[hawkvtx]

A co-worker just bought an 06 1200 sportster. Barely rode it and it's broke down. The positive battery terminal is melted. I know shit about electrical stuff so I'm asking here. What would cause the terminal to melt. Stator, voltage regulator, rectifier or what?

 

[darrenbashby]

I have a friend whose terminal is always coming loose, but I do not think that a loose connection would create that kind of heat. I would be more inclined to think a direct short between the positive cable and ground. It would have to be WAY overcharging to do that, but guess it would be possible. Seems like he would have smelled the battery cooking. Get your voltmeter handy, and test the wires to the stator, the voltage regulator/rectifier, and especially check for continuity from the positive cable to ground. Is there anything in the battery box that could have shorted to it? Is the battery box metal?

 

[hawkvtx]

thanks, I passed this on to my friend.

 

[darrenbashby]

thanks, I passed this on to my friend.

Just noticed that is the negative terminal.

 

[jjdonovan]

A co-worker just bought an 06 1200 sportster. Barely rode it and it's broke down. The positive battery terminal is melted. I know shit about electrical stuff so I'm asking here. What would cause the terminal to melt. Stator, voltage regulator, rectifier or what?
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I would look for a loose connection first. I am sure a couple fuses have blown also.

 

[siearly]

A co-worker just bought an 06 1200 sportster. Barely rode it and it's broke down. The positive battery terminal is melted. I know shit about electrical stuff so I'm asking here. What would cause the terminal to melt. Stator, voltage regulator, rectifier or what?
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Harleys vibrate a lot. That looks to me like a problem I’ve seen many times. The stiff battery cable doesn’t have enough flex to cushion the vibration but instead transmits it to the battery terminal. The terminal eventually cracks, increasing resistance which causes high amp draw and therefore heat, which melts the terminal. The solution is to have new cables made from welding cable. It is much more flexible and will help isolate the vibration.

 

[vtx-1300]

I love seeing video’s on YouTube I learn a lot and I like sharing what I have learned.

 

[Twoodall]

It sounds like he’s got a bad ground somewhere on the bike. I would bet it was on the battery terminal itself, but it could be where the negative cable grounds to the bike. When a wire melts the insulation, it’s normally due to arcing. That’s caused by a bad connection. It will melt in the same place it was arcing.