Replacing Coils+Ballast Resistors

Don't use the 1.5 ohm coils without a ballast if they are really 1.5 ohms. There'll be too much current.

they are 3 ohm coils;)

Clarifications for Nate, Lou and wireman (if necessary )

The stock coils are 1.5 ohm + 1.5 ohm ballast = 3 ohms.

The dyna coils = 3 ohms alone + no ballast.

Left (sitting on the bike) coil is 1&4 - right is 2&3.

The plug wires are labelled 1-2-3-4 for simplicity I spose from left to right matching the cylinder numbering. :whistle:

Report to follow this weekend...

neilage66, Not familiar with your bike but most of the other KZ1000 that used ballast resistors had 2.5 Ohm primary resistance coils. The ballast resistors are 1.5 Ohms. I have seen the ballast resistors mounted in a couple places. On my ST bikes, there is ONLY ONE ballast resistor on the side of the battery box and on other KZ1000s I have seen them mounted up near where the horn mounts between the frame down tubes.

I had a problem with both my coils and ballast resistors on my ST... the resistance had gotten so high that there was little spark. The coils had drifted up over 7 Ohms and the ballast resistor had increased resistance as well so I just pitched the whole mess and installed Dyna green coils. The only thing is, is that I replaced the stock igniter and pickup coils as well and install Dyna plug wires/caps. I did the igniter tests suggested by the Kaw Factory Service Manual and couldn't get the stock igniter to test as it should... I have never had a stock igniter test as the manual suggests so I am not sure how well these procedures work. Try your stock igniter and pickup coils before pitching them.

oops, for some reason I thought you were going to use the OEMs without the ballasts :blush: ...

carry on

Tonight, I unwired the coils and removed them + the wiring, etc and yes there is only 1 ballast resistor working with both coils which was mounted in front of the coils near the horn as George said.
Under the coils is a pair of ballast resistors that are wired into the reserve lighting system but the wiring diagrams show these as 1 resistor. I mistakenly thought each OEM coil had its own resistor but this is not the case.
Anyway, the green Dynateks will be an easy wiring job this weekend as connection points are present to tap into the circuits. I stocked up on some new wire and a few connectors today and I need to make a run to the hardware store for some socket head cap screws to mount the coils, new nuts and such tomorrow after work.
I will use the stock ignitor, which tested right to spec with the manual and the stock pickup coils which also tested out fine.
Thanks for the input...more to come.

Your comment re the twin ballast resistors got me... couldn't figure out why they would run two... I am not sure the reserve light thing is a resistor... not sure what it does exactly; it is about 1" square that is about 5/8" deep as I recall. The ballast resistor will look like a ceramic rectangle about 3" long. Also, while you are doing this job, read the "Coil Repowering" tech tip on our web site under "wg's Tech Stuff Index".

George, the 2 "ballast resistors" for the reserve lighting system are about 5/8" square and 3" long...they look similar to the ole 350 Chevy ceramic resistors that were usually mounted on the firewall.

So...new plugs, new high tension leads, new NGK plug caps, dyna greens, new coil hardware, new connectors, a bit of multimeter diagnostics work, a little clean up and some head scratching...she's purring on all four!

Also got some chrome plugs for the reed valve openings on the valve cover and some new rubber vacuum plugs for the intake boots. Baffles been repacked, brakes have been flushed and need to install new clutch cable which is hanging over the workbench cause the old one is melted and rusted pretty good in a spot - now there's excitement for ya!

Starts cold with no choke so I think the pilot circuit on the VM29's is a bit rich, but seems to idle best @ 1.0-1.5 turns out on the air screws. She has a little popping when the rpm's drop down to idle too. I think the o-rings on the air screws are not sealing 100% as they looked a little moist with fuel as I was adjusting them. The hardware store is open on Sunday so...

I will be tempted to go for a ride soon, but will wait till I get the thing registered, plated and insured.

More to come in other forums regarding Earl's Fittings Co., Kooler Kontrol on oil cooler, etc...I need to take some more pics for y'all.

All Kawasaki's used 5K spark plug caps. Yamaha used 10 K caps, but only on inside cylinders #2 & #3. It's hard for me to believe that your ballast resistors were bad, coils and all the other things you replaced.

Usually the answer is mutch simpiler, But I am glad it's working for you.

Post edited by: Capt. Quirk, at: 2007/06/03 15:23

Capt. Quirk wrote:

All Kawasaki's used 5K spark plug caps. Yamaha used 10 K caps, but only on inside cylinders #2 & #3. It's hard for me to believe that your ballast resistors were bad, coils and all the other things you replaced.

Usually the answer is mutch simpiler, But I am glad it's working for you.<br><br>Post edited by: Capt. Quirk, at: 2007/06/03 15:23

he never said the ballast resistor was bad.changing the coils was my idea since his ignition checked out ok.i had some extra 3 ohm coils i donated to the cause and he had to eliminate the ballast resistor to make the new coils work;)and it seemed to work:whistle:

Post edited by: wireman, at: 2007/06/03 16:32

Replaced o-rings on the idle air mix screws today and it idles better and smooths out more easily. It actually needed a little choke to start when cold. Got the fairing and bodywork back on. Slapped the GPz plate on her (couldn't take it! :laugh: ) and after checking clutch was operational as is...went for a spin in the country. After forgetting, and then remembering to turn the petcock to ON it ran pretty well considering its long hibernation. Had to stop and adjust the idle down some more as it was high after everything warmed up and was flowing. Everything felt pretty good and I was taking it pretty easy but couldn't resist twisting her a little. So we're on the road...after proper registration and such and the details will continue to get worked out along the way...possible rejetting etc.

I'll post some pics in Chit Chat so's not to take up all Stein's server space in the electrical archive...
:evil: :ohmy: :laugh:

Capt. Quirk wrote:

All Kawasaki's used 5K spark plug caps. Yamaha used 10 K caps, but only on inside cylinders #2 & #3. It's hard for me to believe that your coils were bad and all the other things you replaced.

Usually the answer is mutch simpiler, But I am glad it's working for you

I stand corrected