XS650D sudden loss of power

5twins said:
Well, on the bright side, you are now the perfect candidate for a Pamco with the E-advance. You need something to replace the advance unit anyway and the E-advance does just that, totally eliminating it. But I see you've done that already, lol.
Click to expand...
Haha yes I do seem to have the elimination part handled. Now I was considering the pamco but I also kinda wanted to hang onto the mechanical advance/points system because it seems like everyone drops it first thing.
Not quite sure why I want to keep that original when I want to build my top end with the 750 big bore, a cam, valves, springs, and change my carbs... but alas.

Could you drop me a link to that pamco please though?

Thanks for all the help everyone. I appreciate it.
 
They are basically the same. The "simplified" in the description refers to the newly designed sensor plate. They both use that. The original just doesn't have the E-advance. You still need an advance unit, which you no longer have. Add the cost of a replacement advance unit to the original Pamco price and it's not much different than the E-advance version. The E-advance is reported to work better than the old mechanical advance. The bike runs better and smoother because the advance is more precise and accurate.

If you buy directly from Pete, you won't get a coil. But that's not a problem. We can use Harley coils and they're a dime a dozen. It's actually a little cheaper to buy a separate coil than to get a kit from Mike's that includes one of their Chinese no-name coils.
 
5twins said:
They are basically the same. The "simplified" in the description refers to the newly designed sensor plate. They both use that. The original just doesn't have the E-advance. You still need an advance unit, which you no longer have. Add the cost of a replacement advance unit to the original Pamco price and it's not much different than the E-advance version. The E-advance is reported to work better than the old mechanical advance. The bike runs better and smoother because the advance is more precise and accurate.

If you buy directly from Pete, you won't get a coil. But that's not a problem. We can use Harley coils and they're a dime a dozen. It's actually a little cheaper to buy a separate coil than to get a kit from Mike's that includes one of their Chinese no-name coils.
Click to expand...
Where do you get the Harley coils from? And what model Harley do they come from?
 
Quote:
"Now I was considering the pamco but I also kinda wanted to hang onto the mechanical advance/points system because it seems like everyone drops it first thing."

There's a very good reason that most people migrate away from points ignition and mechanical advance. Because of their mechanical design, they wear and do not stay in calibration for long periods. Set then to-day and in a few months they may be out of calibration. The mechanical fly-weights and springs are worn out which gives a lumpy advance curve and a stretched out advance range.........................may cause a hole to appear in the top of the piston!
If you have enough patience and really want to make the mechanical stuff work, then go for it and enjoy, but you've been warned.

A Pamco with E-advance is light years ahead of the old mechanical stuff. Nothing to wear, and a nice linear advance curve.
 
Since the mechanical advance has failed and left you on the side of the road. This would be a good reason not to keep the antique ignition system.
 
retiredgentleman said:
Quote:
"Now I was considering the pamco but I also kinda wanted to hang onto the mechanical advance/points system because it seems like everyone drops it first thing."

There's a very good reason that most people migrate away from points ignition and mechanical advance. Because of their mechanical design, they wear and do not stay in calibration for long periods. Set then to-day and in a few months they may be out of calibration. The mechanical fly-weights and springs are worn out which gives a lumpy advance curve and a stretched out advance range.........................may cause a hole to appear in the top of the piston!
If you have enough patience and really want to make the mechanical stuff work, then go for it and enjoy, but you've been warned.

A Pamco with E-advance is light years ahead of the old mechanical stuff. Nothing to wear, and a nice linear advance curve.
Click to expand...

scabber said:
Since the mechanical advance has failed and left you on the side of the road. This would be a good reason not to keep the antique ignition system.
Click to expand...
Some very good points there. So I take it that y'all find it to be worth the price tag?
 
Well guys, I was on my lunch break today, and my coworkers and i make a hobby of getting each other to spend a lot of money on car/motorcycle parts... So long story short i spent the $250 and my new electronic ignition/advance and dual output coil is on the way
 
5twins said:
I get them off eBay. The Harley model really isn't the important thing, the primary resistance of the coil is. You can see on his web site that Pete recommends one with between 2.5 and 4.5Ω. He told me that one towards the lower end of that range works a little better. I use one of these 2.8Ω Andrews coils .....

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Andrews-237240-High-Performance-Coil-2-8-ohm-/221839447074?fits=Make:Harley-Davidson&hash=item33a6a95422:g:Js8AAOSwgQ9VuRPo&vxp=mtr
Click to expand...
I got that coil and I was lookong at it, where do you mount yours?
 
Pretty much in the same area as the two originals. I had to make up a little custom bracket. This "rolls" the coil into the center of the frame. I also included a tab on it to hold the flasher unit so I could move it back a little bit to provide more room for the coil .....

NewCoilBracket.jpg


NewCoilBracket2.jpg


The coil pictured above was the first one I started out with while I still had points, an Accel. It is the same size and shape as the Andrews so it was just a matter of swapping them once I got that one. It nestles into the frame space quite nicely .....

AndrewsCoil2.jpg


AndrewsCoil.jpg


If you still have the turn signal self canceler installed, bend it's bracket up some and place the unit on top .....

TSCancelerRelocated.jpg
 
Wiring the dual output coil is pretty simple. One side gets switched power from the harness, the other gets the output from the Pamco. The two little coil terminals don't have a polarity. In other words, there is no "+" and "-". You can connect power from the harness or the Pamco output to either one. For power from the harness, you can use one of the two reds or R/W's that originally powered the two old coils. The other can be used to power the Pamco if you like. On a basic Pamco, that was the red wire from the Pamco backing plate that replaces your points plate. On the E-advance version, I'm not sure what wire that would be. The instructions should tell you. Here's how I set up my standard Pamco. I utilized existing wiring as much as possible .....

PamcoConnections.jpg


Yes, you will need to provide new plug wires for your new coil. They plug right into the coil like car plug wires into a car distributer cap so they will need that plug crimped on the end of the wire. I use silicone VW Beetle plug wires because they come with those crimps on them and they're pretty cheap. A set of 5 is about $15 to $20. You want standard metal core wire, not the resistor type .....

EMPIPlugWire.jpg


You will also need to add an NGK plug cap, the 5K ohm type .....

NGKLB05.jpg


I recommend the LB05F, the terminal stud type. I think they grip better than the terminal nut type.
 

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