Only runs with starter pressed??

[Dave]

Sounds odd, but my Commander will only run while the starter is pressed, its been stood for around 2 months or more waiting for new batterys, but i fitted them today, ( see previous posting, in the end i went for the two as original, after talking to the shop owner, as to the differences between lead type and gel ) but now the bike will fire up and run, but stops as soon as the start button is released, the reason i'm asking is because i'm sure i have read about this problem somewhere before, ( cant see it in previous post) but perhaps thats just my age playing tricks, any ideas? thanks dave

[Gerald Pleace]

Dave,That's an easy problem to fix if it is the same as when it happened to me.I was in France at the time back in 1990 and nobody there knew anything about rotaries.Same symptoms but no-one knew what to do. The bike was trucked home and after a phone call to Norton I had the bike running in minutes.If you have the original or one of Grahams ignition systems you will have a ballast resistor buried in the bodywork near the coils.Once this breaks down it behaves as you describe as this component is bypassed when you press the button. The ballast resistor reduces voltage to 6volts but when the starter is pressed it gets 12 volts to give nice big sparks.Hope this helps.Regards Gerald

[Dell Boy]

Its the ballast resistor. Early Ford Transit fit. I have a couple. £10.00 each. They are fitted to Commando`s as well.I extend the wiring & mount the resistor behind the screen for ease of access to replace it.Leave the old one insitu, pull of the two wires, join them together & you will be back in business.Or, extend the wiring up into the top fairing & fit the new ballast resistor there.The resistor will have a broken wire & you can repair it.Why Shenstone put the electrics in such an awkward place is beyond me, plus there exposed to road spray blowing through the fairing so there not even well protected.Derek F.

[Dave]

Thanks to all who replied, and it does appear to be the resistor, i can connect the 2 wires together and it runs ok, i do intend to extend the wires and put a new one in the fairing, also may replace the regulater/rectifier while im at it due to slight overcharging, ( previous post ) however various connections in that area seem to be corroded, so i think the fairing and tank cover will have to come off to allow access, and a good clean, i had enough problems getting the radiater cover off to allow me to get at the resistor wires, so should be fun, whoever designed the fairing fittings and electrics location, certainly had a sense of humour, or the hands of a 2 year old, thanks again for your help to all who replied both on and off forum, dave