Topic: Replaced my plug wires on stock coils...anyone interested?

[puppytrax]

Just use the normal electronic solder available at Radio Shack...not the lead free stuff...

I wonder if the Radio Shack solder has *any* lead in it...here's a snip from a web site -

Normal electronics grade solder is now "lead free" and typically contains Sn 97 Ag 2.5 Cu 0.5 (i.e. 97% tin, 2.5% silver and 0.5% copper). It already contains cores of "flux" which helps the molten solder to flow more easily over the joint. Flux removes oxides which arise during heating, and is seen as a brown fluid bubbling away on the joint. The use of separate acid flux paste (e.g. as used by plumbers) should NEVER be necessary in normal electronics applications because electronics-grade solder already contains the correct grade of flux!

Lead has been outlawed since sometime in the 80's for solder in some parts of the world...I still have a small tube that i bought sometime back in the 80's, but the composition is unreadable...it was very expensive, though...   

[hcritz]

My roll is very old too...the lable is LONG GONE...
Tried some new stuff and it didn't want to flow...My old solder flowed in very nicely!

[SteveD CB500F]

Lead has been outlawed since sometime in the 80's for solder in some parts of the world...

I was an electronics design engineer back in the 80's (Racal Communications in UK). We made military VHF communications equipment and were absolutely horrified when the EU banned lead in solder. We all thought it was the end of the world and there were some serious worries about the long-term longevity of solder joints made with the "new" solder.

Just inertia really.

[hcritz]

Hey Steve....
The stuff here really doesn't seem to flow very well...and seems to take more heat to get a nice smooth joint.
Not sure how well the newer stuff does with vibration etc...
Bugs me that I can't buy lead based solder...but can buy cases of cigarettes!!!

[bryanj]

I can still buy the good old 60/40 solder here from a wholesaler but it wont be cheap to ship!

[mmmpeanutbutter]

Just paid too much for a coil at a salvage yard cause one of my wires was bad.  Wish I had seen this post first!   

Oh well, at least I'll have a backup.

Great info!

[Raul CB750K1]

Tell you what, my Sanglas has a huge Bosch automotive coil. I have some tiny spare coils from my modern Suzuki GZ250 that I plan to try. Shouldn't any coil be just fine? I mean, I know about the 3 ohm and the 5 ohm and the high voltage and the compression and all that stuff, but coil technology hasn't envolved so much in these 30 years. On the contrary, manufacturing processes allow us to build smaller things. While it's good to be able to repair an old coils, I bought my GZ250 coils for about 5 bucks each. Is it really worth the effort?

Raul

[hcritz]

Hey Raul;
There are a lot of different kinds of ignition systems...the CDI coils probably won't work with our point system...
But for 5 bucks it's probably worth a try.
I could have bought a new set of coils, but they are a bit pricey and I figured this was worth a try.
Seems to work quite well.

[Raul CB750K1]

Hey Raul;
There are a lot of different kinds of ignition systems...the CDI coils probably won't work with our point system...
But for 5 bucks it's probably worth a try.
I could have bought a new set of coils, but they are a bit pricey and I figured this was worth a try.
Seems to work quite well.

I feel your pain, mine have also hardened leads and I've chasing them on eBay but still too pricey in my opinion. I plan to reuse them even with the hard leads, but I will probably follow your advice if I can't get a decent set at a decent price.


Regarding the coils, what's really the difference between points and CDI? After all, the coil is energized to open the circuit suddenly and generate the spark on the secondary winding. Does it really matter wether it's a mechanical breaker or a thyristor the one that opens the circuit?

Raul

[hcritz]

Hey Raul...
Two Tired would probably have a better explanation, but as I understand it, the CDI systems...(Cap. Discharge.Ign.) charge up a capacitor to a fairly high voltage...and then release it to the coil with a trigger. The old transistor ones used to make a high pitch whining noise as it stepped up the voltage to charge the cap... a lot like the noise of a camera flash charging...same sort of thing. I'm sure the wire Dia. and number of turns for the primary are much different than a coil designed to fire at the collapse of a 12V field...
Changing the wires on your old coils isn't that hard to do...mostly just a bit of time and soldering...
My bike ran really well before...but it's so much smoother especially at low RPM under load...
I think the old plug wires just weren't getting the job done...Was well worth my time. AND...the next time I get caught in the rain I won't be afraid the ignition will drown out and leave me sitting on the side of the road in a downpour!

[Raul CB750K1]

Hey Raul...
Two Tired would probably have a better explanation, but as I understand it, the CDI systems...(Cap. Discharge.Ign.) charge up a capacitor to a fairly high voltage...and then release it to the coil with a trigger. The old transistor ones used to make a high pitch whining noise as it stepped up the voltage to charge the cap... a lot like the noise of a camera flash charging...same sort of thing. I'm sure the wire Dia. and number of turns for the primary are much different than a coil designed to fire at the collapse of a 12V field...
Changing the wires on your old coils isn't that hard to do...mostly just a bit of time and soldering...
My bike ran really well before...but it's so much smoother especially at low RPM under load...
I think the old plug wires just weren't getting the job done...Was well worth my time. AND...the next time I get caught in the rain I won't be afraid the ignition will drown out and leave me sitting on the side of the road in a downpour!

Yeah, that makes sense. I didn't think about the capacitor. I guess I will take my dremel out before coil reassembly and give it a try following your steps.


Raul

[puppytrax]

Tell you what, my Sanglas has a huge Bosch automotive coil...Shouldn't any coil be just fine?

I have no idea what a Sanglas is, but back in the 70's I ran a Yamaha DT1-B short tracker with a Ford auto coil...(it was the same dia as a regular auto coil, but a bit shorter)..."Toatal Loss" electrical system; recharge/change batteries between heats...never had a problem...and I knew less about electricity then than I do now...(I know; that's hard to believe!)...   

[Ibsen]

If you ever wondered about how the moulded plug wires are attached to a coil:

[Raul CB750K1]

Man! that's truly "Plug and Play"...


Raul