well i was left stranded again...

Collapse
X
 
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts
  • Cuda 69
    XSive Maximus
    • Jan 2012
    • 676
    • Greenwich N.Y.

    #16
    hey airborne, I had the same problem, it was the wires in the pick up coil,had to do the fix thats listed on here somewhere. Runs great now,even on all 4. John
    FOXS-XS11SG

    2009 Suzuki V Strom 650,Adventure in Touring,I call her "Smooth" SW Motech engine guard,Coocase top case w/ LED brake and tail lights,20" MRA touring screen w/adjusable bracket,Grip heaters,fender ex-tender,Givi hard sidebags

    1980 XS11SG-sold
    1999 Vulcan classic-sold
    1982 XJ 650-sold

    Old is only a state of mind......John

    Comment

    • airborneXS
      XStremely XSive
      • Feb 2012
      • 338
      • Houston, TX.

      #17
      so heres what i found when i ohm'd my coils...
      primary:
      1) 1.8
      2) 1.8

      secondary:
      W/ caps
      1) 25.7
      2) 24.9

      w/o caps
      1) 16.01
      2) 16.13

      i read that a member had this problem but it only showed up after the motor heated up...so maybe its good until the motor warms up a bit?
      79 XS11 special "Loki" - homemade 4-2 exhaust, pod filters, rebuilt forks with progressive springs, tkat fork brace, progressive shocks, rebuilt all brakes and MC's, rebuilt carbs with #142.5 main and #42.5 pilot, a custom front and chin fairing, and a handmade set of saddlebags....

      09 YZF-R1 " Toothless"

      04 Buell XB12R "Butterfly"

      "I had a name at some point, a birth-name, but now everyone just calls me Wolf...."

      Wolf
      Moto Militia MC

      Comment

      • DGXSER
        Doctor of XSology(Deceased)
        • Nov 2008
        • 12001
        • Cincinnati, Ohio

        #18
        Electrical items like the coils ussually will fail or work. Typically they do not get better after they fail (Note the term typically).

        I would start wiht the pick up coils as the source due to common issue and is often an intermittent issue.
        Life is what happens while your planning everything else!

        When your work speaks for itself, don't interrupt.

        81 XS1100 Special - Humpty Dumpty
        80 XS1100 Special - Project Resurrection


        Previously owned
        93 GSX600F
        80 XS1100 Special - Ruby
        81 XS1100 Special
        81 CB750 C
        80 CB750 C
        78 XS750

        Comment

        • natemoen
          Master of XSology
          • May 2010
          • 8640
          • Fargo

          #19
          As has been said repeatedly, check your pickup coils!!! 750 ohms and pull and tug on.the wires as you test.

          Also measure your ballast resistor. Should be 1.5 ohms as well.
          Nathan
          KD9ARL

          μολὼν λαβέ

          1978 XS1100E
          K&N Filter
          #45 pilot Jet, #137.5 Main Jet
          OEM Exhaust
          ATK Fork Brace
          LED Dash lights
          Ammeter, Oil Pressure, Oil Temp, and Volt Meters

          Green Monster Coils
          SS Brake Lines
          Vision 550 Auto Tensioner

          In any moment of decision the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing.

          Theodore Roosevelt

          Comment

          • skids
            XS-XJ Super Guru
            • Jul 2002
            • 5048
            • Florissant, CO, USA

            #20
            Originally posted by airborneXS
            i read that a member had this problem but it only showed up after the motor heated up...so maybe its good until the motor warms up a bit?
            Plug wire coils can fail when they are hot. Been there - done that.
            Skids (Sid Hansen)

            Down to one 1978 E. Stock air box with K&N filter, 81H pipes and carbs, 8500 feet elevation.

            Comment

            • crazy steve
              XS-XJ Guru MODERATOR
              • Jan 2009
              • 7932
              • Beautiful outer Yelm, WA

              #21
              Originally posted by natemoen
              As has been said repeatedly, check your pickup coils!!! 750 ohms and pull and tug on.the wires as you test.

              Also measure your ballast resistor. Should be 1.5 ohms as well.
              Yep, do this next. Your coil numbers are good, I'd look elsewhere for the problem now. Unless everything else checks good and you still have the same problem, I'd assume the coils are ok. You could have an issue in the TCI too; those have been known to act up once they heat up.
              Fast, Cheap, Reliable... Pick any two

              '78E original owner - resto project
              '78E ???? owner - Modder project FJ forks, 4-piston calipers F/R, 160/80-16 rear tire
              '82 XJ rebuild project
              '80SG restified, red SOLD
              '79F parts...
              '81H more parts...

              Other current bikes:
              '93 XL1200 Anniversary Sportster 85RWHP
              '86 XL883/1200 Chopper
              '82 XL1000 w/1450cc Buell, Baker 6-speed, in-progress project
              Cage: '13 Mustang GT/CS with a few 'custom' touches
              Yep, can't leave nuthin' alone...

              Comment

              • airborneXS
                XStremely XSive
                • Feb 2012
                • 338
                • Houston, TX.

                #22
                ok im feeling kinda dumb now...TCI? where do i hook the leads to the pick up coils to ohm it? the ballast resistor is the rectangular metal box under the coils?
                79 XS11 special "Loki" - homemade 4-2 exhaust, pod filters, rebuilt forks with progressive springs, tkat fork brace, progressive shocks, rebuilt all brakes and MC's, rebuilt carbs with #142.5 main and #42.5 pilot, a custom front and chin fairing, and a handmade set of saddlebags....

                09 YZF-R1 " Toothless"

                04 Buell XB12R "Butterfly"

                "I had a name at some point, a birth-name, but now everyone just calls me Wolf...."

                Wolf
                Moto Militia MC

                Comment

                • crazy steve
                  XS-XJ Guru MODERATOR
                  • Jan 2009
                  • 7932
                  • Beautiful outer Yelm, WA

                  #23
                  The TCI is the big black box under your seat; that's the ignition box. To check your pick-up coils, unplug the smaller of the two plugs on it's side and check between the orange and gray and the blue and gray. You should get about 720 ohms. But you may have broken wires at the pick-up coils themselves (extremely common problem); to check that, with your meter still connected as above, remove the timing cover and pull/tug/wiggle each wire and see if the meter changes reading. If it does, the wire is broken inside the insulation. If you see the wire stretch when you pull on it, it's broken. Because these move with the vacuum advance, a broken wire can come and go, so that's a very likely candidate for your problem. The 'fix' is posted here:


                  And yes, the ballast resistor is the silver box by the left coil. Those can go open when they get hot, so that could be it too....
                  Fast, Cheap, Reliable... Pick any two

                  '78E original owner - resto project
                  '78E ???? owner - Modder project FJ forks, 4-piston calipers F/R, 160/80-16 rear tire
                  '82 XJ rebuild project
                  '80SG restified, red SOLD
                  '79F parts...
                  '81H more parts...

                  Other current bikes:
                  '93 XL1200 Anniversary Sportster 85RWHP
                  '86 XL883/1200 Chopper
                  '82 XL1000 w/1450cc Buell, Baker 6-speed, in-progress project
                  Cage: '13 Mustang GT/CS with a few 'custom' touches
                  Yep, can't leave nuthin' alone...

                  Comment

                  • airborneXS
                    XStremely XSive
                    • Feb 2012
                    • 338
                    • Houston, TX.

                    #24
                    so im assuming that you mean this box:



                    i cant find an orange and gray or blu and gray wire, however there is an orange wire and gray wire...i got no ohms between those though...

                    79 XS11 special "Loki" - homemade 4-2 exhaust, pod filters, rebuilt forks with progressive springs, tkat fork brace, progressive shocks, rebuilt all brakes and MC's, rebuilt carbs with #142.5 main and #42.5 pilot, a custom front and chin fairing, and a handmade set of saddlebags....

                    09 YZF-R1 " Toothless"

                    04 Buell XB12R "Butterfly"

                    "I had a name at some point, a birth-name, but now everyone just calls me Wolf...."

                    Wolf
                    Moto Militia MC

                    Comment

                    • BA80
                      Doctor of XSology
                      • Oct 2010
                      • 9980
                      • Tulsa, Ok

                      #25
                      I believe it's that 4 wire connector that goes to the pickup coils. There is also a connector behind the fuse panel that the pickups actually plug into the harness and that's where the wires change colors.

                      You should be able to look at the schematic in the manuals to see which wires are which.
                      Greg

                      Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.”

                      ― Albert Einstein

                      80 SG Ol' Okie;79 engine & carbs w/pods, 45 pilots, 140 mains, Custom Mac 4 into 2 exhaust, ACCT,XS850 final drive,110/90/19 front tire,TKat fork brace, XS750 140 MPH speedometer, Vetter IV fairing, aftermarket hard bags and trunk, LG high back seat, XJ rear shocks.

                      The list changes.

                      Comment

                      • crazy steve
                        XS-XJ Guru MODERATOR
                        • Jan 2009
                        • 7932
                        • Beautiful outer Yelm, WA

                        #26
                        Originally posted by airborneXS
                        The right plug is the pick-ups. The top two wires are one side of the coils, the bottom two are the other side. Left and right sides should be the pairs. Check between each pair, looking for 720 ohms +/- 20%. If either is open or outside spec, that's a problem. If they check good, reperform the tests while stretching/pulling/wiggling the wires at the coils to check for breaks. If you see changes on the meter, you've got a bad wire.
                        Fast, Cheap, Reliable... Pick any two

                        '78E original owner - resto project
                        '78E ???? owner - Modder project FJ forks, 4-piston calipers F/R, 160/80-16 rear tire
                        '82 XJ rebuild project
                        '80SG restified, red SOLD
                        '79F parts...
                        '81H more parts...

                        Other current bikes:
                        '93 XL1200 Anniversary Sportster 85RWHP
                        '86 XL883/1200 Chopper
                        '82 XL1000 w/1450cc Buell, Baker 6-speed, in-progress project
                        Cage: '13 Mustang GT/CS with a few 'custom' touches
                        Yep, can't leave nuthin' alone...

                        Comment

                        • BA80
                          Doctor of XSology
                          • Oct 2010
                          • 9980
                          • Tulsa, Ok

                          #27
                          I've always checked them from the plug behind the fuse panel. It just seems easier to get to.
                          Greg

                          Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.”

                          ― Albert Einstein

                          80 SG Ol' Okie;79 engine & carbs w/pods, 45 pilots, 140 mains, Custom Mac 4 into 2 exhaust, ACCT,XS850 final drive,110/90/19 front tire,TKat fork brace, XS750 140 MPH speedometer, Vetter IV fairing, aftermarket hard bags and trunk, LG high back seat, XJ rear shocks.

                          The list changes.

                          Comment

                          • ESJr1642
                            Truly XSive
                            • Jan 2012
                            • 103
                            • Groveland, FL

                            #28
                            The Nasty Pick Up Wires!

                            I can tell you this, lost all spark last night after trying to get a miss out of the bike at 2000 rpms. I pulled the ignition cover off and moved the wires on the pick coil and that was all she wrote.

                            Searched the treads over on this site, went out today and sure enough, wires were broke. Took my time and fixed the wires, runs the best it has since I picked it up at the beginning of the year.

                            Without the advise on this site and the knowledge of the members, I would have never looked at these wires.

                            Thank You Very Much!
                            Ernie
                            1979 XS110F, Stock
                            1980 XS1100G, Mostly Stock, gifted to my son.
                            2000 YZ 250, Sold
                            2002 YZ125, Sold
                            2009 Royal Star Venture
                            '94 Pontiac Trans Am, 25th Anniversary, For Sale

                            Ernie

                            Comment

                            • airborneXS
                              XStremely XSive
                              • Feb 2012
                              • 338
                              • Houston, TX.

                              #29
                              so i got it ohm'd, one side read 780, the other side 765, and tugged on wires all over the place around the pick up coils, and found nothing, it moved on the meter maybe 1 to 5 ohms. i checked the ballast resistor, it read 1.8 ohms. i plugged everything back together and now it wont turn over. the starter engages but not fire up. after a few try's of starting it i did get a huge flame shoot out the exhaust and singe my leg hairs tho. i got my new coils in today so im going to try and replace those and see what happens. im at my wits end with this.
                              79 XS11 special "Loki" - homemade 4-2 exhaust, pod filters, rebuilt forks with progressive springs, tkat fork brace, progressive shocks, rebuilt all brakes and MC's, rebuilt carbs with #142.5 main and #42.5 pilot, a custom front and chin fairing, and a handmade set of saddlebags....

                              09 YZF-R1 " Toothless"

                              04 Buell XB12R "Butterfly"

                              "I had a name at some point, a birth-name, but now everyone just calls me Wolf...."

                              Wolf
                              Moto Militia MC

                              Comment

                              • BA80
                                Doctor of XSology
                                • Oct 2010
                                • 9980
                                • Tulsa, Ok

                                #30
                                Wolf, under the the cover the shift lever shaft comes out of, tucked into it's own little niche next to the oil pan is the neutral light switch. The wire to that runs in the same sheath as the pickup coil wires and sometimes the insulation will get bad on all those wires in there and the pickup wires will ground through that switch.

                                There is a phillips screw holding that wire to the switch. You don't have to take it all the way out but loosen it enough to disconnect the neutral light wire.

                                Try to start it up with that wire off.
                                Greg

                                Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.”

                                ― Albert Einstein

                                80 SG Ol' Okie;79 engine & carbs w/pods, 45 pilots, 140 mains, Custom Mac 4 into 2 exhaust, ACCT,XS850 final drive,110/90/19 front tire,TKat fork brace, XS750 140 MPH speedometer, Vetter IV fairing, aftermarket hard bags and trunk, LG high back seat, XJ rear shocks.

                                The list changes.

                                Comment

                                Working...