Weird plug readings**Updated W/ pics**

h2odesperado

Pin it to win it
Location
Charlotte, NC
have you ruled out electric problems? last summer my sj would lose a cylinder and sound like a person with a flemmy throat. It would wash a plug clean too. Ended up being my coil. Ya never know.
 

Mike W

Infidel
Location
North Florida
have you ruled out electric problems? last summer my sj would lose a cylinder and sound like a person with a flemmy throat. It would wash a plug clean too. Ended up being my coil. Ya never know.

I thought about that but this thing is only a year old. I guess any electrical component can go bad anytime though. I need to do some research on how to check the coil. LOL I bought a brand new Fluke multimeter a while back but I don't really know how to use it.
 

Crab

thanks darin...noswad!
Location
Seattle
Gasgas 05 is still having the same trouble, runs fine mid to top but dogs out off idle. We fixed it for an hour or so by cutting back the wires, but there may be more wire broken somewhere.
 

McDog

Other Administrator
Staff member
Location
South Florida
Good luck man. Things like this drive me CRAZY! If it was me I'd go ahead and replace the gasket between the cylinder and the case, just to be sure. Did you check your reeds? It sucks to have such a frustrating problem.
 

ANT

Just ride
change your base gasket then check your plug readings. you couldve tore the gasket when you rocked the cylinder, how did you put on the girdle kit without taking off the cylinder? use a stud tool?
 

Mike W

Infidel
Location
North Florida
Good luck man. Things like this drive me CRAZY! If it was me I'd go ahead and replace the gasket between the cylinder and the case, just to be sure. Did you check your reeds? It sucks to have such a frustrating problem.

Electrical gremlins are the worst. I might as well replace the base gasket while I have it tore down again. It looks like it will be down a little while anyway. I had my intake off not too long ago and the reeds looked perfect.

change your base gasket then check your plug readings. you couldve tore the gasket when you rocked the cylinder, how did you put on the girdle kit without taking off the cylinder? use a stud tool?

With the cylinder still on I used a 6 inch long 1/4" socket extention for the tap to chase the threads. That way the studs go in easilly with a little antiseize.

mine had spark fine but the longer i ran it the worse it would get. The longer i would ride the longer it would take to clear out the 'flem'.

I think were onto something here. Mine will start out running OK then start to go down hill. The longer I ride the worst it gets. I'm just going to rip the coil out tomorrow and get a new one.
 
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keefer

T1
Location
Tennessee
Put your meter on the 20k ohms scale if it has one. If not pick the setting that is at least 15k or so. If you have MSD or stock plug caps you should read between 3.5k to 4.7k ohms. If you have NGK caps you will read around 14k or 15k ohms as these are resistor caps. If you do not get a reading, wiggle the wire around near the plug cap and see if it will read. This will indicate a broken spark plug wire. Stock wires are only 8 or 10 strand and fail due to vibration. If they are broken too far back to just cut back or are broken near the coil then they should be replaced with a good 20 strand wire like RD or JSS uses.

A very black carbon deposited piston usually means a lean condtion, a clean piston usually indicates rich. Sounds opposite but the rich cyl with extra fuel actually washes the piston and keeps carbon from building up. Do a search for " piston wash " and how to read it.
 
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ANT

Just ride
With the cylinder still on I used a 6 inch long 1/4" socket extention for the tap to chase the threads. That way the studs go in easilly with a little antiseize.

ok what im getting at is you didnt use the nuts on the head to tighten in the studs did you? like when you were tightening the nuts for the cylinder on the head the studs werent spinning too in other words using the nuts to tighten the studs? if that happened your torque settings will be way off. install the studs with a stud tool if you didnt.

you shouldnt have that leaking from the bottom of your cylinder, whether its the problem or not i would def replace that base gasket.
 

Mike W

Infidel
Location
North Florida
If the wires are long enough, try switching the wires and see if it moves to the front cyl.

I'm going to try that today. They are long enough.

Put your meter on the 20k ohms scale if it has one. If not pick the setting that is at least 15k or so. If you have MSD or stock plug caps you should read between 3.5k to 4.7k ohms. If you have NGK caps you will read around 14k or 15k ohms as these are resistor caps. If you do not get a reading, wiggle the wire around near the plug cap and see if it will read. This will indicate a broken spark plug wire. Stock wires are only 8 or 10 strand and fail due to vibration. If they are broken too far back to just cut back or are broken near the coil then they should be replaced with a good 20 strand wire like RD or JSS uses.

A very black carbon deposited piston usually means a lean condtion, a clean piston usually indicates rich. Sounds opposite but the rich cyl with extra fuel actually washes the piston and keeps carbon from building up. Do a search for " piston wash " and how to read it.

Thanks for the "how to" Keith. I'll give it a shot this morning.

ok what im getting at is you didnt use the nuts on the head to tighten in the studs did you? like when you were tightening the nuts for the cylinder on the head the studs werent spinning too in other words using the nuts to tighten the studs? if that happened your torque settings will be way off. install the studs with a stud tool if you didnt.

you shouldnt have that leaking from the bottom of your cylinder, whether its the problem or not i would def replace that base gasket.

I did accually. All i did was snug them down like the instructions said. The studs didn't turn while I torqued the girdle bolts.
 
Y

yamaslut

Guest
have you tested the compression???

what does feel like where the dome mates w/ the top of the cylinder??? Is the top have a lip to it??? run your fingernail accross it and feel for a drop in the sleeve.
 

Mike W

Infidel
Location
North Florida
have you tested the compression???

what does feel like where the dome mates w/ the top of the cylinder??? Is the top have a lip to it??? run your fingernail accross it and feel for a drop in the sleeve.

Compression is good. I checked that yesturday. 175psi in both with my cheap gauge. The top of the cylinder is smooth as well. Sleeve has not dropped.
 

Mike W

Infidel
Location
North Florida
did you try cutting the plug wires back? the the first and easiest thing to do if dropping to one cyl while riding....

That was the first thing I did after it dropped a cylinder the first day out while tuning. It got better but still ran like ass. After a long talk with John @ JSS this morning, the wires are more than likelly the culpret. I should have it back in a week or so.
 
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