Woah, Lots of Aftermarket Coils these days...

[Jedz123]

Hey dudes
So browsing for some ignition solutions for this 78 GS550E as cylinder 3 plug cap is past it's age in that it won't snap onto the plugs anymore. It leads to an occasional miss fire at higher RPM (+6K). Anyway there is so many after market coils now... I'm a bit taken back

I found this Dyna S Combo with green coils, caps and complete ignition for $350 on Ebay (new). Are the green Dyna coils the way to go? I pulled the ignition timing cover off and sure enough I'm still running what looks to be stock points.

Should I just swap the whole system to Dyna S now and just get back my solid reliable spark? Or source some of these generic (and inexpensive) options and run the points until they kick? The bike has about 25K miles and is 43 years old, the points look old...

Link to the Dyna kit https://www.ebay.com/itm/Dyna-S-Elec...-127632-2357-0

Some generic coils for CHEAP
https://www.ebay.com/itm/2Pcs-Igniti...-127632-2357-0
https://www.ebay.com/itm/33410-45012...-127632-2357-0

Cheers!
-Jedz

[Nessism]

I'd pull the wires out of the stock coils and replace them, along with the plug caps. And points were great as long as they are properly maintained.

[storm 64]

I changed my whole ingniton system to a Dyna S pick up, Green Dyna coils and the Dyna plug wires. Set it and forget it! Also check with Z1 they had the whole set for 300 bucks a few years ago, might be a little more now. Points? What are Points grandpa?

[Grimly]

My go-to OEM coil is the Honda MT-08, as fitted to legions of 'ondas over the decades. They have screw connection towers for easy replacement of HT leads, and are a reasonably good fit on most UJMs. Glod Wings of various sizes are a useful source, for cheap. Last couple of sets I bought came from GL1500s for about 25 bucks a set of three.

[Redman]

Justin, is my understanding correct?? You have a problem with one spark plug cap ($5) and you are concidering replacing the entire ignition system.

.

[phydeauxmutt]

Sounds like he believes in the racer's philosophy:

"If some is good, more is better and too much is enough."

[Jedz123]

The plug cap and wire definitely needs to be replaced, in fact all of them should be swapped out. The wires are pretty dry rotted.

[zed1015]

If you are still on points and want to upgrade the whole system then Dyna 'S' is the only way to go.
I have them on all my bikes.
Fit and forget.
Massive fat sparks that will light a bucket of pi$$ which results in noticable power improvements and reliability.

[Rijko]

Jedz - what is your goal with this bike ?

Flip it ? Repair the issue at hand using the suggestions above, cheap solution.

Love and cherish it, budget ($350-ish) is no issue ?
Dyna ignition and coils is the best there is.

The improvement is not much in my experience : initial start is a bit quicker,
idle a teeny bit smoother. I never noticed any performance increase.
Spark improves big time ; but mileage does not change.
Main advantage for me is set it and forget it vs a little bit of maintenance once a year or less.

Disadvantages :

- if the Dyna ignition fails you have no way to repair.
(Happened to me hundreds of miles from home, on a sunday, no shops open)
Points are easy and usually do not fail without warning and stuttering etc.
Reserve set of points and condensator is easy to take with you.

- Dyna is expensive.

To give you an idea .. my favourite GS1000 (i have a garage full) still runs on points.
I try to upgrade/update the bike a bit every year and have thought several times about a Dyna setup.
In the past 5 years and tens of thousands of km's i used it, i check the points once a year.
A drop of oil on the cotton and advancer axles and check timing/opening of the points.
No failures of condensators or points yet ; i have sanded a pitted contact point once.
The engine runs very strong and smooth on these points (and original sparkelators) so i
cannot justify a Dyna setup ...

[Jedz123]

I'll likely keep this one.

I don't see myself going over 100 miles away with it. If things fail I just get a ride to get my car and trailer and bring the little duffer back home.

I was wondering if these coils I posted would be adequate to use OR is there a link to coil wires, could someone send it to me? I thought the wires were potted into the coils and you couldn't replace the wires without replacing the coils.

The points are dirty, rusty and look like they work but who knows for how long. The bike did see moisture at some point in it's (older than me) life.

I've ran Dyna S with stock coils (only $100 or so for the unit) in quite a few bikes that had compromised ignition systems (both points and electric points) been very happy with them and the adjustability to add some advance. I was impressed to see the Green Dyna coils still available to buy new with a Dyna S!

Cheers!

[Nessism]

I was wondering if these coils I posted would be adequate to use OR is there a link to coil wires, could someone send it to me? I thought the wires were potted into the coils and you couldn't replace the wires without replacing the coils.

The wires can be replaced. You just need to get them to release from the coil. Chip away any epoxy where the wire enters the coil and then stick a pin or pick tool between the wire and coil, going down about 3/4" or so. Then shoot some WD-40 along side the tool and wiggle it around. Do the same at a couple more places around the wire until the WD-40 works into the crack and the wire loosens up so you can pull it out. There will be a spike looking thing at the bottom of the channel so be careful to not damage that.

7mm copper core wire is recommend to replace the stock stuff. Z1 sells it, along with NGK plug caps. Pull off the outer sheath from your stock wires and slip it over the new ones before installing the wires into the coils. A very easy and cheap upgrade.

[Jedz123]

Excellent!!! Wire is CHEAP. I'll give the wire, caps and plugs a whirl. I'll also service the points, Thanks Ed!
If things still are funny after the new wire and cleanup I'll look at going down the Dyna S route but if it runs great after the repairs, well money saved and I'll be impressed that a 44 year old points system still functions well!
Best,