Points issues

This forum has been a lifesaver on more than one occasion... and I am hoping it will save me again:

I have a 75 Mk3 running points. Recently they got fouled by an oil leak past the points seal (fixed, hopefully). The old points looked ok, but since I was in there I thought I would replace them... one less future problem, so I thought. I have been going through the timing procedure and am having a miserable time of it and am hoping for some advice. First, one of the white plastic cam followers on the points does not keep in contact with the cam on the auto advance unit as it rotates. When that point set is closed there is several thous clearance between the follower and the cam. It only comes in contact with the cam just as the points are supposed to start to open. This is making initial setting the timing really difficult. When I spin the engine, it is obvious that the cam wobbles. I have pulled off and repositioned the whole mess several time with no change. I am not quite ready to give up on these points... yet. Any advice would be great. Thanks in advance.

-paul

The pattern (made in Japan) replacement points with the white nylon follower heels are just about all that's available now, and they are junk!

I'd put the old ones back in, if they are original Lucas, and are still serviceable?

If the AAU is not properly seated in its taper it can wobble, try removing the AAU retaining bolt and then tapping on the end of the AAU with a hammer and soft metal drift to see if that will square it up?

Thanks for the advice LAB. I actually got it started after 2-3 hrs of tinkering with it. Now the problem is I can't dial in the timing... again because of the cam wobble. I will give your suggestion a try and see if I can't get the cam on straight. As for the points, the old ones were the same as the 'new' ones, just in worse shape. When I try to advance or retard the timing to dial it in, things jump around way out of proportion to what I am doing at the points. It runs ok at idle but the engine breaks up at 3000rpm. Could this be an issue with the AAU not advancing the timing? With the engine off the AAU snaps back fine, though. Plus I am having to change out the plugs due to fouling as I chase a sweetly running engine around. Thanks again for any help... I am having to muster all of my superpowers of persistence for this one...
-paul

The points cam should not "wobble". It's a tight taper fit in the end of the camshaft. If the assembly is pressed in correctly and you have wobble, something's very wrong.

There's a reason that both the auto and motorcycle industry have been using electronic ignitions for last twenty years! :roll: :wink:

Nevertheless, it is possible that the taper on your cam and or AAU is damaged. Years ago there was discussion of whether the slide hammer type AAU puller was damaging the taper on camshafts, so this is not a new issue.

As Maylar says if assembled corectly it should not wobble. Years ago when I used points, I found most of the Asian made condensers would short and give rise to the misfires at higher rpm. Switching back to the old Lucas condensers would cure the issue. Since you can no longer get Lucas condensers, I understand that most any auto style condenser will work if you can mount them.

Points/condenser issues can drive you nuts!

I am wondering if maybe where the AAU presses into the camshaft is out of round or something. If that's the case I will never get it on straight and will need to replace the AAU.

Well I have spent the last few hours looking over folk's opinions on electronic systems and from what I gather, the Pazon digital system seems to work well on the electric start MK3s (allowing for the voltage drop when using the starter). I suppose I should bite the bullet and make the switch. Is there any reason NOT to choose the Pazon system?
-paul

c.cito said:

Well I have spent the last few hours looking over folk's opinions on electronic systems and from what I gather, the Pazon digital system seems to work well on the electric start MK3s (allowing for the voltage drop when using the starter). I suppose I should bite the bullet and make the switch. Is there any reason NOT to choose the Pazon system?
-paul

Click to expand...

nope

I thought I'd finish up this thread with some results. I ditched the points and went with a Pazon system. Very good move... installation was pretty straightforward, timing was simple (as it should be), and the bike runs great. I would recommend this system to anyone tired of fiddling with points. Not that points are all that bad, but the Pazon setup is so easy, there's no real reason to replace points if they are on their way out. One man's opinion...
Thanks again to all those who helped.
-paul

c.cito said:

I thought I'd finish up this thread with some results. I ditched the points and went with a Pazon system. Very good move... installation was pretty straightforward, timing was simple (as it should be), and the bike runs great. I would recommend this system to anyone tired of fiddling with points. Not that points are all that bad, but the Pazon setup is so easy, there's no real reason to replace points if they are on their way out. One man's opinion...
Thanks again to all those who helped.
-paul

Click to expand...

welcome to the 80's!
:lol:

Paul

The old point system is a pain in the butt ~ IMO ~

Personally I would go the electronic path and I would recommend the Tri-Spark from Steve Kelly ~

He has now a kit for the Twins ~ even singles ~ (The Triple kit has been a resounding success and applauded world wide.)

http://www.trispark.com.au/


One big plus for the Tri-Spark is that the bike will fire on a minimual voltage ~ (4 Volts, I think) , as opposed to minimum of 12 volt on the Boyer ~

If interested email Steve and ask. He is very approachable !

I was going to stay with points on my T150V project but the trip to the 07 Triples Down Under last year soon put that plan to dust ~

My understanding is that the Boyer seems to enjoy more volts, but according to the Pazon literature, it can fire down to 10 or so volts. I actually looked into the TriSpark and probably would have gone that route if I hadn't been so impatient to get this bike back on the road. The folks at MAP really closed the sale (very helpful), but I have to admit, the Pazon wasn't cheap. Feels good to finally claw my way up to the 80s in at least one aspect of my life :wink:

Well I may have spoken a bit too soon... Went to start the bike Sunday morning and nothing. Pulled the plugs and no spark on either. Figured it was something I did, so I rechecked all the wiring, which appears fine. Routed the ground back to the battery just to be safe, still nothing. I am stumped. Battery is fine, all the wiring checks out. I have 2 12v coils, but the Pazon literature states that 2 12v coils are fine, but then goes on to recommend 2 6v coils... I tried their suggestion of touching the 2 trigger wires to see if it sparks, but it didn't. I still have the capacitor hooked up as well. But it ran fine for about 20 miles, and I even started and stopped the bike several times. Any ideas? Thanks in advance.
-paul

Electronic Ignition

I have fitted the Tri-Spark 'Classic Twin' system to my 920 Mk2A - I thoroughly recommend it. A couple of neat features:-

1) There is no 'black box' - the entire system fits in the points housing thus wiring is easy.

2) It has an 'anti-kickback' feature whereby the bike doesn't try to break your leg when kicking-over (this works a treat !!)

3) It can work at very low battery voltages.

I have used Boyer previously but the Tri-Spark is vastly superior. I have no experience of Pazon but I believe their products a well rated,