Magna Owners Of Texas

Working on some research for something please help by providing your method of killing the engine on your Magna..  Thanks.

Since swapping the regulator out on Friday I have been using the kill switch.

Quote from: Dlcarrales on June 15, 2009, 04:49:51 PM
Since swapping the regulator out on Friday I have been using the kill switch.

David, (and anyone else) can you post the info here about your regulator failure. I am keeping the info together for anyone to see.

http://www.magnaownersoftexas.com/forums/index.php?topic=2622.0 

kill switch

Kill switch off, then back on, then switch.
I do that on all of the motors except the Harley, (no kill switch or rectifier.) :smile:

I understand the meaning of the poll here, but I have a question?

Are we hurting out bikes by turning it off with key?   Is the proper way to turn our bikes off is to flip  the kill switch?    Just wondering where this is going?   :???:

I personally believe that killing with the key is hurting things.  They would not have put a engine kill switch if they didnt believe it would help.  Just me $.02 worth.

Quote from: Greg Cothern on June 22, 2009, 04:45:50 PM
I personally believe that killing with the key is hurting things.  They would not have put a engine kill switch if they didnt believe it would help.  Just me $.02 worth.

You may have something going here Greg!!!

I did find this however on an info board when I googled this question,  came up on a Honda board.  Still browsing, (gotta work late tonight) :lol: :lol:



Re: Kill Switch, Center Stand

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Like many others, I learned to use the cutoff switch in the MSF Class. One reason is that when you really need it - you will be well versed in finding it. I might try using my horn more, because on the few occasions where I needed that, I turned on my blinkers instead - but I digress.

A friend told me to stop using the cutoff because it would cause me to leave the key on and run down the battery. I did not listen. Then one morning a month or so back, I could not find my key, went to the Rebel and found it in the ignition - in the on position. Needless to say I drove the cage to work that day. Now I use the key to turn it off.

My new Honda 599 also cuts off when I put the side stand down - but lets not go there today.

I personally believe the reason the kill switch is on your throttle side where you can reach it is to be a second option of killing your engine.  More importantly though, it is a safety feature.   Something happens and your bike engine tries to run away (over rev) , throttle get stuck, etc.  you can shut the engine off without taking your hands off of the handlebars.    But I could be blowing smoke too!!! :lol:

I'm pretty sure that the reason they put a kill switch on a bike is mainly for saftey's sake :) imagine taking your hand off the bars to reach the key if the throttle stuck wide open.. but hey, what do i know? :) i'll look at the schematic, but when you turn of the key or flip the switch, it still accomplishes the same task, turning off the bike. maybe using the switch turns off different things or in a different order.

from the looks of the schematic, when you turn off the bike with the run/kill switch, you are cutting +12v from the coils and also a +12v wire to the ignition module. when you turn off the key, it cuts power to all things on the fuse panel, including the power sent to the run/kill switch itself (via the wire coming from the fuse box, fuse labeled ignition), which in turn would do the exact same thing as using the run/kill switch.

I agree with Lance and Chad on the reason for the kill switch on the handlebars (safety).  But I always kill my bikes with the kick stand safety. :P

Curtis

Sorry I had assumed that it was a given that for safety reasons it was put there.

HOWEVER I believe it is also there to keep from SPIKING the reg/rec.  But I am not a electronics wizard in the least!

If the ignition switch disconnected the R/R from the battery or from the stator, then a spike could occur.  Looking at the schematic, though, this is not the case.  These connections are never broken by either switch.  Only the 30A main fuse can remove the battery from the R/R.  The R/R is permanently wired to the alternator stator.

I am afraid I agree with Chad on this one.  I can't see how it could make any difference.  Either switch stops the engine, which stops the alternator.  There should be no spike in either case.  Dropping the side stand with the bike in gear does the same thing.

I use the kick stand to kill the engine for safety reasons, it keeps me from accidently getting off the bike and dropping it. I've heard of many people gassing up then getting off and dropping their bike because they forgot to put the kick stand down. I have a bad habit of pulling up to a group and sitting on the bike visiting for a few minutes before I get off, the kick stand first then the key, forgetting the key for a minute doesn't hurt as bad  8).

Ditto everything on the safety issue/kill switch. Motorcycles have been wired with these things for decades. If it was a problem damaging components, I believe Honda, of all manufacturers, would have fixed it by now. Of course they still have a screwed up starter button on the handlebars. :shock:

You wreck your bike and break the key off in the ignition-kill switch.

You wreck your bike and the bike is laying on you and the ignition switch which you can't reach now (my first low side on Baby Vee)-kill switch.

You wreck your bike and break the kill switch off the handlebar-kill switch (no switch, no connection, bike dead now).

I'll be turning mine off under normal circumstances with the key (so as not to drain the battery down, yeah, I'm that blonde some days) and using the kill switch in emergencies (or flipping yours off when you are not looking just to jerk your roller chain  :P)

(or flipping yours off when you are not looking just to jerk your roller chain   


Wow, have you been watching me the last couple of years.  I specialize in this tactic!!! :lol:

Quote from: L J BAD MAG on June 23, 2009, 10:55:16 AM
(or flipping yours off when you are not looking just to jerk your roller chain   


Wow, have you been watching me the last couple of years.  I specialize in this tactic!!! :lol:

AH HA!!! We have been looking for you, mister.

He has confessed the crime.

Greg, I'll hold him down and you beat him with the wet Cat 'O Nine Spagetti Tails.

The 1990 FZR400 I had would send a spike when you turned the key off.  I found this out because of an alarm I put on it.  I could not arm it due to that spike confusing it.  I literally had to put a 2nd keyed switch on it just to arm the alarm.

I use the switch most of the time because I like to kill the engine while I am still rolling, then quietly come to a stop.
I am sorry, but the reason of using the key so you don't forget to turn it off is pretty blonde.  I mean, come on the lights are all on still!  :P

I beleive that its the voltage spike killing the reg/rec...  We will see I gues..

According to the alarm manufacturer that spike was normal and expected.  It is what was supposed to alert the alarm system that the key had been turned off and to arm after so many seconds.
If you turn the key off, back on and back off real quick the alarm detected 2 quick spikes and went into standby instead of arming.
The FZR400 sent 2 spikes when you turned the key off once, this is why mine would not arm.

My reason for boring you with that was to point out that the spike is a well known occurrence and I would hope the engineers would account for that when designing the reg/rec.  Not saying it is not the culprit, I just have my doubts.  My vote is still on heat.

I always use the key to start and stop my motor. The kill switch is an emergency method of killing juice to the motor. Electricity does not know if you are using the kill switch or the key (dumb or what?!).All it knows is if there is a path for it to flow or not. It has no impact what-so-ever on any of the electrical components. So much for logic!
Cheers!
Greg

so what happens if ur riding down the road, u hit the kill switch, and u release the clutch...

do u

A) go flying, bike locks up, and oh ****.

B) ?

Motor just keeps turning, nothing hairy. If you are at steady throttle and flip the kill switch their is a good chance of a backfire, scare the jeebers out of your riding buddy.  :-P I do it for the heck of it at times when I need to mix it up some.

Hi Dan, If you do both those at once - kill switch and pull clutch - then maybe you should park the bike for a bit and consider your options. I've only been driving a bike for going on 45 years, and I've never had that experience. I bet it would not be too exciting, but you try it and let me know what happens.
thanks.
Greg

Quote from: magnagregcan on July 08, 2009, 09:20:59 PM
Hi Dan, If you do both those at once - kill switch and pull clutch - then maybe you should park the bike for a bit and consider your options. I've only been driving a bike for going on 45 years, and I've never had that experience. I bet it would not be too exciting, but you try it and let me know what happens.
thanks.
Greg

Not pull clutch.  Release clutch :P.

I'm pretty sure...engine won't turn...and bOOM....you go flying!

Hi Dan,
If you had the clutch pulled in (in order to be able to release it) would you be going down the road?
If you hit the kill switch without releasing the clutch while going down the road, depending how fast you are going will dictate the severity of your injuries. I trust this is the answer you are (are not?) looking for.
regards,

Greg

If you are going down the road lets say at 50 mph whatever and you hit the kill switch NOTHING will happen the engine will die and continue to turn now when you get slow enough it may jerk and stutter but you would not wreck!!!   Think about it this way what happens when you hit reserve no fire but you do not go flying off the bike  :shock: :shock:

nothing will happen. i did this myself just the other day. i flipped my run/kill switch by accident doing about 65 mph, thought that it was my high beams for some reason. the engine will keep turning from the momentum and you will slow down. done this in a car a few times too. now if you do what terry said and give it some gas when its off, it may backfire. :)

terry said:  " I do it for the heck of it at times when I need to mix it up some."  Now that's funny, lol :)

(Reminder to self).....   Ride in front of all these people.. :shock: :grin:

LOL!!!

Quote from: L J  MAGNA on July 09, 2009, 10:32:45 AM
(Reminder to self).....   Ride in front of all these people.. :shock: :grin:

Thanks..I was looking for some company up here in front of these guys....WAY OUT FRONT.. :-P

Quote from: roboto65 on July 09, 2009, 10:18:26 AM
If you are going down the road lets say at 50 mph whatever and you hit the kill switch NOTHING will happen the engine will die and continue to turn now when you get slow enough it may jerk and stutter but you would not wreck!!!   Think about it this way what happens when you hit reserve no fire but you do not go flying off the bike  :shock: :shock:

Thanks for correcting my error in thinking.  I thought since if you have the clutch in gear when the bike is stopped....u can't move it unless u pull in the clutch or put it in neutral.

I don't have a reserve either :P.  1985s didn't get one :(...I have a fuel tank and secondary that runs together.

Quote from: roboto65 on July 09, 2009, 10:18:26 AM
If you are going down the road lets say at 50 mph whatever and you hit the kill switch NOTHING will happen the engine will die and continue to turn now when you get slow enough it may jerk and stutter but you would not wreck!!!   Think about it this way what happens when you hit reserve no fire but you do not go flying off the bike  :shock: :shock:

Ditto, it's like using an engine brake on a big truck.

I rode with some Super Magna folks in Eureka Springs that would hit their kill switch on purpose while running down the road, open throttle up to get a good fuel charge then turn the ignition switch back on JUST to get the backfire and explosion! 
LoL...

Quote from: Greg Cothern on July 09, 2009, 09:24:53 PM
I rode with some Super Magna folks in Eureka Springs that would hit their kill switch on purpose while running down the road, open throttle up to get a good fuel charge then turn the ignition switch back on JUST to get the backfire and explosion! 
LoL...

I like it! Gotta have someone to liven it up a bit.

I just turn the key off 99% of the time.  My last Magna never had a Reg/Rec problem and so far this one's good too (both 3rd Gens).  You'll appreciate the kill switch next time you're coming up to an intersection with a red-light and you go for your clutch and break the clutch cable.  I was so thankful for a kill switch that day I've made sure even my choppers have one built in just in case.

Quote from: JLeather on July 16, 2009, 08:20:12 AM
I just turn the key off 99% of the time.  My last Magna never had a Reg/Rec problem and so far this one's good too (both 3rd Gens).  You'll appreciate the kill switch next time you're coming up to an intersection with a red-light and you go for your clutch and break the clutch cable.  I was so thankful for a kill switch that day I've made sure even my choppers have one built in just in case.

Talk about a pucker moment!! :shock: :lol:   

I've been riding for 30 thirty years, I always turn off at kill switch. I have not had problem one. It's just a habit that has been with me all this time.

Same here, except I've only been riding for 1/10th of that time.  I am blonde and very forgetful and I have left the key in the ignition about a dozen times.  A few times it drained the battery, but it is super easy to push start.  Surprisingly, it only takes 2-3 miles to get enough juice in the battery to fire back up!?!

I've used the kill switch since my first bike in the seventies and have never had any electrical problems.

Hi guys, new to the forum here. Trying to read around the place before posting all the questions I have about my new-to-me bike (1997 VF750C2)...

anyway, since my bike is new to me, I was reading the  Honda owner's manual and came across this:

"This switch [engine stop switch] is intended as a safety or emergency switch and should normally remain in the On position."

So I have been killing mine with the key- but agree with others who have posted that it probably doesn't matter.

I'm pretty late in this debate but there is something that hasn't been mentioned.
I usually turn off my bikes with the key except in one unique situation.
My garage is located at the rear of my house with my driveway from the street to the garage next to my house. Unfortunately, it is also next to my neighbors house and master bedroom. If I come home late at night, I zoom up the street at a rapid pace, pull in the clutch, hit the engine kill switch and electric garage door opener and stealthily coast up the driveway and into my garage. By using the kill switch, the engine stops but the lights stay on so I can see while going up the darkened driveway. By doing this, my neighbor and I are still friends :-P

Orv. 

I have a friend (he shall remain nameless to protect the guilty) who spent hours trying to get his bike to run, got totally disgusted with it, resolved to sell it and did, only to discover that the kill switch was engaged.

The main reason I often use the kill switch is so that it will be automatic should I put the bike down.  In the adrenalin induced haze, one might forget where the switch is -- unless it has been used regularly, in which case it should be pretty much automatic.