Weird Electrical Issue

[HYPERR]

I hope someone can help me diagnose this problem...

The clock is alive when the key is in the fully off position  When the key is turned to the park or on position there is no power and the clock dies  The clock comes on when the key is in the transition position between the off and park, and park and on.  However since all power is cut out in the ON position, the bike cannot be started. 

Is this a faulty ignition switch, faulty handlebar switch, or something else.  Any advice and steps to diagnose it would be greatly appreciated.

[Laitch]

Check that the battery's ground wire connection to the transmission is clean and tight. Check that the battery post connections are clean and tight. Then check the Jetronic plug and its connection under the seat. Its pins and sockets should be clean and it should be verified that it is fully latched when plugged in. After that, I'd check the ignition switch connector under the tank for the same conditions. If it's no-go after all that, the ignition switch itself probably needs to be opened then its contacts cleaned. Instructions are found here.

Somebody else should chime in here.

[The Mighty Gryphon]

Do you have a voltmeter that can read the battery voltage?  Connect it directly to the battery terminals to read the battery voltage.

With the ignition switch off, the battery voltage should be approximately 12.8 volts for a fully charged battery. 

What does the voltage do when you turn on the ignition switch?  I would expect it to drop slightly to around 12.5 volts, if it drops to lower than that, it indicates a weak battery that isn't able to supply the electrical requirements of the bike or a bad ground connection.  Follow Laitch's directions regarding cleaning the bike's grounds and see if that has an effect on the voltage. 

Has this bike been idle for an extended time?  An idle battery can and will lose some or all of it's ability to store a full charge and supply current to a load.

[HYPERR]

Thank you guys I will try that later tonight. 

The battery is fully charged, it is fairly new and plugged into a battery tender when parked in the garage.
The bike has not been idle but has been ridden.  What happened right before this was that I was out on a ride, ran out of gas right near my house, I pushed the bike home.  I actually had been planning to replace the fuel filter anyways so changed it while the tank was empty.  After filling the tank with some gas, I tried to start the bike.  It cranked and cranked and before it would start, something died electrically as a switch or a fuse blew and this is where I am now. 

[The Mighty Gryphon]

Can you tell us which fuse blew?

[HYPERR]

None of the fuses were blown. 
It turned out that the negative cable going to the transmission case was not tight.  I tightened it and it is all good now.  Thank you for all your help!

[beemuker]

Isn’t it great when the fix turns out to be simple.  112350I