Universal coil trouble

B

b5iveS4

Been Around the Block
Bikes a 77 XS360 and i just installed new universal coils on it. I'm getting no spark at the points and I was wondering if it
has anything to do with the way i installed them. I mounted them to the stock bracket location but my stock coils were the plastic
bodied coils. Since the new coils are metal and the brackets are metal, would that cause a grounding issue with the coils?

There's a positive and negative lead on the end of each coil so i did think it would matter how theyre mounted. Each coil did come with a
rubber grommet though so I'm not sure exactly where that's supposed to go on these. There's only one rubber grommet per coil but 2
mounting holes per bracket. I'm stumped.

Also, when making my new spark plug wires, i just cut the wire flat and thread it into the end of the coil correct? Same thing with the new
spark plug cap too, they're the ngk caps.

Here's a link of the coils i got. http://www.dimecitycycles.com/vintage-cafe-racer-caferacer-bobber-brat-chopper-custom-motorcycle-electronic-ignition-parts-universal-12-volt-ignition-coil-24-71512.html
 
Maybe the coils are wired wrong all together? I have the red power wire and that Y's off to my "+" terminals on my coils and then i have each of my "-" terminals from the coils wired into the wires for the points. One goes to grey, the other to the orange wires for the points. Is that correct?
 
Here's a few photos of the coils. Does everything look coorect? Sorry if the pictures are huge, I'm posting this from my iPhone.
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no ideas of what it could be? I think i'm going to buy an entire NOS breaker assembly and that should eliminate the possibility of bad parts and should either work or come down to incorrect wiring or bad ground or something. I'm really trying to keep myself from dumping this bike off at a shop and throwing money away but I'm so frustrated that I really don't care anymore.
 
Your wiring doesn't look 'right'
You should have 12v on the + side, the - side goes to points and condensers.
If that's how you have it, you should be able to measure ~12v on points wire (with points OPEN)
Looks to me like you have +12v on both sides of coil?
 
there is a + and a - on these coils. The + terminals are on the inside and are running into the red/white power wire. The outside terminals are the - terminals and are running to the points and condenser. So with pocket tester and the points open, i should be able to read ~12v on the points?
 
Yep, you should read around battery voltage at the points wire with points open.
The coil resistance may drop voltage a bit. Be careful not to leave ignition on too long as coils can overheat
It's not something simple like kill switch?
Later models with electronic ignition may need to be in OFF position to make contact
 
I'm running the same coils on my CB 360 and they are mounted to the frame metal to metal and work fine. I measured mine and there is no continuity on my OHM meter from any of the terminals and the aluminum casing, at least on my set.

They work great once you get them figured, certainly much better than what I had.
 
thanks for the replies, i'll check the voltage on everything tomorrow when i get home as long as it's not raining
 
Can I bypass my kill switch to always be connected to eliminate the chance that it's the kill switch? I ordered a brand new points assembly. I got the whole thing, points, wires and plate so that eliminates the possibility of the points being the problem.
 
got my new points assembly put on. Ever since these new coils, when i turn my key on, i blow the 10A fuse on the brown wires of the harness which run to the main switch, and turn signal relay and so on. That will prevent the bike from running since its running into the main switch correct? Also, with a voltmeter, I should be able to put the + terminal on the + terminal of the coil and with the black terminal of the voltmeter on a ground and have it read 12 volts right? if so, that's not happening
 
ok, i'm completely lost and frustrated. Literally everytime i turn the key on, it blows that fuse in the 3rd spot...i take it out and replace it with a 20a fuse and it blows the 20a main fuse instead. Why is it doing that? Since i had it running, i seriously changed nothing but the coils and they're wired up just like the factory coils. Why is this happening?
 
I read that these coils are complete crap and I wish i never got them. When i ordered the coils i actually wanted from dimecity, their inventory was off and they didn't have them or something and i ended up with these. If i didn't have a decent amount of money sunk into this thing, i'd burn it to the ground. I hate it right now
 
He means that one of the blade terminals on the coil was touching the frame and shorting out.

You must have a dead short somewhere in the circuit.
 
Guess I'm off to the store to buy a whole bunch of fuses to blow until i figure out what the hell is going on. Should i tear the harness apart and rewire the coil circuit?
 
Get an old direction indicator and connect it across the fuse terminals.
When it's there it will be real bright if you have a dead short.
When short has been fixed, the light will not be as bright because the loads are dropping voltage.
You need at least a 21w bulb, headlight bulb (35~55w) is even better.
Saves a bunch on fuses
Points wires may not be connected correctly and shorting on backplate?
 
I just replaced the points with a NOS assembly so i wouldnt expect it to be that. I replaced my fusebox with a bladed fusebox. Am I connecting all circuits together at once or am i doing one at a time or what? Never done this before, sorry I'm confused
 
I did notice that the wires that are on one of the connectors in the headlight housing are kinda melted. They're still intact but looked as though they had gotten really hot and started melting the plastic. The color of the wires on this plug are:
Red/black, dark green, black
sky blue, chocolate, brown

Looks like its the connector for things like the neutral light, oil level indicator, front turn signals, indicator lights. I understand that a bad ground in this circiut is probably the reason my blinkers and indicator lights aren't working but could that tie into my problem with the coils? That brown wire is connected to everything from the flasher relay to the main switch, and voltage regulator. Its even connected to my horn, however for the first time since i've had the bike, the horn started working tonight.

I heard that the yamaha XS's were prone to electrical problems but this is ridiculous.
 
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