Good news/bad news.
Good: made a tool to get the molex connector removed. It worked.
I crimped the wires back to the clip and soldered the connection too. It is snug as a bug.
More good news: it started up no problem. Warmed the engine up, then let it idle while I went over to talk with a neighbor.
About 5 minutes later I heard the bike stall out of nowhere. The headlight stays on, it just won't start. I've jiggled the connections, taken them apart and put them together. Fuses ok.
Exact same f'ing problem as before.
I want to pull my hair out. What else would randomly cause it to die? Nothing else in the battery area is loose or worn/exposed.