I'm shocked!

[Anonymous]

Hello,

I have found a new problem with my bike that may be causing some of my other problems with timing and such. With my bike running I started hearing a small fairly steady pop. I searched around for it using the old screwdriver as a stethoscope trick, and couldn't find it. Then for some reason I decided to pull a spark plug wire. It not only killed the engine, but it also shocked me. I tried each wire, all with the same result.

This is just pulling the wire, not the plug. I was only holding the boot, and it would shock whether or not I was touching any metal on the bike.

Any ideas. I figure change the wires, but could this cause any other problems.
Thanks,
Billy Miles

[Anonymous]

Also, I tested the coils in case they needed to be replaced, and not just the wires. I set my multimeter to 200k, and both coils read 0.00. I then set it at 20k with the same result. Finally I set it to 2k and it read .004. I know it is odd for both coils to be bad. Am I missing something? I am testing across the small metal tabs that the orange/white wire and black wire are soldered to, and then across the corrosponding wires on the other coil.

What problems would this cause. I am having a charging problem, an idle problem, and a problem setting the timing.
Thanks.

[Anonymous]

I now have also taken the coils to the nearest dealer who said they would test them for me. They say they are fine.

[Anonymous]

sounds like your meter may be off.

[KEITH KRAUSE]

Electricity always seeks the easiest path to ground. You obviously became grounded. Dyna coils can deliver 35,000 volts and even stockers produce 10,000 plus. You may have bad wires or you had your fingers to close to metal parts of the plugs when you slipped the boots off. This kind of voltage can even go to ground through dry shoes.

[Anonymous]

I thought the coils were around 4 ohms, so setting a meter on 200K won't give a reading...

[Anonymous]

I'm not sure if that shock is normal or not, but I had it happen on two of my cylinders, the same two that only ran when they wanted to. So I splurged and got four new boots. It no longer shocks when I hold the wire by the boot with the engine running, and those two cylinders run first time every time.

I figured that 20 years of weather got to the boots, as they had corroded contacts. The new rubber looks like it will seal well for a while.

[Anonymous]

You may need to replace the plug wires, depending on their age. All electrical wiring (house, cars ,bikes) is manufactured with insulation that has a certain dialectric rating. As they get old, overheated and dirty they lose that rating. That causes them to "track" or look for another path to ground. When I worked for FP&L the hair on your neck would stand up when you went into a substation during a storm. All that electricity tracking and you could actually see it trying to get to ground. On your bike, you might try cleaning the wires and wiping them down with WD-40 or CRC til they are almost dry. This should help some. If the wires are touching the frame or are close that may be enough to track. Remember that your plugs ignite across a decent sized gap when working in the cylinders. Hope this helps.

[AOD]

try moving around how the plug wires are routed....making sure there is no arcing to the block or between wires. the best way to check for this is at night, when its dark, you'll see arcing if there is any.

~Adam

[Anonymous]

when i chek for bad wires i use a spary bottle with water. just must the wires and watch for spark jumping. had a car that would only miss when raining or the humidity was high. an old mechanic told me tis trick and it works great.