Z1OwnersClub GB

Had the 1981 J a couple of years now, and although the spark has never been brilliant, it never me down… until now. Bike started only firing on 3, which initially made me think HT lead or plug. Two weeks later, I’ve got no spark at all.

I’ve checked through the ignition system. Pick-up coil resistance and voltage is good, and mechanical advancer ok. Voltage at ignition coils is good, as is resistance on primary and secondary windings. New HT leads and plugs fitted. If I’ve tested it correctly, then I the IC igniter is toast. I get infinite resistance across all terminals (again, if I’ve tested it correctly, as I was a bit confused by the instructions in the manual).

So, I see a couple of “good working” igniters on fleabay for near-on £100, and I’m thinking I can get a new aftermarket system for not much more. Am I correct in thinking that these don’t use the original igniter?

There seems to be 3 options: Boyer, Ignitech or Dyna, which I could use with the standard coils and leads?

Any advice or suggestions gratefully received.

I would go with Dyna,save all that grief with well old electronics!

Am I right in thinking that the Dyna will replace everything up to the coils? (i.e. pick-ups, advancer and igniter)

If the bike has a standard mechanical advance unit then this will still be needed on a dyna system . I would go the Dyna S route unless you want programmable features then you into a Dyna 2000 or ignitech territory , which if you have made do with a standard igniter upto now then you probably dont need.

Dyna S is easy to wire up so that would be my advice, personally I have never ran boyer on anything other than old brit stuff but have been given a few boyers in boxes that have been taken off zed's.

Try Chris at GRUMPY1260's tell him Phil Moore recommended him and he'll sort you out a reasonable price on one.

Thanks Phil, I may well do that

KWACKERZ1 wrote: Try Chris at GRUMPY1260's tell him Phil Moore recommended him and he'll sort you out a reasonable price on one.

Just called GRUMPY Chris n got a great deal on the Dyna-S.
Thanks Phil

Sorry guys, but I need to resurrect this thread.
Bike is a 1981 US import J1.

Set about fitting the Dyna S yesterday (keeping standard coils). Was going well, new parts fitted using original mechanical advancer, and all looks fine. Next, I come to tracing the correct wires to plug the Dyna unit into, and this is where I need a bit of advice.
I pulled the connector from the coil side of the failed igniter. With ignition on, I’ve got 12v when connected to earth on all 3 leads coming from the coils. I was expecting it on the red wire (to use as the switched power supply) but not the other two as well?
Plus, it’s also not obvious where the electronic tacho feeds into the circuit. Maybe somewhere inside the headlight shell? Obviously, I need this to work as well.
Can anyone chime in with some simple advice as to the easiest way wire a Dyna S into a J ?

What’s more, when I was checking the red wire was a “switched power supply”, I flicked the kill switch to make sure everything was as it should be. Now (bo11ox !!) I’ve lost power to the starter system and coils. Took the handlebar switch apart and everything seems to be in order, just no power anymore (it’s actually reading 0.03 v rather than 12v). Checked the 5 fuses under the seat, and all were ok. Is there another fuse hidden somewhere that I’m not seeing?

Any input welcome.
Thanks

Bump !

Can't believe I'm the first person to have this issue.
Is there a common problem with the kill switch wiring that I'm missing?

According to the wiring diagram the kill switch has a pink 4 pin connector. Check the voltage at yellow and red wire with the ignition on, repeat with solid red wire. If you have 12v at former but not later your kill switch is duff. In answer to your question, very common.

The actual mechanical part of the kill switch seems to be ok, showing continuity between the two wires when in the central position and infinite resistance when not. There doesn't seem to be any power coming in to the switch at the moment. It appeared ok, until I flicked the switch to test it.

If the switch is duff, do most people just get hold of a replacement, or is there a better aftermarket fix ?

Unfortunately I'm away at the moment, so won't be able to get back to this for another week.

the yellow wire with the red trace is the live feed to the kill switch & comes from the ignition switch & when the kill switch is in the run position the red wire which feeds the coils should be live. i would check the wiring ( yellow with red trace ) at the back of the ignition switch for power when the ignition is turned on. it is quite common for the contacts & soldered joints to fail on the j ignition switch

z1bman wrote:the yellow wire with the red trace is the live feed to the kill switch & comes from the ignition switch & when the kill switch is in the run position the red wire which feeds the coils should be live. i would check the wiring ( yellow with red trace ) at the back of the ignition switch for power when the ignition is turned on

What he said

Thanks, I'll check that when I get the chance
I keep telling myself that it can't be that big a problem

Ok, so it's the ignition switch that's at fault.
Took it off, and it looks as though I'm not the first person to have this issue as there's a hole been smashed into the plastic switch assembly. If you look in carefully you can see the contacts etc. I've tried cleaning this part as best I can, and wiggled a small electrical screwdriver into the contacts area. I can get it to connect this way, but not without.

So, what are my options in terms of a new ignition switch. Mine is a US import with a vertical steering lock, and 7 wires (6 in the 6-pin connector, 1 separate that goes to the starter/kill button). None of the new replacements I could find have this configuration.
Will I be able to "bodge" it with the 5 wire versions that are available (presumably for Euro models).
Or, should I just replace the whole lot with a custom set-up?

Try z1 enterprises they are usa based and Jeff is one of the members he may be able to source a US one for you.

https://www.z1enterprises.com/