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Ignition skip/misfire
- Thread starter gaps
- Start date
If you got the rotor clean it will stick.
YeeeeHaaawwww!!!!! Just got home from a shakedown run and she ran great. Pamcopete, you da man! If you ever find yourself passing thru New Haven CT be sure to let me know, I'll pick up the tab.
Here is a pic of the bike. I made a solo saddle for it, put a bicycle fender on the front and changed out the bars for a pair that came off my VStrom. I think it looks pretty good for the few bucks I have into her.
Here is a pic of the bike. I made a solo saddle for it, put a bicycle fender on the front and changed out the bars for a pair that came off my VStrom. I think it looks pretty good for the few bucks I have into her.
Attachments
pamcopete
Ride.Enjoy.Life is Simple
gaps,
That's great. maybe the management should sticky this thread because that problem is becoming more and more common as the TCI and the magnet gets older.
Check your timing to verify correct operation, and carry a couple of magnets and some JB on those long out of town trips!
By the way, I cannot take credit for this fix. I had suggested to another member, plattey, from Platteville, WI over at the garage that he should replace the rotor after I helped him diagnose the problem and he came up with the idea of JB'ing a new magnet to the rotor.
That's great. maybe the management should sticky this thread because that problem is becoming more and more common as the TCI and the magnet gets older.
Check your timing to verify correct operation, and carry a couple of magnets and some JB on those long out of town trips!
By the way, I cannot take credit for this fix. I had suggested to another member, plattey, from Platteville, WI over at the garage that he should replace the rotor after I helped him diagnose the problem and he came up with the idea of JB'ing a new magnet to the rotor.
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Pete, by the way, the part number you suggested from radio shack was correct 'The rare earth magnets are part # 64-1895. A two pack, 4.8 mm/ 3/16 ". $1.99 a pack.'.....
Im celebrating right now with a nice cold beer and a shot of good tequila, thanks again man
Im celebrating right now with a nice cold beer and a shot of good tequila, thanks again man
pamcopete
Ride.Enjoy.Life is Simple
gaps,
Well, that's better than the big bucks that a lot of people spend on replacement TCI boxes from Ebay.
They should try this mod first for $1.99.
Enjoy the beer!
PS: The Radio Shack part number for the magnets came from XSLeo.
Well, that's better than the big bucks that a lot of people spend on replacement TCI boxes from Ebay.
They should try this mod first for $1.99.Enjoy the beer!
PS: The Radio Shack part number for the magnets came from XSLeo.
When I read about the weak magnets, I went and bought some just in case. The 81 has the TCI. It needs a rotor, I have two bad TCI rotors to send in. If they come back with problems, the magnets will be the first things to try.
Damn, I'm still getting some skipping. It runs a lot better but not 100%. Today I fired it up, first kick on a 34F morning and off I go.
Withing the first 1/4 mile she starts missing a bit under load, not as bad as before I installed the magnet but still very evident. Same like before, if I honk the horn she falls on her face. After a few miles it improved to where I could lay on the horn without skipping but not perfect, still an occasional sputter.
I pulled over, disconnect rec/reg and right away it runs awesome, strong as could be, no skip...
I want to test my pickup coil next, I see 3 wires coming out, gray, orange and black. Where is the connector for these? I believe I should have 700 ohms black to gray and black to orange..is that correct? Could the pickup be a weak spot or do they just quit?
Any other suggestions?
Oh yeah, btw, I checked, the magnet is still there... : )
Withing the first 1/4 mile she starts missing a bit under load, not as bad as before I installed the magnet but still very evident. Same like before, if I honk the horn she falls on her face. After a few miles it improved to where I could lay on the horn without skipping but not perfect, still an occasional sputter.
I pulled over, disconnect rec/reg and right away it runs awesome, strong as could be, no skip...
I want to test my pickup coil next, I see 3 wires coming out, gray, orange and black. Where is the connector for these? I believe I should have 700 ohms black to gray and black to orange..is that correct? Could the pickup be a weak spot or do they just quit?
Any other suggestions?
Oh yeah, btw, I checked, the magnet is still there... : )
700 yeah about that, I just checked one, got about 600 ohms with a small (maybe 10%) drop as I ran a magnet over it.
Switch the meter to voltage for that. The tci looks for the voltage change.
Switch the meter to voltage for the magnet pass. The tci looks for the generated voltage.
I think I remember it under the left side cover but I might be wrong. It's easy to find because it just has three wires in it. Make sure it's clean and tight since resistance could impersonate a weak magnet (low output voltage). Theoretically.
pamcopete
Ride.Enjoy.Life is Simple
gaps,
Well, the corollary is a semi magnetized pickup coil. Remember the old tape recorders? Remember using a demagnetizing "wand" over then heads? Well, if Radio shack still has a demagnetizing "wand" available, then use it to de magnetize the pickups.
Well, the corollary is a semi magnetized pickup coil. Remember the old tape recorders? Remember using a demagnetizing "wand" over then heads? Well, if Radio shack still has a demagnetizing "wand" available, then use it to de magnetize the pickups.
Measure the resistance between the terminals on your horn and get back and I'll measure mine. If your resistance is low enough it would cause the battery voltage to drop enough to upset the tci. After you'd been running awhile the battery would have built up some and the drop might not be to a voltage low enough to upset the tci. When you lay on the horn does the neutral light get dimmer?
pamcopete
Ride.Enjoy.Life is Simple
gaps,
Well, theories abound. Your original post said that the problem occurs after the bike has warmed up and run a while. You also said that the battery voltage when running was that of a good charging system. But, what exactly is the battery voltage when running and this problem occurs? The TCI is sensitive to both high and low voltage, so perhaps you could check the battery voltage when the problem occurs, because it would take a while for the battery to charge up, and perhaps the voltage just keeps climbing after the battery has recovered from the start.
Well, theories abound. Your original post said that the problem occurs after the bike has warmed up and run a while. You also said that the battery voltage when running was that of a good charging system. But, what exactly is the battery voltage when running and this problem occurs? The TCI is sensitive to both high and low voltage, so perhaps you could check the battery voltage when the problem occurs, because it would take a while for the battery to charge up, and perhaps the voltage just keeps climbing after the battery has recovered from the start.
Excellent, I'll check resistance at the horn and running voltage when warm. I hadn't even thought of an over charge, that might explain why she runs best off the rec/reg... Unfortunately the weather and/or time constraints have kept me out of the garage but I'll do this next chance. I also want to see what the connector looks like from the pickup and check for resistance and corrosion.
Again, best damn forum I've been involved with...thanks again.
Again, best damn forum I've been involved with...thanks again.
I'm back at it trying to figure this ignition issue out, here is a recap. 1980 TCI, my bike starts right up, one or two kicks and runs great with reg/rec unplugged. Plug in reg/rec and it still starts easy but skips under load...meter shows aprox 14 volts just off idle with rec/reg plugged in.
So far Ive replaced coil/wires/plug caps
Tested pickup, found aprox 693 ohms both sides..in spec it seems
Added new rare earth magnet to rotor.
I can't understand why disconnecting my charging system seems to help the ignition work better other than the interferece of charging coil vs. pickup coil as discussed here prior..but my pickup coil test looked good and new magnet should help too. Where else do these circuits cross paths other than the magnetic fields under the side cover?
I'm almost ready to try a new wiring harness and/or PAMCO but would MUCH rather understand what I'm trying to fix before plugging in $$.
Another thought...I searched for this but didn't find an answer...can the Pamco trigger be used to fire the TCI unit?...just curious on that one.
So far Ive replaced coil/wires/plug caps
Tested pickup, found aprox 693 ohms both sides..in spec it seems
Added new rare earth magnet to rotor.
I can't understand why disconnecting my charging system seems to help the ignition work better other than the interferece of charging coil vs. pickup coil as discussed here prior..but my pickup coil test looked good and new magnet should help too. Where else do these circuits cross paths other than the magnetic fields under the side cover?
I'm almost ready to try a new wiring harness and/or PAMCO but would MUCH rather understand what I'm trying to fix before plugging in $$.
Another thought...I searched for this but didn't find an answer...can the Pamco trigger be used to fire the TCI unit?...just curious on that one.
pamcopete
Ride.Enjoy.Life is Simple
gaps,
Well, I thought that you had it with the magnet thing, but not so. The PAMCO cannot be used to trigger the TCI, but you can eliminate the TCI and use the PAMCO to trigger the stock coil.
If you are familiar with Curly and his trouble shooting guide, then he has an expression that may be appropriate:
"When the problem defies a solution, check the grounds". That is good advice always. So, locate and verify all the relevant grounds associated with both the charging system and the TCI. That means track down the actual point where the black wires are attached to the frame and verify that they are good by ohming them to the frame.
Well, I thought that you had it with the magnet thing, but not so. The PAMCO cannot be used to trigger the TCI, but you can eliminate the TCI and use the PAMCO to trigger the stock coil.
If you are familiar with Curly and his trouble shooting guide, then he has an expression that may be appropriate:
"When the problem defies a solution, check the grounds". That is good advice always. So, locate and verify all the relevant grounds associated with both the charging system and the TCI. That means track down the actual point where the black wires are attached to the frame and verify that they are good by ohming them to the frame.
Success!... I got it fixed finally, turned out to be ZD4 on my TCI board. This zener diode is located where the black/white wire comes in and it's value seems to be 12V because that is what I had my buddy solder in and she runs great now.....so if you have a TCI bike that runs well only with the rec/reg disconnected be sure to check this zener. Best I can figure is that the bike ran well off the battery because the TCI wants a nice steady 12 or so volts, with the charging system online voltage on the board was too high because of the bad zener which acts something like a voltage regulator for the board.....btw, another Radio Shack component, bag of 2 for about $1.60
BIG GIANT THANKS to all of you who helped along the way, really a great site with even better people behind it.
BIG GIANT THANKS to all of you who helped along the way, really a great site with even better people behind it.
