What year and model of machine.

 

May be a bad battery. I just had my sportsman in because everything went dead. Turned out to be a dead cell. The battery was only two years old

 

need a multi meter , go to battery connections, rev it up a little and see if its charging, sounds like your trying to use a test light.Dont run it without a battery , you will blow all the bulbs and maybe fry other things

 

It'a a 2003 sportsman 500 h.o. I'v checked the battery while running with multimeter and the voltage doesn't change. It has a brand new battery, i rode the other day and it cranked fine all day but when i got home i shut it off for about an hour and got back on it and it wouldn't turn over, charged battery put it back in and it cranked fine.

 

Been reading some related threads and saw where one guy had his rpm gauge quit working about the same time his battery stopped charging and he said it was his regulator, my rpm gauge quit working the same day it quit charging so i think i found the problem. This same guy said the rpm gauge power source ran through the regulator so it only makes sense for that to be the problem, hope it is anyway. Still open for suggestions tho, thanks.

 

you said the battery voltage dont change then the stator is not charging throtle on should charge battery to around 13.5 to 14 volts if it is then it can only be regulator/rectifier or battery

 

or you have a big power draw you have any assesories put on

 

probably voltage regulator, black box in front of radiator

 

I don't have any accessories on it, but if the stator is bad it wouldn't run without the battery connected would it? I can disconnect the battery and jump it off and it will run so it's getting fire from somewhere.