Duff battery

[yorkie_chris]

Get some fresh petrol and plugs in it and it should at least run then.

[jambo]

One problem at a time, and don't go buying bits until you've made sure they're at fault. That's an expensive way to fix a motorbike.

You've removed the rear plug. If you ground it on an unpainted bolt and turn the bike over on the starter, does it spark?

Jambo

[Biker Biggles]

Have you got a multimeter to check the charging system yet?

[yorkie_chris]

It's a bit hard to do that if it won't start

[Biker Biggles]

Originally Posted by yorkie_chris

It's a bit hard to do that if it won't start

Quite so,but flat battery was the original issue,and theres no point in keeping buying new batterys if you dont get geared up to find the original problem.

[yorkie_chris]

Yup, a acquaintance of mine boiled a total of 4 batteries before realisation set in that the reg-rec was blown. It took a CDI getting upset about being fed 50v of AC and frazzling before deciding to check the charging system.

One born every minute...

OK, latest update.

I charged the battery up to about 13.1V. I then removed the spark plug, touched against an unpainted bolt and hit the starter. There was nothing at first but after a quick clean I got some nice blue sparks. I put it all back together and hit the starter - hey presto we have life!

It's now idling at 4000rpm (choke closed) and won't go any lower unless I squeeze the throttle further in the closed position. It then goes down to 3k idle but jumps back to 4k as soon as I release the throttle. I ran the bike for a short run but it wasn't safe to drive due to the high idle. When I tried to adjust the throttle play the machine jumped to ~9k and wouldn't come back down. The bike starts OK for now but is just screaming away.

Next stop is to lube/adjust the throttle cable or maybe even replace it.

Cheers for the support with regards to the battery! You've taken a lot of stress off me.

Not sure whether this applies to the SV - but while your oiling the throttle cable prob be worth checking the cables aren't snagged anywhere.

Disclaimer: - could be talking rubbish

There appears to be 2 throttle cables on my bike. I read elsewhere that this is one cable to open the throttle butterflies and another to close them. Should these both be adjusted to the exact same degree?

[yorkie_chris]

Yes there are 2 cables. It's a push-pull, so one cable opens throttle the other closes it. Get the tank up and have a look at the throttle cam, see if it is closing all the way against the stop when you shut the throttle manually.