this will have live from the ignition switch, and a handlebar earth to make it happen.

Have fun. PS Speely checkeree is still crapulos.

Alan, Thanks for your…

Alan,

Thanks for your detailed information. I hope you didn't read all the diatribe I posted earlier today. I've now I deleted most of that because of what I did after reading your explanation line by line to make it sink in.

First of all, I went back to my new wiring harness to see where my missing brown wire to feed the whole system might be. I found that I incorrectly attached the brown wire that feeds 12V to the bike wiring harness to the tail light brown wire which was in the same area. I disconnected that and thus had a way to get 12V into the harness.

I then took a new look at the wiring diagram and found that the yellow wire is apparently meant to be attached to the small solenoid post and the brown wire is supposed to be attached to the large post with the HD black cable. JUST LIKE YOU SAID. Duh!

So, even though the yellow wire has a female slip on connector that seemed to indicate it was to be attached to the slip on connector at the HD battery terminal on the solenoid I removed the yellow wire from that post , attached it to the small silver post I've been asking about and connected the brown wire to the HD post and VOILA I had power to the ignition switch, my new starter button I installed to make the white-yellow connection that was missing from my replacement Triconsul switch activated the solenoid to turn the motor, and I had lights fore and aft.

Man do I feel stupid. Luckily you had the patience to point me in the right direction, AGAIN. And I really appreciate it.

Jack