spark

[JStones]

Went out ran the bike and it died. Checked, no spark. Tried later on, bike worked. So intermittent spark is my issue... Please let me know what I should be checking and it what order... any initial thoughts?

[tom203]

Went out ran the bike and it died. Checked, no spark. Tried later on, bike worked. So intermittent spark is my issue... Please let me know what I should be checking and it what order... any initial thoughts?

This must be the bike that cured itself a few days back and now has returned to its old ways. So "ran the bike and it died" means it started ok, ran somewhat and suddenly died ? Not slowly died but suddenly?

[JStones]

Well to resummarize, I went for a ride and all was well. Went for another ride and it died. Got it home and checked everything, no spark. I checked fuses, looked for any loose wires.. found nothing. I had to do some other things and later on my father stopped by.. I told him the bike was running and he tried to start it and it fired right up and ran... currently no spark.. So like I said, my best diagnosis is I have intermittent spark. Looking for help on troubleshooting.

[JStones]

and to answer the previous question. When it starts it runs great, putters out and dies. All random times, nothing consistent.

[TheCafeKid]

Charging properly? Check coil voltage and test plug caps.

[JStones]

What am I looking for when testing plug caps?

[JStones]

Does anyone know if I have a ND or KOK Ignition type? I'm unfamiliar with those terms.

[mike_of_bbg]

If your bike is an 80 as listed in your sig, it has factory electronic ignition and KOK vs ND is moot. If you're trying to select a Dyna S to install, you need the ND version, DS3-2.

[mike_of_bbg]

What am I looking for when testing plug caps?

You'll check the resistance of the caps. Secondary impedance with factory caps installed should measure in the 30-35 k ohms; about 10k per cap and about 14k for the coil. The normally recommended NGK caps are 5k each. If you unscrew the caps you can check all the components independently.

[JStones]

mike- bare with me here. Ive been learning on the fly with this thing. First bike. Im on Z1 poking around at ignition coils etc. I see the Dyna 3-2 you referenced but also see ignition kits that are under 20 bucks and are OEM replacements.. Are Dyna type worth the change or is it what I need? The $ isnt a issue if its worth it.

[philosopheriam]

Here's a common problem with the GS bikes:

The fuse blocks use an older style cylindrical fuse that upon inital inspection may appear to be OK - the fillament within the fuse may break loose from one end and make intermittent contact causing an occasional no-spark/no start condition.

When you have no spark, check to see if any other parts of the bike (cluster, etc) have no power.

[mike_of_bbg]

You're probably looking at points, then. If your bike is truly a 1980 model then it will not have points. It would have come equipped with factory electronic ignition; a signal generator with rotor and an igniter. Points were used 1977-1979. On the 550s and 750s only there were two different points systems which could have been used, KOK and ND.

Here's what you SHOULD see if you open your GS550LT ignition cover (no points/condensers):



The igniters particularly are known to go bad and become "intermittent". The Dyna S DS3-2 will replace both the signal generator and the igniter. You'll want to make sure your coils are up to snuff. The coils plus the Dyna S will basically be your entire ignition system if you install it.

Some (including myself) think that igniters go bad much more quickly when the charging system voltage is too high. If you have a bad igniter, make sure you check your charging system for correct operation immediately upon getting the bike running again.

mike- bare with me here. Ive been learning on the fly with this thing. First bike. Im on Z1 poking around at ignition coils etc. I see the Dyna 3-2 you referenced but also see ignition kits that are under 20 bucks and are OEM replacements.. Are Dyna type worth the change or is it what I need? The $ isnt a issue if its worth it.

[JStones]

Mike- I am going to take it apart this evening and see whats in there. Just as a side note, I walked by the bike this morning and hit the button and she fired right up.

[mike_of_bbg]

The igniter box should be mounted on your airbox I think, but you'll see the sig gen under that cover. Unless your motor was replaced with an earlier model (do you have a kick starter?) then there's no way you should have points under there. Did you check your coil voltage drop (this is a big one - search "coil relay mod")? Secondary and primary coil impedance? Plug boot resistance?

[tom203]

Mike- I am going to take it apart this evening and see whats in there. Just as a side note, I walked by the bike this morning and hit the button and she fired right up.

Have you tried new main and ignition fuses ? sometimes they look/ behave ok and then heat up and break circuit. And as recommended, check voltage at coils.