Spark plugs and your esteemed opinions.

[Chappo]

Well, it happened again. I started the RGS on Saturday, first time for quite a while since it had been started, and it would only run on two cylinders.

I wouldn't believe it was a crook spark plug, I only bought them in March, and have only done a few hundred kilometers.
It must be something on my bike causing this, it seems it is always number three cylinder.

There was nothing wrong with that spark plug. It turns out it was deteriorating pick up wires causing an intermittent fault. The bike was intermittently running on two while I was mucking around with my new ignition. I went looking, and found a pickup shorted out. The more I touched them, the more the pickup wires fell apart.
I replaced all the wires, and had to repair one pickup, and now it starts and runs fine. Time will tell if it was my spark plug problem, but I'm pretty confident it was.

 

[mik667]

i had the same thing happen on my RGS - chucked the pickup assembly and installed a sachese ignition system and bike runs  like new

There was nothing wrong with that spark plug. It turns out it was deteriorating pick up wires causing an intermittent fault. The bike was intermittently running on two while I was mucking around with my new ignition. I went looking, and found a pickup shorted out. The more I touched them, the more the pickup wires fell apart.
I replaced all the wires, and had to repair one pickup, and now it starts and runs fine. Time will tell if it was my spark plug problem, but I'm pretty confident it was.

 

[IIS]

Everybody wants to throw things out these day,  those wires have a least another 100Kkms in them, a bit of insulation tape is all to make them just like new,  wait...maybe these are the new "recycled" wires to match recycled NGK plugs,  am not kidding... refurbished plugs were around,  NGK oem,  restored to like new condition,  1 engine start a uncertain/certainty,  no warranty after opening box...

  Crook jokes aside,  combination of last start plug condition,  layup and then start,  with modern chemical soups for for fuel, plugs can poison in an instant,  usually terminal for the plug. On the IIS you can test the plugs to 10Krpm without engine running and see the feeble or non existent plug spark due to low impedance path on the ceramic nose to body, even after cleaning,  maybe a sand blast plug cleaner could reinstate the proper insulation characteristics for the ceramic insulation surface.....maybe.

  BTW it is near impossible to set a uniform total effective air gap ( TEAG ) on the old Bosch reluctor pickups.... as nice as they look original on the Laverda's.  HTH J.     

 

[oldbikesrcool]

There was nothing wrong with that spark plug. It turns out it was deteriorating pick up wires causing an intermittent fault. The bike was intermittently running on two while I was mucking around with my new ignition. I went looking, and found a pickup shorted out. The more I touched them, the more the pickup wires fell apart.
I replaced all the wires, and had to repair one pickup, and now it starts and runs fine. Time will tell if it was my spark plug problem, but I'm pretty confident it was.

I know the string hasn?t been responded to in a couple years? But I am dying to know, did replacing those disintegrating trigger wires correct the issue long term?
I have the identical issues, identical symptoms, and I?m about to perform the same surgery on my RGS?s deteriorating trigger wires.

 

[Paul Marx]

Read post 20 just above.

 

[hooksey]

I know the string hasn?t been responded to in a couple years? But I am dying to know, did replacing those disintegrating trigger wires correct the issue long term?
I have the identical issues, identical symptoms, and I?m about to perform the same surgery on my RGS?s deteriorating trigger wires.

Guaranteed, problem would be solved ! ?No news is good news?

 

[chrisk]

Five and a half years later, and we still have continuity.

 

[piranha-bro2]

5 1/2 years and only 2 pages???  My how things change 

 

[Chappo]

But I am dying to know, did replacing those disintegrating trigger wires correct the issue long term?

Hi mate, the problem wasn't dodgy spark plugs, it turned out to be the pickup wires causing the trouble. I have had no problems with spark plugs since. I fitted an Ignitech ignition the same time I replaced the pickup wires.
Cheers.

 

[oldbikesrcool]

Greetings,-
Yes, I understood the problem was not plugs but rather those disintegrating pick up wires. Very good to hear that replacement solved the problem long-term!
I?ve just performed the same disintegrating-pick-up-wire-replacement surgery in the hopes of fixing a similar issue. But, no joy...I?ll continue going through everything. The diagnosis continues.