Sparkulator lessons…

Here, then, are my sparky lessons, drawn from this and the wisdom of bill bunn’ sm ax and rupert paul, of rupe’ s rewires:

» Alarms are the devil’s work. Remove them.

» Alarms and other accessories are often powered from the tail light end. Check that region first.

» Never fit a fuse that’s higher in amperage than recommended, even as a get-home measure. Fix the problem instead.

» Think through what’s been fitted by you or previous owners: satnavs; brake hoses; charging cables. That’s where your problem will, most likely, emanate from.

» Those spring loaded bulb mounts on old or low-quality indicators can get misaligned over time and short out. Hard to spot but a commonproblem.

»Order up Rupe’s superb Build your own wiring loom Pdffromhis Rupe’s Rewires website. It’s a succinct, well-presented and intelligent summary of motorcycle wiring and worth its £20.