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Ive seen alot of people putting these ignitions on their bikes and i just wanted to get opinions on them, and as far as fitment goes, are they universal? bike is an 85 shadow vt500c
Well i have one on my FJ and when i got the bike the ignition boxs was bad . Took me lil time to figure that out but called dyna after talking about it they had me send it to them. 4 or 5 day later it they called and said it was bad and 7 years old . Guy said couldnt totally replace but would replace it for there cost saving me over 100.00 . That and there stuff works well all depends your plans i would think !
I have heard of cases where they fail if they get too hot. We have fitted them to GT750 triples, CB72 race bikes and CB160/175/200 racers on the crank or in place of the points. Only one has died so far and that was when a top end ran out of oil and the cams and rockers turned blue with the overheating, so it wasn't a Dyna problem as such.
They are not "universal" though so if they don't offer one for your bike you have to design a fitment. RD250/350 for example need a different rotor and modified back plate and someone offers those. CB450 needs a modified GL1000 set. Interestingly that GL1000 set fits a number of older Hondas.
85 Shadow came with electronic ignition from the factory. Is there a problem with it or just looking for a possible upgrade - just in case?
If the pickups are still good but the Ignitor box has died it may be easier to get a replacement box or go with an Ignitech fully programmable unit. Those are a little more expensive than a dyna though.
im looking to upgrade my ignition system its all stock but has been sitting for awhile, i want to get the bike as reliable as possible so i figure going to another more modern system would be best
That bike has a pretty modern electronic ignition but the ECU do fail from time to time. I'd be tempted to fit new plug leads, clean all the connectors and try it out. Ignitech supply a plug and play replacement that has a great reputation if you absolutely must change the ECU out.
Dyna stuff is utter rubbish. I get phone calls from the guys drag racing Suzukis all the time with burnt out ignition boxes/coils, can I rebuild the box or get new coils. There are other systems out there for these bikes, none give the problems dyna does.
I'd say of all the parts we get sent for testing the Dyna is the most likely to have failed.
That's a heck of a statement. We have raced with them for almost 2 decades and the only DYNA S that failed was on a cam that cooked itself. Coils we find to be pretty much fool proof on old bikes and vintage racers too.
Their ignition boxes I can't comment on though.
I am intrigued though. You have full electronic ignition test jigs to run them through the rev range and check them out? Our ignition test jig is a bit basic. I may need to come and do some testing there. Where are you located?
In this case the answer is to get a plug and play Ignitech. It comes pre-programmed but can be altered if required.
We can run them on a a physical rig or electronically. what we can't do is track the dely from input to reponse - a good scope will do this and is on our list.
My comments are based on the weight of scrap metal we weigh in from our failed componets bin. Dyna coils forming the main bulk of this.
My Z1 has had a Dyna on it for the past 14 years and I have not touched it once since I installed it.
Daily rider/commuter duty.
Worth every penny from my point of view...
I really want to put one on my bike but my concern is fitment.....from what I've researched these things are specific to certain bikes. I'm not limiting myself to just plug and play I can do a custom wiring job its just i don't know if it will fit in the crankcase or if it would even work on the bike period
And from my understanding to get optimum performance its best to get the whole package the trigger the cdi and the coils if I can make my bike a reliable everyday driver I will spend the extra money. And if not dyna are there other routes that I can go to upgrade my ignition system
If your ignition works OK, leave it alone. Clean up contacts and fit new plugs and ride it.
If the CDI dies, get an Ignitech system. If the trigger coil dies get a new one. There is no reason on your bike to go back to a DYNA type simple technology.
We use a DYNA S which has no electronics to advance timing or anything else. It's simple and effective. Your bike has a relatively modern CDI system which typically works or it doesn't.
I would use the stock harness unless there is an overwhelming reason to start again and build one from scratch. The pulsars connect to the CDI and coils also connect to the CDI. ignition wiring is rather different than points.
the stock harness is falling apart and im not even going to use alot of stuff im cutting out the turn signals, the whole fuse box ( going to use in line fuses)the indicator lights on the dash, im just wiring for as bare as possible. i hope to start this as soon as i get new coils and spark plug wires if i hit a snag ill be back quick. thanks for everyones help on this
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