blowing fuse

I have been rebuilding an xj 650 rj seca for 6 months. It sat garaged for 17 years. It stars up and runs,
but I have not ridden it yet. did the carbs,set the valves,rebuilt brakes,replaced oil,plugs,tires,clutch,etc,etc.
I started to work on it one day , when I noticed the ten amp fuse marked "signals" was popping as soon as
I turned the key on. The wiring harness is in good shape,no obvious damage, all wiring in the headlight
body seems undamaged and connected. What components (relays, switches,etc.) would you check ?
What circuits would you test continuity on ? Perhaps some insight out of the vast pool of XJ savvy
here will help me avoid tearing everything apart. I have all the tools needed and The Haynes book. The bike has been on a 2 amp float charger all winter with the key off.

 

You have a hot wire on your signal circuit that is shorting out.... Look for a bared wire, or mouse-chewed wire, worn wire casing, pinched wire, etc...could be in the headlight bucket. Once in a blue moon a bulb could do that, try a new bulb too.

 

Mine did that after the rebuild. I had the headlight and sidestand relays mixed up. They in the right spots?

 

I'd say short as well. I'd start at the headlamp bucket. Everything is color coded your Haynes manual will tell you from the schematics in the rear section of the book. I'd check and clean every connection there and inspect each wire for cracks and breaks. If you don't find it there follow the wires from the bucket to each signal light and look for bare wires.

 

if the fuse is blowing as soon as you turn the key on , without the signal switch being turned to L, or R.
then the short/ fault, must be between the fuse block ,and the turn switch-- (brown feed wire ,and brown/white wire from relay to switch ).
by the way, I just checked the diagram and the brown fuse also feeds the horn and the brake lights, so some circuit splitting is in order to find which circuit the fault is on
stu