1980 GS550L Dyna Coil Mod

[bobiii84]

I'm going to replace my old coils with some new dyna coils here in the next few months when I find time. However, I would like some advice as to what kind of coils exactly and if anyone has a guide I would love to look over it. I used the search and only came up with one guide by prosplay but I'm not sure if it's what I need. If you have any advice it would be much appreciated, thanks!

Bob

[Steve]

I think the general concensus for electronic ignition is to use their "green" coils.

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[bobiii84]

So get the "green" coils and new plug wires. Anything else I need or is that pretty much it? No other changes? Thanks!

[bobiii84]

So I was going through the search function trying to find a step by step dyna coil guide and have come up short. I've been through almost 5 pages of threads and I'm tired. So here's my question. When I started installing the new 3.0 Ohm Dyna coils I pulled the plug wires off of one side so far and cut the 2 wires powering it so that I can use them on the new ones. Does it matter where I put those wires on the Dyna coils? They didn't come with any type of instruction so I figured I should ask. I also have concern of the placement of the coil wires in the coils. Looks like one coil goes to both outers and one goes to both inners. Does the placement matter here on the Dyna coils? I have no clear way to differentiate between them and they aren't marked "#1", "#2". Lastly, I bought a couple 14 gauge in-line fuses that I wanted to stick in here to protect my new coils. I'm still not sure what's going on with the electrical on the bike and I want to be as safe as possible. However, these wires look smaller than 14 gauge so I don't think I can use them. Any advice? Thanks!

[hikermikem]

When I started installing the new 3.0 Ohm Dyna coils I pulled the plug wires off of one side so far and cut the 2 wires powering it so that I can use them on the new ones. Does it matter where I put those wires on the Dyna coils?

If by "plug wires" you mean the small gage wires that power the coils, then no, it doesn't matter which wire goes to the coil input terminals.

What does matter however, is keeping those wires on the same side they came from; meaning don't mix up the left coil ones with the right coil ones.

I also have concern of the placement of the coil wires in the coils. Looks like one coil goes to both outers and one goes to both inners. Does the placement matter here on the Dyna coils? I have no clear way to differentiate between them and they aren't marked "#1", "#2".

If by "coil wires" you mean the spark plug wires that feed each cylinder, then no, it doesn't matter which wire goes to the coil outputs.

What does matter however, is making sure you have the left coil plug wires going to cylinders 1 & 4, the right coil plug wires feeding cylinders 2 & 3.

While sitting on the bike the outer left cylinder is #1, numbered in order to the far right outer cylinder that's #4.

[bobiii84]

Cool! I was hoping it was as simple as that Thanks for the info, any clue how I can use those in-line fuses or would I need smaller gauge wire?

[bobiii84]

hiccup

Ran into a small problem. Posting pics of the issues. First of all the wires powering the coil come VERY close to touching the mounting screw/spacer. The second issue is that when I place the coil on here with the factory spacer, the pictured screw for the power of the coil touches the frame. I'll assume that I should add more to the spacing for the latter, but I'm not sure what to do about the other. Any suggestions? Thanks!

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c208/bobiii84/182769_10150109642437768_538227767_6349759_6414369_n.jpg

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c208/bobiii84/183278_10150109642002768_538227767_6349748_3863713_n.jpg

[bobiii84]

So today I picked up some slightly longer sleeves but they didn't have my size in aluminum so I picked them up in brass, is this alright? I think it should be fine but I wanted to check. Let me know, thanks!

[hikermikem]

Yeah, you want to make sure the leads don't short out against the frame, tank or spacers... sometimes these dyna coils require a little imagination to get them into their intended space. I've even zip-tied a pair or two to the frame to make them fit under the tank without touching anything.

Seems the 550's have the least room to play with.

I've never used additional fuses on those power lines, the ignition fuse in the main panel should protect them just fine IMO.

[bobiii84]

so far

Alright, so far I got creative with washers and managed to get the new coils in and they aren't touching the frame. Haven't checked the tank yet but I think I'm fine. They are REALLY close though. Millimeters away and I'm wondering if it can jump the distance? Makes me nervous so I wanted to ask before I continue.

[hikermikem]

You will know at night, you'll see the arcing under the tank & the engine will skip.

Put something over the screw heads, black tape for instance...

[bobiii84]

What if I use some liquid electrical tape on it? Would that work?

[hikermikem]

I've always wanted to try that stuff - let us know how it works. You can always tape over the adjacent parts of the frame as well.