It had to happen, it was all going too well, I mean an £1100 ebay 600 SS what could possibly go wrong! I was out for a ride yesterday afternoon and stopped at Hein Gericke on the A40 just outside Oxford. Got back on the bike, pushed the starter and nothing. Luckily a lovely chap parked next to me with a Guzzi helped me and he discovered that the small plug had come out of the solenoid, popped it back in and it fired back in to life, a bit of loctite is needed I think. Still hasn't spoiled what is turning out to be a great Ducati experience, what a lovely bike!
good someone wen't straight to the fix as until you know about this problem it can take ages to find. I wouldn't Loctite but use a small tiewrap right around the solenoid body.
Sounds like a simple fix There's more collective knowledge on here for the 600 and 620 monster/SS bikes than any other so if you get stuck, someone will be able to offer advice.
Good point Chris, only problem is that I'll have to take out the battery tray to get to it, I just thought a very small blob of loctite would stop it vibrating out, however now I know what the problem is, I can just make sure it is pushed home before every ride.
Wipe some clear silicone around the plug before you push it in, and then wipe your finger around the excess that squeezes out.......That will keep it in place and keep water out. AL.
That's a really good tip Al, I should also be able to do that with everything in situ and without having to pull apart the battery tray. My plan in the winter is to pull all the fairings off and clean/inspect everything properly plus get the scratched right hand fairing professionally repainted (the previous owner dropped it in the garage), plan now is just to ride and enjoy it!
I know it's difficult but you can get a 'wrap round it without ^^ - had to in the past - don't forget it pops out of it's rubber housing if you need to remove whole solenoid.
Yep i had the same problem, tie wrap on mine. but will either try Al's method next time ofr even get a one that i can hard wire in.
Actually mine has silicone, plus I found a rubber (or something) wiring connecter sleeve which I managed to push over the whole plus and socket....its on pretty tight. AL
Hmmm i got some heat shrink in the garage, i wonder if that would work. pull the plug out slip it over, plug back in and then pull it forward over the socket. Having said that i wonder if exposing it to heat to close the shrink tubing may cause an issue?? - any how just a thought. Mark
This sounds like a common problem, the plug doesnt seem to have a clip on it, it just pushes in, I am sure it is the state of the bloody roads that caused it to pop out. I'm going to try Al's method and just very sparkingly put a tiny bit of clear slicone on it (I have a tube in the garage) Another quick question, my side stand is not the suicide type, it does have a switch but all it does is show a warning light on the dash, should it also cut the engine out if down?
Both new to dukes both having problems , still im a former 60's bonnie owner so for me the duke is the height of sophistication (hope I haven't jinxed myself)
Hi Carlos I think AL's method is pretty much the best option, he's pretty 'switched' on (no pun intended) he has helped me loads!! Not sure about the 600, but my 900ss stand has to be up to start the bike. I put a diode between the neutral swith wire and side stand switch wire. Now it starts with the stand down so it warms up - i am next to it all the time!! but if i put it in gear it kills the engine so i cant ride away with the stand down. Cheers Mark
I assume yours is a carbed SS? If so, all that has been done to your stand is stopping it from flipping up.............Usually that means the head of the pivot bolt nut thingy has been shaved down enough to allow the spring plate to pass over it........There is no engine or starter cut-out on the carbed SS sidestand........ AL
That will probably mean it will be a b*****d to get off, because the socket for the allen key / bit won't be deep enough to stop it wringing in the socket........ .....therefore, if it won't move, either leave it alone, or grab some mole grips or stilsons and get a good grip right on the circular edge..........you may need some heat as well if it has been Loctited on. Once you do get it off, where the grips have marked the edge, clean it up and file a couple of decent flats, then you can do it up fairly tightly with an open end spanner................I didn't loctite mine and it doesn't appear to be coming undone after 5000 miles or so. AL
Luckily a lovely chap parked next to me with a Guzzi helped me and he discovered that the small plug had come out of the solenoid, popped it back in and it fired back in to life, a bit of loctite is needed I think. Had the same problem recently on the 748, luckily it was the first thing I checked, mine was still in place and had a tie wrap around it, just a bad contact so I cleaned and bent the contacts to give a tighter fit and all is good now. Steve
Thanks for the silicon tip Al, did it on Thursday, fingers crossed all seems to be OK. I intend to put some miles on over the weekend, rude not to!
