Just recently got my Triton back in working condition and was about to take it for inspection when I discovered that my brake light worked, but not my tail light. So I took off the light cover, fiddled with the bulb, and now the tail light works, but the brake light doesn't. Any ideas?

Sounds to me like your having a problem with the socket or bulb. Have you tried a different bulb? If you have and that didn't work, make sure the metal contacts inside the socket are free from corrosion. Also check to see the tail light assembly is proper grounded if you have an Ohm meter available.

Thanks for the tips. I didn't think a new bulb would do it since it would at least light up but sure enough, after cleaning the contacts and putting in a new bulb, problem solved.

But my inherently bad luck got the better of me, and I'm now faced with a brand new and unrelated problem. The scooter doesn't even attempt to turn over when I try and start it. I tried to jump start it with no luck. Perhaps it needs a new battery? The dashboard clock is very faint, and the lights don't function either. It got rained on for less than 5 minutes yesterday before I moved it into a garage, so I'm hoping that if I let it dry out some that might resolve it. If not, would a new battery be the likely fix?

--edit
Better question is: if the battery is completely dead, would a battery tender be capable of bringing it back to life? If not, will any same voltage motorcycle battery do the job?

Since the machine got rained on, I would try cleaning up the battery terminals first. Possibly there is corrosion or moisture that is preventing a good connection with the terminals.

Not sure what you meant by "battery tender." If you mean a "trickle battery charger" then by all means give it a try. It can't hurt. If all else fails then try another battery. Any motorcycle battery of the same voltage will work. Depending on the size of the other battery, it may not fit completely in the compartment box, but it will at least give you an idea if the problem is battery related before you buy a battery of the right size.

Also you didn't mention if the scooter started with the kick start? If it does, take it for a ride to charge up the battery and dry out the rain.

Yeah, Battery Tender Jr. is a trickle charger that will monitor the charge in the battery and adjust the amount of charge administered. I bought a new battery yesterday afternoon, switched it in and started right up. As for my kickstart lever, it stripped off of the bolt that runs into the transmission awhile back and I've never gotten around to buying a new one online and installing, but I hear it's a cheap and easy install. Thanks for your help!

You're more than welcome. Glad to hear the problem has been resolved.