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Alright, got waylayed a few days due to family issues, so just got around to reading replies and working on the bike.

I took the cable out of the sheath; it's not broken.

I took the entire gauge cluster apart, and pulled out the speedometer/odometer piece. The cable fits in snugly, so it doesn't appear to be stripped at the connection point.

The speedometer/odometer guts are turning freely, and when I turn it manually, the odometer appears to move (ever so slight, so I'm manually turning it by hand), thus I think that piece is working as well.

Which only leaves the plug on the front wheel. :\

I seem to recall someone linking to an eBay auction about a replacement plug that converted the speedometer to use the KM/h range as the MP/h instead. Anyone know specifically what something like that would be called? Where to find it?

Going to pull off the front wheel and have a look. I don't think the wheel is damaged or anything, most likely the hub on the front wheel just died. Damn Chinese parts... :X

STATUS: RUNNING

Based on the information overload you gurus presented, I began tearing into the bike in earnest this morning. It appears the fix was much, much simpler than we expected.

I should preface this with saying that since I put the Dragon Custom Big Shot Exhaust and Air Intake on, one of the problems I've been experiencing is an undue amount of vibration. So much so, that bolts rattle/vibrate themselves loose.

Relying on my computer technician experience, I decided to follow straight-forward trouble-shooting skills, and begin with the easiest fix first.

I checked the ground cable coming from the valve cover to the battery. A day or so ago, I noticed that the connector @ the battery was loose; so much so, that I tore it apart from the wire by accident. This morning I took the wire off the valve cover, re-attached the connector solidly, and then soldered the wire to the ring connector. I then re-attached the wire to the valve connector.

After checking that the wires to the solenoid were good, I thought, "What the hell", and re-connected the battery cables. Sure enough, the clock did NOT dim when I pressed the start button. I put the key in the "ON" position, and after cranking her for a bit - surprise, she turned over! - it finally started.

So it appears that the entire problem was a loose ground wire to the battery.

The new ignition and electric start button shipped from Eagle ATV Parts (Taotao); since I don't need the ignition switch, I'm going to try and refuse the shipment (to avoid paying s/h fees back to them), and just order the electric start button by itself.

I'm pissed at myself for taking so long to find such a simple problem.

edit: Also, probably the reason I couldn't start it by kick-starting the motor was due to my bad right hip and back, and probably the ground wire as well. It's a PITA for me to try and kick down hard and fast enough to turn the motor over, and that's why the electric start is what I need.

Well, I'm confused then. The ground is right by the battery, and is solid. As is all the connections to the solenoid.

I've been trickle charging my battery, I'm going to put it back in. But this just started happening, and I was able to get it to start most of the time (except having to kickstart it a few times), and now it won't start at all.

So replacing the solenoid wouldn't help?

Yeah, I'm sort of leaning toward it maybe being the ignition switch. Which would explain why snacking the plastic "worked" sometimes. Now, for some reason, the clock is staying on when I turn the ignition switch to "On", but it dims. Guess I'll check prices on a replacement ignition switch.

Been off the boards for a while due to my moving into my new condo and some other minor things, but finally had to come back. Unfortunately, it's with an issue. Here's what happened:

A week or so ago, I went to cut the motor off with the kill switch, and POP! The button literally broke off. I had to kick start it, but I got it running. After wiggling the now-broken switch around, the electric start finally started working - for a while. But then it died again, and no amount of fiddling would get it to crank up with the button. And having a bad lower back and hip, kick starting the bike is a huge PITA.

So yesterday I finally got around to taking the entire button assembly apart; even after trying to manually jumper it into the proper position, the electric start button won't work. So I'm thinking it's probably the starter motor or perhaps the starter solenoid that may have gone bad, no? (NOTE: The issue below was not happening at the time, but now it is.)

The other thing that was happening was that sometimes, when I would put the key to the "on" position, the clock would go off, and the electric start wouldn't work - it was as if the entire battery was disconnected. But strangely enough, a firm smack on the plastic right below the ignition switch would do it. Not sure those two are related, though.

So, am I correct in assuming that I probably need to replace the starter motor? Or is there something else I should be checking/testing? I've taken the headlight assembly apart, all the wires look right. Going to tear into the engine here shortly and see if there's anything else I might be missing.

This morning, I've taken the seat off, and traced the wires; everything looks normal. BUT, I'm back to trying to figure out what gremlin is causing the entire electrical system to die only when the key is in the "Start" position, as that's what it's doing right now. The clock goes off, thus I know there is no electrical; when I put the key in the "Aux" or the "Off" position, the clock turns on. Very strange. All the wiring looks fine; based on my being able to smack the plastic right below the ignition switch previously, I suspect that it's something in the front rather than under the seat. As to what that "something" is, however, I just can't figure it out.

Any ideas on what I should be looking for?

I didn't like the Double Shot. And as it turns out, the Little Shot oil catch can is useless for me.