T140D Ignition

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Jan 5, 2014
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Bike was just cutting out at idle when hot. Thought it was the coils. Brought it to my Guru. Starts with carbs, had fuel in the float (MKII) due to ethanol, right pet cock was dribbling, tube warping due to ethanol. Changed and test. Still stalling at idle. Guru says "bet its your ignition switch....its 40 years old. Changes it. Actually ran much better for much longer. Went 24 miles before it started hiccupping. Changed the coils. Mind you, may coils were fairly new. One year, 1000 miles on them, high quality German made as well as a new digital Pazon.
Sure as shyte, it was the coil. Explanation to me....bad ignition switch in combination with a hot Pazon killed the coils. The ignition switch had been worked on by the previous owner. Posts jumped and a resistor soldered in. Just venting. Hate parting with too much $$ in the elimination game, but seems it all needed to be done.
 
Thanks for posting, it’s a great reminder how we need to stay open minded when fault finding and not assume “it can’t be that because it’s new” etc.

Easier said than done of course, we all fall into the trap!

My best one was when a race bike suddenly started misfiring badly, I coasted into the pits and had decided it was a carb problem. Back in the pits I had the float bowls off in no time, as I’m kneeling next to the bike, float bowl in hand, I noticed the fuel taps were still ON... a brief moment of confusion reigned whilst I wondered why fuel was not pouring all over the place... until the penny dropped, and I opened the cap to peer inside an EMPTY tank...! DOH !!
 
Ah.....the old "forgot to check the gas" syndrome. New taps, new ignition switch, new floats. Fuel injection has nothing on my bonnie at the moment. Running great. Like a Swiss watch. Throttle response is immediate. No coughs nor hiccups. The 961 has been taking a break.
 
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