Bike just wont start!

[Ken Talbot]

Originally posted by edavi394
I did not take off the side cover for the engine since all the wires are working on the top side I did not trace it back further. did i miss something by doing this?

Actually, yes, you have missed one of the most common faults in these old classics. Flakey pick-up coil wires and dirty carbs probably account for 80 percent of problems when somebody first picks up a used XS.

There's lots of good reading in the tech sections to get you pointed in the right direction.

[edavi394]

ok thx I guess I can check that too. I just didnt see a reason too since all the wires going to the coils have power but one coil still isnt working. thought that would mean the coil is bad and I didnt see a reason to go back even further when I had power to that point

[TopCatGr58]

Hey Ken,

He DID switch the TCI control wires for the ignition coils and the same coil didn't fire, and the opposite ones did, which indicates that the PU coils were working to trigger the TCI on both channels!

Edavi, if you have a multimeter, you want to pull off the plug caps, check for sever corrosion between the caps and the plug wire ends. Then check the resistance from 1 plug wire to the other, should be about 15Kohms, and also check the resistance of the Primary wires by unplugging the Red/White and Grey/orange wires and measure the with the ohmeter, should be about 1.5 ohms for the 78-80 models, and ~3.0 for the 81 model.

IF there's a lot of corrosion on the plug wires, cut back 1/4" at a time.

IF you get readings way off of the above, then I would believe that you can finally state that the ignition coil has gone bad!

There's a tech tip/mod about using the MikesXS coils for replacements, a fairly inexpensive route, vs. trying to find good OLD STOCK.
T.C.

[edavi394]

ok thx a lot for the info. I do have a multi meter so I will check that out as soon as i get a chance probably monday. i am going out of town first thing in the morning. I will post my results when i find out. thx again

[Ken Talbot]

Originally posted by TopCatGr58
He DID switch the TCI control wires for the ignition coils and the same coil didn't fire, and the opposite ones did, which indicates that the PU coils were working to trigger the TCI on both channels!

Geez, there you go again, TC, reading closely! And there I go again, reading fast and missing a critical detail.

Triggering the TCI on both channels from each pick-up coil is a bit unexpected. Almost sounds like somebody has been inside there and done something really weird, of maybe there are multiple spots rubbed bare and touching each other. That, or maybe somebody messed around with the wires going into the plugsat the top end.

I'm still betting he's going to have to go inside the cover...

[redbone]

use multi meter

you can also use multimeter to check coils. there is a link on this site, but i'll just give a quick explain....set multimeter to read at least 25000 ohms. ;place meter lead on plug wire 2 and other meter lead on plug wire 3. should read approx 25000 ohms +/- like 10 %. quick easy way to checkk coil.

[Rasputin]

I just put new coils on my 79 XS1100SF. Both of the old ones read at about 1.5 ohms on the primary resistance value and 25K/ohms on the secondary resistance value. I can get you the exact readings if you like. One of them has a bad wire that needs more than just trimmed off a bit so I put on new ones. You could have the good one or both for that matter if you pay the shipping to you. I am at postal code T4L 1N9 in Canada so check out the shipping if you are interested. That goes for anyone else who may need a coil. Later

[edavi394]

Hi, thx for the offer But I already ordered a set from mikes xs before I read your post. I couldn't find anything wrong with the wires but the readings were not the same as what was posted here I don't know if I wasnt getting a good conection or the coil was bad or what but i thought for $64 and a more powerful coil I would just upgrade and fix the issue. now to find me some plug wires. I have been looking but can't find out what wire I need to get. I read somewhere in the fourms that I could use regular auto wires if I use the coils from mikesxs I don't want yellow wires in my bike I can't stand yellow anything anyway any color but yellow is fine with me. does anyone know a site to get some from? btw mikesxs is out of stock

thanks

[Axel]

wires for mikes coils

7mm (or 8mm) copper core ( I like solid) ,some like multi-strand .
If you use resistor plugs you can eliminate your resistor caps .Solder connectors on the wires and there you go . I hate yellow too ! I've seen ppl use automotive type wires so ...
Have you read this ?

http://www.xs11.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=12452

[edavi394]

Yes I actually have that saved as a pdf file . Thanks for the input. I was planning on using my caps I have since they seem to be in good shape. I think they are stock. I am not sure about resister plugs and caps I am guessing mine are resister caps

[TopCatGr58]

Hey Edavi,

I got my GREEN wires from Ebay!

The readings you got may have varied depending on whether you were measuring with the caps on or off the coils. You will want to measure the caps as well, because the internal resistors can get corroded and cause Xsive resistance! Should be about 5-8K ohm each. The coils without the caps should have been about 15K ohm. You can actually take the caps apart, they unscrew, and you can remove the resistor slug and check it for corrosion, etc. The NGK caps from MikesXS are fairly cheap, shame you didn't just order them with the coils, they also provided the solid core wires in black as well!
T.C.

[psycoreefer]

You can probably pick up wire from your local dealer or independent bike shop as well. I know all the ones around here sell wire by the foot, depending on what you want its like 20 - 50 cents a foot. Everything I've seen was plain black though.

[edavi394]

ok thx for the advice. i will check my local dealer today. Mikesxs was out of wire, and I thought about getting the caps but didn't mostly because I wanted the special ones for the inside :P and I think mine are fine. probably one of those things I will regret later though. I doubt I will do much to the bike until maybe tonight. it is in the 90's here today and the bike is in the sun. and I want to stay in the air

[edavi394]

ok i took readng from just my caps I haven't put any kind of cleaner in them yet here is what I got (#1) 9.34 (#2) 7-8 (#3) .234 (is a NGK cap with an angle) (#4) 7.84

to me it looks like #2 is dirty and need to be cleaned the number were constantly changing #3 seems to be bad and # 1 and 2 seam to be ok what's your thoughts?

[Axel]

caps

Grab some new caps . They are available everywhere .
Here is the code for them :

http://www.spark-plugs.co.uk/graphics/images/plugcaps/symbol.jpg

I would go for low resistance caps as I have stock coils .You have nice new coils so its less of a issue . I use 90's on the outside plugs and 102 's on the inside . So something like

LB05FP for the 90 degree

XB05FP for the 102 degree

At least then you will not have to worry about them .