Dyna S troubleshooting...

[tkent02]

Just bought a 1979 GS 1000E tonight, has Dyna S, with troubles...
Rode it about 15 miles home, it barely goes 50 without a hill to go down... Seriously.
Plug one, no spark while cranking, weak spark after that. The exhaust pipe heats up on 1.
Plug number two has a strong spark, the pipe heats up.
Three has no spark, the pipe stays cold.
Four has a weak spark, the pipe gets hot.

Seems like both coils must be working, and both sides of the rest of the system.

Number one makes me think maybe it's a low voltage problem or maybe not quite wired correctly?

Is there any online guide to troubleshooting the Dyna S system?
How about a good description of how it works?
Anyone know where to start?

I have the old points system I could put back on, but I'd rather get this Dyna going.

There are carburetion issues too, like it won't run at all with more than a 1/4 turn of throttle opening but I want to get the ignition sorted first.
Other than that it's a nice ride, electricals all seem to work, 13,000 miles maybe, fairly good compression. Looks pretty good.

[uudfourty]

Congrats on the new bike.

Maybe the wires are slipping out of the coils?

Stock coils or dynas?

[tkent02]

Dynas, I believe.
At least the bike came with a dyna coil box and a pair of Suzuki coils in it...

[Carter Turk]

I purchased a Dyna S for my Kat.

Well one of the triggers, 1-4, was faulty. It started to cut out shortly after installing it.

I was rather bummed, but I called Dynatek and sent it back are received a new one no charge.

During the 7 days it took to return and receive, I installed the stock one.

It's been there ever since.

If my stock one fails, I'll have the Dyna to replace it.

They have great customer service, so I'd suggest a call to them too see if they can sort out your issues.

[Carter Turk]

One more thing, I also had a green 3ohm Dyna coil go bad as well.

I sent it to them, they tested it, determined it was bad and sent me a new one.

I had the coils about 10 years before one went bad.

[Nessism]

I think the plugs fire in pairs so if #3 has spark, #2 should as well unless there is a plug or plug cap/wire issue. Same goes for #1 -4.

Nice looking bike. I'm jelous.

[tkent02]

I think the plugs fire in pairs so if #3 has spark, #2 should as well unless there is a plug or plug cap/wire issue. Same goes for #1 -4.

Nice looking bike. I'm jelous.

I'm thinking it will end up being a wiring issue, since both coils are sparking a little bit.

Thanks!

[Steve]

With #3 being cold, it could also be a leaky petcock causing fuel to go down the vacuum line.

Just to be sure you are numbering the cylinders correctly...#1 is under the clutch hand, #4 is under the throttle hand, right?


.

[tkent02]

With #3 being cold, it could also be a leaky petcock causing fuel to go down the vacuum line.

Just to be sure you are numbering the cylinders correctly...#1 is under the clutch hand, #4 is under the throttle hand, right?


.

Yes to the one through four, and three has no spark at all, and not running at all.
But I may have fuel problems too, haven't gotten that far yet.
I know the carbs are not working well.

[Nessism]

I'm a little bit funny but first thing I do when bringing a new GS home is rip off the carbs and replace the various internal O-rings and carb boot O-rings. Only after making sure that the carbs are in good working order do I go digging into the igntion circuit.

I still think you have a coil wire issue on 2/3. Both plugs fire at the same time but wastes some sparks it doesn't use. You most likely have a plug/cap issue on those two.

Not sure about 1/4. Weak spark could just look that way - sometimes it's hard to tell. Could also be a weak coil.

Good luck. You will figure it out.

[chef1366]

Call 800-928-3962.

[don_gibb6512]

It wouldn't hurt to do a quick ohm test on your coils. It's quick and will at least let you know the health of the coils. Bad coils can wreck havoc on an otherwise good running bike.

Good luck and that sure is a beauty. Congrats !!

[Ghostgs1]

Tom, I think nessism is correct, I'd start with carburation issues first and possibly valve adjustment. Nice looking bike btw. Ray

[tkent02]

Tom, I think nessism is correct, I'd start with carburation issues first and possibly valve adjustment. Nice looking bike btw. Ray

Ignition is fixed!!!
The problem was the connection where the plug wires leave the coil, one was fine, three were crimped incorrectly and slightly burnt inside, one was completely black, the wire was just kind of stuffed loosely into the connector, the little conductor wire was all burnt away.

Next question, what wires are recommended with this Dyna S system?
It had 7mm suppressor wires, do-it-yourself type crimped on connectors, little tiny rubber caps on both ends.

Should I get non-suppressor wires and suppressor caps, or is that just for the stock ignition?
What works the best?
And what plug gaps with the Dyna S??

Thanks for the help...

Valve cover and carburetors coming off today....

[Billyboy]

Glad you worked it out!:-D