Shovel with weak spark??

hello!

New member, just bought a FXS from ebay (and ridden it back to Yorkshire from the Cotswolds!. 14500 miles on the clock and the condition & old mot's seem to support it.Seems like a nice, straight unmolested bike, and i am enjoying blatting around on my new toy. However... few teething probs. Seems to have a weak spark. I have checked the voltage from the pickup to the coil and it's fine. The coil is reading 3.9 Ohms resistance, less than the manual says. All connections and earths are fine. So i have ordered a new coil - hope this cures it. The bike is a 78 model with the first type of electronic ignition. Any thoughts or other ideas for a nice fat blue spark?

Prob is that it's a bitch to start. Electric start is fine when the motor is hot but gives in when cold. Is this normal? I think the clutch is slipping a bit on the kicker which doesn't help - I will adjust it soon.

Only other prob is it seems to crunch a bit going down the gears, but hopefully my clutch 'service' will fettle that too...

It's currently sporting a wide glide front end, but I have the bits to put it back to standard. Not sure about the forward controls - wierd!!

Any help or advice much appreciated. I'm not new to harleys, had an iron sportster, an 1100 evo sportster and currently have a Buell M2.

thanks, jon

[kevscrivener]

A couple of things you could look at. First (and probably cheapest) I'd treat it to a new set of spark plugs, and perhaps a set of leads if they look a bit aged. If they're genuine Harley plugs they'll almost certainly be Champions if they're a few years old; my experience is that they don't last, personally I much prefer NGK, but do make sure you get the right match. Secondly, ensure that the solenoid contacts are in good order, otherwise your starter will under-perform.

My own Shovel (77FLH) always starts better on kicker than electric, especially from cold. One tip I've learned; NEVER use the button without first having turned the motor over a few times on the kicker, 'specially if the bike's been stood for a while. A few cranks on the pedal first helps to ease the load on the starter and the battery; ask any Norton Commando owner! You may well find that, once you've sorted your kicker out, you'll work out a routine to start it easily, which you should NOT deviate from. No point in asking any other Shovel owner for a definitive method 'cos they all seem to be different!

There are many high-performance electronic ignition systems available after-market; I won't offer an opinion on any of them 'cos I've no experience of them, mine's on good ol'fashioned points! All I'll suggest is that it's very easy to try and spend your way out of an ignition problem, try the basics first and see how it goes from there.

BTW, check out the "Vintage & Sportster Weekend", 2nd-4th June; a great opportunity to meet up with fellow sufferers!

[kiwidave]

Great bike. Welcome

The earliest H-D electronic ignitions were notoriously poor - they did not get trouble-free until the V-Fire III system circa 1984.

shame you have just shelled out for a coil - otherwise I would have recommended binning the lot and going for a Crane Hi-4 ignition and coil set-up. I have 50,000 trouble free miles with a kick-only set-up using that.

Cheap ex USA/eBay and very very good for kickstarting too.

If everything in the starter system is original it will be very tired. Brushes wear out in the starter motor, etc.

I learned very early on that sliipping clutch and kicker get along like Woody Allen and Mia Farrow

You'll love that bike! Enjoy

Just got a new Accell coil and it has made a significant difference! Starts quite well now, just think my technique is at fault. Thought I was a seasoned kickstarter, got pretty good at getting a DBD34 off second kick every time...

John

[kevscrivener]

Originally Posted by youngjon

Thought I was a seasoned kickstarter, got pretty good at getting a DBD34 off second kick every time...

John

That's not GOOD, John; that's UNHEARD OF!


I get all the usual jibes about kick-starting, owning an XLCH, but they pale into insignificance behind booting a stroppy Gold Star into life! One of my mates in the VMCC used to call his Goldie, "Churchill"; because it took blood, swaet and tears to fire it up!


Glad you've sorted it, mate.