Wiredgeorge Repowering Ignition Coils Parts List Q

otakar wrote:

OK I just went to my bike and measured the voltage between the black common wire to the coils and the coil ground and measured 12.3V This is the original 1981 1000CSR harness which I am using on the bike. This is with the ignition switch on and the bike not running. Am I to presume that this modification would do absolutely nothing for me? Otto

Am I to presume that this modification would do absolutely nothing for me?
YES, presuming voltage measured across battery terminals also measures the same 12.3V.

Ideally, voltage at coil will be same as battery voltage, which indicates no voltage loss in the bike wiring or connections between battery and coil.

Good Luck!

Just for the sake of my ignorance, is the voltage being measured between ground and the common black coil wire? They should be one (designed for anyways) in the same...

I won't say for all Kawi electrical systems for I haven't reviewed every schematic for all the different models and such but I'm fairly confident with 99.9% degree of accuracy stating that all motorcycle frames are grounded to the battery (-)... Just as your car frame is...

The common black (KZ900 black w/yellow stripe) is either connected to the battery minus/frame and there is a ground to the motor case as well.

All in all, battery (-) is the same potential as engine case, frame pretty much any non current carrying path. This is actually a safety feature by grounding the frame.

Is the voltage being measured while bike is running or off?

If measuring battery voltage for example, doesn't matter really except for the fact the measurements will differ slightly... In either case, measure from the frame or battery (-) or engine case, should receive the same measurement results.

Example, with the ignition switch off, you have removed the load off the battery so measuring the battery voltage is just that, you're only measuring the energy stored in the battery, thus charged battery.

Meausring the batteries (+) in reference to ground will be roughly +12-12.5Vdc.

With the ignition switch on, you should see a variation in the measured voltages pending loads such as head light, tail lights, blinkers what ever...

Now measure your battery with the engine running... Now you're measuring the charging voltage to the battery somewhere around +13-14Vdc.... Obviously different models will meausure differently due to charging system designs.

It's all Ohms Law folks.... Just the way it works...

Old Man Rock wrote:

+8Vdc is a problem...

As most here know... I'm no big fan of this mod (for technical reasons only) so here goes just the same... Again!

This mod would provide direct battery feed to your coils which will help no doubt but the rest of your electrical system would still only receive the +8Vdc as in your case, not good... For a quick fix to get home, by all means wire it directly to the battery or temporarily through a on/off single pull single throw switch.

The mod was derived for coil voltages slightly under the +12Vdc requirements due to old wiring and terminations. Not sever loss as in your case.

In your case, you have a partially shorted issue such as faulty stator VAC, voltage regulator Vdc, faulty coil, partially shorted condensor or a harness conductor partially shorting somewhere...

Henceforth, if your charging system is putting out the ideal Volatges/currents you will be stranded with a drained battery, with out a doubt.

All in all, your problem is more than +12Vdc at the coils...

Sorry all, not trying to start a war here but this is a field for which I have a degree in (Engineering Electronics) and we've seen this way to many times now where this mod was accomplished only to find it didn't resolve a damn thing....

dave,
i ll play devils advocate and say my bike puts out 14.7 at idle and about 14.9 at 4k, yet i had something like 9.change at the coils....do i have a wiring problem? probably....is my wiring harness 30 years old? yup...
am i astute at diagnosing wiring harnesses? nope...can i increase my coil voltage with 30 bucks worth of parts and 45 minutes of my time...yup...technically, is this the right way to go....probably not....is this a good stop gap measure untill i want to get a new harness..you bet....it would be a boring world if we all thought alike,
but since we dont...to each his own......

"14.7 at idle "... You sure about this?
Seems a little high for idle, at 4krpm, sweet!

Your 1000 is different than my 900 so may be normal.
What's your manual specifications on this?

Ok, let me ask you this one.... First off, somewhat hijacking this thread so sorry dude...:blush:

Same time, we're not speaking of less than a volt here, he's measuring a 4Vdc difference, that's huge!

OK, your willing to spend $30 for a mechanical relay and associated wiring components that can go bad due to contact pitting, mechanical failures, etc... right...

If you have +12Vdc or higher at the battery, but not on the output of your ignition switch, do you have to obtain a new harness?

Well of course not, never stated that.... Possibly the switch is the problem... Hell, possibly the battery feed conductor or terminations is bad from that one single conductor...

Run a new #14AWG conductor from the battery (+) up to the switch +12Vdc termination, does your coil voltage now equal your battery voltage and unsolder the original +12Vdc and solder in the new conductor. You can run it on the outside for testing/verifications first. Hell, you can even use alligator jumpers without having to disconnect the original +12Vdc conductors...

Then run another conductor from the ignition switch output to the coils.... Does the coil voltage now match your battery voltage. Guess what, now you have a true battery voltage to the rest of your electrical system as well...

Bet you a Dr. Pepper your lights now seem brighter...

Pretty simple, two conductors and you have accomplished more than you think....

Bottom line, if your willing to spend $30 why not troubleshoot and repair the problem versus bypassing it.... You can spend less than $3 for a couple of feet of 14AWG.

FOr T-shooting the ignition switch... +12Vdc in, with no load or load for that matter, 8Vdc out... Hmmm, ignition switch contacts dirty, possibly after 30 years... Oh wait, maybe they have carbon build up! Just like mechanical relay contacts will do in time.

BTW, If you had +12Vdc or greater at your coils pre mod, then this would have placed you within OEM specifications (pending manual specs)...

Best guess, if still carbon/sooty, then carb adjustments would be in order... Yeah, yeah I know, they have been adjusted or came to you with preset jetting... I use to think the same thing... :whistle:

But hey, what do I know, no carb expert here....

Ah well, I've opened my pie hole way too much on this subject... If it works for ya, then great, good to go...

oberkfell....

Here you go... Electrical checks for your stator and regulator and charging system for that matter...

Mind you, this is for a KZ900 but would think similar... Those with KZ1000 feel free to chime in or add to the procedure... Or better yet, cut and paste from your manual...

Might as well add this for you till you get your manual...

To test for voltage drops, it would be more telling if the bike is running. If not, then there is a possibility that the coils don't have current through them. If there is no current, there can be no voltage drop on the wiring to the coils. (But there will still be voltage drop due to current elsewhere, as in the lighting circuit etc., you just won't be seeing all of the possible drops.)

Another way to measure the voltage drop directly is to put the volt meter's red lead on the battery's positive terminal, and the meter's black lead on the positive side of the coils. That will measure the exact voltage drop. Ideally, this will be less than one volt. More than two and you may want to clean up some connections.

Here's where I'd start, and in this order of likelihood:
First, the fuse holders. They get dirty, and the telltale sign is melted or burned insulators in that area.

Second, the main ignition switch. This is much more difficult to fix since the contacts usually get deep gouges in them. It may be easier to just replace the switch or at least the contact plate and wire plate.

Third, the kill switch. All coil current goes through this little switch and it gets pretty dirty. It also gets a lot of water-related corrosion if the bike sits out a lot. This one is a little easier to clean, but the parts are small.

Then after that, it's going to be a bunch of wires and connectors.

Old Man Rock wrote:

Might as well add this for you till you get your manual...

OK I measured to the black coil wire going to the one coil shown in this schematic. Is this still a good measurement for the voltage test?

With ignition switch ON, the red wire from kill switch is supposed to feed battery voltage to both coils. This red wire to each coil is where the voltage is supposed to match battery voltage.

The different color wires to the other coil primary terminals serve to ground the coil primary winding. The coil fires when the ground is interrupted via coordinated action between the igniter and pick-up coils.

At least that's my understanding.

Good Luck!

Edit -- red wire from kill switch, not from igniter.

Old Man Rock wrote:

oberkfell....

Here you go... Electrical checks for your stator and regulator and charging system for that matter...

Mind you, this is for a KZ900 but would think similar... Those with KZ1000 feel free to chime in or add to the procedure... Or better yet, cut and paste from your manual...

Thanks for the info.

I will work on the beast this weekend and report back.

Fuse And Fuse Holder Designations

1. The older Kawasaki’s use a glass tubed fuse with the designation of AGX 1” long. Most good auto parts stores can get them for you. They are ¼” in diameter.

2. The more common AGC is 1 ¼” long and may not fit the smaller fuse clips. Again, ¼” in diameter.

3. To clean and polish the fuse clips, I use a cotton swab(Q- Tip) and some Brasso metal cleaner or Turtle Wax Chrome Polish. I suppose any good metal polish would work.

4. These fuses can fail internally but look good, only by removing them from the clip and electrically continuity checking with either a self powered test light, or a multimeter set on OHMS can they be determined to be in good shape.

5. A physical inspection of the metal end caps for tightness will tell you if the fuse is serviceable.

6. Most modern motorcycles are now using the automobile “Blade” style fuse with the designation of ATC or ATO.

7. The reduced sized “Mini” Blade style fuse holder uses the ATM size of fuses.

8. If the fuse and fuse holder overheat, it could soften or anneal the grip of the clip, it might require squeezing the clip to restore the tightness.

9. A list of where to purchase “Blade” style fuses and holders:
www.waytekwire.com
www.rallylights.com
www.delcity.net

Not hijacking, figured I ask within this post rather than start another.

Would you not be able to run the power to the inline fuse directly from the positive terminal of the battery, rather than the solenoid terminal?

Is there any difference?

Why the post on the solenoid?