Autonerdz forums

This motorcycle is a no-start after 3-4 months of non-running. Maybe the gasoline has deteriorated. At first as a no-start I checked for coil control. There was none but there was power to the coil. So I looked into getting at the ignition module at it's terminals. There was no out put and as I was moving it around in my hands, water began to pour out and in disconnecting it from it's harness the module came apart.
We decided to get another ignition module. They are obsolete and if found new upwards of 450.00 dollars; so we bought used on ebay. Got the ebay module installed and now I had coil control but still no start so here are some waveforms.
At first I came up with the primary and secondary I am posting here. Then, yesterday, for hours I could not come up with a decent secondary capture; I was assuming either now I had lost spark or my probe is wrong...I found out I might have had filter on. In any case, I am posting the one secondary capture I do have because before I quit yesterday I decided to pull one spark plug wire, attach an old plug and ground it and see if I now had spark. I did. I have weak spark, no big hot blue bastards. It is consistent spark, as you see in the capture with primary. So I would not encounter the big spark less it was running I think, is that right?
I tried to get an amperage ramp for the coils. They were drawing extremely little power I thought so can someone explain to me this:
I have a 60 Amp clamp and want to measure using the 20 amp function. So that would mean use the 1mV - 100mA, is that right?
Or should I disregard the PICO setting and just use a mV scale?
   

I am going to take a close look at what you posted here Mick, and here is more stuff I got tonight. I took a capture of Battery voltage positive to watch the drop to the coil in power if any during cranking. With it set to read primary voltage negative it is a goof because of the 400 V setting. You can zoom in and see about a 3 volt drop.
The hashy blue is the amp clamp set at 1mV = 100mA
on  the clamp with the scope set at 20 amp PICO scale           .
    I am going to look at filtering the amp clamp.

fisher wrote on Jul 22^nd, 2016 at 7:51pm:


That Voltage drop is created from the compression.

fisher wrote on Jul 22^nd, 2016 at 7:51pm:



Your amp clamp was upside down I inverted it for you now it lines up with the spark spike and the drop in voltage of the battery as the compression peaks

fisher wrote on Jul 22^nd, 2016 at 8:00pm:


Dont do this just set the secondary probe like you did the first time.

fisher wrote on Jul 23^rd, 2016 at 6:37am:


What Amp clamp are you using? Is it one of these?http://www.autonerdz.com/ampprobes.html

So I went out to the bike, tested stuff.
I tested my amp clamp on my Ford Aerostar fuel pump; the vehicle runs, the pump works... the clamp shew it consuming .2 or .15 amps or such so we are done with it.
I tested the other coil yesterday, it is like the other. I did primary, secondary and each side of the VRS.
Also, I took an android (smartphone) video of the spark happening. Tell me how how to post an android video?
On this bike as it now sits, the spark will not travel more than a 1/4" or so from the wire while I hold a test light out from it, during cranking.
I am unable to get the secondary like I did before. I pulled the plugwire and grounded it with a spare plug and find I do have spark regardless.
I am wondering if it is a good spark. like big enough and wonder if timing is right. One thing to look at is the primary shut-off, does it take too long?
  How about fuel, is it ruined from aging. Three or four months this bike has sat. The carburetors could have corroded in that amount of time.

fisher wrote on Jul 24^th, 2016 at 6:22am:



No its not Don its 500ns between samples the only thing is the amount of time on the screen.
I came up with a start up settings a long time ago and every one uses it now, its 500ms/div with 20MS #samples  for your 4423 and 6 MS for the 4425.

Type these into there boxes and go to FILE then START UP SETTINGS and then click SAVE USER DEFAULT SETTINGS.
Now properties should give a sample interval of 1us which is good for ignition systems.

fisher wrote on Jul 24^th, 2016 at 6:22am:


Don't worry about it we all made these errors when we started.

Practice every day on known good engines saving files with those start up settings and you will get the hang of it soon enough.

Now go and have yourself a nice Cider
Or a nice Wheat beer from any Micro Brewery like what I am supping right now

It's just as well to leave the battery on the charger while we do this. So one of our fellow nerdz here (he does not want to be mentioned by name) is also a full time technician, as you are Mick. He offered to help and when I get these sort of issues my lack of experience  requires I call someone whom has been perplexed more than just a few times.
       I am going to put some fuel in Mick that is new, not so old.  cylinders 1 and 4 are companions as seen in the schematic and this is an inline four transvers mounted as is common. I agree that you circled 1 and 4; looking at the schematic we see the bigger tooth with the hole in it that makes for an odd impulse and that is the one we see there.
  I did have this capture of the reluctor with each side of it referenced to ground, a two channel capture, posted here.