I would like to respectfully state a few things for those unfamiliar with us.
1) Power Arc manufactures and programs ignition modules and provides coils. They do not install ignitions or perform customer tuning.
2) Cycle X designed the CB750 SOHC with Power Arc several years ago and have tested and sold hundreds of ignitions to CB owners, including me.
3) I own C5 and we design/manufacture kits for motorcycles, cars, tractors, and other vehicles. We have never sold a 4 coil motorcycle system so please do not confuse C5 with Cycle X. Yes we both use Power Arc based ignitions but we are friendly competitors, not the same company. My first Power Arc ignition was actually purchased from Cycle X and I still use it.
4) We use the same ignition mapping for our V8 car systems as Ken uses for Cycle X four coil ignition kits and I have never had a "timing" issue with 1-4 versus 2-3. My understanding of the situation in question was a C2 (two coil) timing map was loaded into a C4 (four coil) ignition and that is where the issue started. Since I was not in business back when this happened I can't be sure, but I can tell you that if this happened, the engine would not have run correctly. Only the installation of the correct timing map back into the module would have solved the problem.
5) I cannot comment on what I am not familiar with, but I've had my fair share of issues during testing and running my own CB engines, and with hundreds of calls from customers. Most (especially a repeatable failure) were caused by one of the following:
Poor power supply from excessively small gauge wiring being used, poor/cheap crimps, or trying to power several coils through a corroded ignition and kill switch. I recommend all coil power come directly from the main fuse or battery. The trigger leads are designed to turn off coil power automatically when the engine is not running so this would not cause any problems.
Poor grounding of the ignition module (the backing plate is the ground) due to corrosion, paint, grease, or other factors
Incorrect sparkplug wire being used (we ship Moroso Blue Max 8mm 800 ohm/ft wire only).
Non resistor spark plugs, incorrect heat range plugs, or excessive electrode gap (0.028-0.032" recommended)
While all ignitions can suffer issues, most failures can be traced to one of the items I listed above, regardless of who made it.
I tried not to come off as being defensive and provide information that is relevant to this discussion. If you like ignitions that you can fix without computers or technical help via phone, I suggest sticking with points. If you have questions about our system in particular I suggest sending me an email or calling. Thanks!
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