Motorcycle Repair: shorting out, lighting system, starter switch

Question
Dear Mike, I own a 1999 1200xl. a few weeks ago I attempted to start the bike after it had sat outside in the extreme cold for a few days.The battery was very weak so I boosted the bike with my truck without any luck. Today I tried to start the bike, but when I hit the starter switch everything goes dead.after waiting for about 5-10 mins.the lights come back when I turn the key,but the same thing occurs.a few months ago this happened and I changed the regulator which corrected the problem. I tested the regulator again and it failed the bleed test. what would cause this and what else can I check for? Thanks

Answer
First, its not a good idea to jump your bike with a car or tuck. The battery has to many cranking amps and you are taking a chance on blowing up the battery on the bike.

Now to the problem. First, make sure you have a fully charged battery. It would be a good idea to get a battery tender for your bike. You will alway have a fully charged battery and the battery will last longer.

If your lights went off when trying to start the bike, I suppect either a bad breaker or a short in the lighting system, but to be on the safe side, remove the regulator wire from the batery and see if the problem still exists. Since the bike is not running, the only power the regulator has is from the battery.
If you still have the problem, then install a new breaker. Once the breaker is installed and you still have the same problem, then what you need to do is start tracing wires until you find the short.
Since your regulator failed the bleed test, then it needs to be replaced. Before connecting the new one up get the bike running and test the stator. It might be putting out to much volts for the regulator to handle and need to be replaced.
Good luck and happy riding
Mike