When hooking my new vrod battery up i can hear the starter spinning when i try to attach the ground...what am i doing wrong

Your starter is probably intermittent remove starter and get a bench test done for free at autozone

By, the starter just spins, you mean the starter doesn't engage the flywheel? Maybe the starter is faulty and check the flywheel teeth.

Usually I can remove the starter, lay it on the ground, use jumper cables, properly hooked up between starter and fully charged battery, even though this is a no load test, it should kick out the drive gear and spin. If not, the starter may be faulty? Some of the national brand auto stores will check the starter for you, if you take it to them.
Make sure battery has a full charge and connections all good.

Need a little more information..is it is doing nothing Check the battery if ok it may be your starter solenoid try this turn your key to on and using a jumper wire or screwdriver and connect ( cross the two large connectors on the selonoid ) it should turn the engine over. If you hear clicking but not turning over It most likely a bad starter. If the starter clicks and spins but not turning engine..it is the gear on the end of the starter it most likely stripped as many are plastic....need to remove the starter and check it..is ok try doing a bench test..just use any 12 volt supply..attach the hot wire ( +) to the connector on the starter and attach the neg ( ground ) to the starter body..it should click,push the gear upward and spin..if not NEW STARTER...hope this helps..if not let me know what you found......one more thing if nothing at all may be one of the safey switches. Good luc

What would you ground out on the starter?? Are you saying that the ground is poor and so you run a cable or such from the starter case to a known good ground and then it operates OR are you saying that you bypass the starter circuit and provide power directly to the starter and if so where do you supply it, to the battery terminal on the solenoid or to the starter side post of the solenoid.
New stuff does not matter unless it works. Do you hear the starter relay click when you hit the starter button and/or do you hear the solenoid click. If you hear the solenoid click you know everything up to that point is good. Then you have to determine if the solenoid contacts are getting current through to the starter windings. If you can spin up the starter by shorting directly to the starter side of the solenoid and the solenoid is clicking not rattling then the solenoid internal contacts are bad. If the solenoid just rattles the battery is weak or there is resistance stopping adequate voltage and current from getting to it.

Either the solenoid on the starter failed, or one of the wires is on the wrong terminal.

Hi! Check your battery cables , they may be crossed .

If it is just clicking, then the battery is too weak. Charge the battery or jumpstart.

If the battery is full charged and when you turn the key, the starter is just clicking again, possibly bad starter or bad battery cable ground. Check your grounds from the battery.

If it is a new starter and it is clicking like it won't engage, then it is not shimmed properly.

If you figure out what is wrong and need further help, please reply to this post with your questions.

Thanks! Oh, please post your engine size, year of car or truck and model. This helps A LOT!!!

Hi,
Take a pair of jumper cables ( assuming you have a good battery)
hook them up to the battery take Black (Ground)to the frame and touch the Red ( hot) to the terminal directly on the starter itself.
This terminal will be where the thick red wire attaches to the starter. If the starter is good it will spin.
Best Wishes,
Wayne

Is the engine turning over (cranking) when you turn the key, or do you hear a high pitched sound of the starter gear spinning, but engine is not turning over? It's possible (although you say the starter was checked) that the gear on the starter shaft is not advancing and meshing with the fly wheel to turn over the engine. You can check this by pulling the starter out, attach jumper cables, neg to starter body, and touch pos to connecting bolt that attaches to battery. Keep away from starter, as the gear should rather violently advance on the shaft and spin. If it doesn't advance on the shaft, replace it, that's the problem.