68 CL125A ignition(?) problem

[skiri251]

Hello every one,

It's been a while but I am still alive.

This is about my 68 Honda CL125A twin.
The other day while I was riding it did a few backfires/afterfires then died.
Pushed it home and found the battery dead.
Installed a new battery but no spark.
Cleaned points but no spark.
Installed a new coil and finally got spark.
Currently the engine starts, idles and revs okay in neutral but it cuts off if I ride.

WTF?

 

[julimike54]

When it dies, do you still have spark? Maybe carb?
Good to see you back....

 

[skiri251]

julimike54 » Wed Dec 02, 2020 6:15 am[/url]":1v7awc9q]
When it dies, do you still have spark? Maybe carb?
Good to see you back....

Thanks!

Well it does not die. It just misfires (?) and won't rev up smoothly.
I am suspecting that ignition is not performing properly under load but can't think of the reason.
Carb was in good shape (just cleaned it in ultrasonic washer) before the battery went.

 

[joedrum]

Is it charging ..something made the battery die

 

[skiri251]

joedrum » Thu Dec 10, 2020 3:03 pm[/url]":1kdz40yq]
Is it charging ..something made the battery die

I think so..
I hooked up voltmeter and it read 6.4V while engine is running.

The battery was a little less than 2 year old. The batteries in my other bikes typically last 2~4 years.
So it died a little early but maybe AGM is not robust enough to withstand crude stock rectifier (no regulator.)

 

[joedrum]

That seems way to low in voltage ..im rather sure that's why it's not running right skrri it's a 12 volt system when running it needs t rdo read 13 plus volts I'd say

 

[skiri251]

joedrum » Sat Dec 12, 2020 4:42 pm[/url]":3ijwtsja]
That seems way to low in voltage ..im rather sure that's why it's not running right skrri it's a 12 volt system when running it needs t rdo read 13 plus volts I'd say

CL125A got 6V electrics. Not sure 6.4V is high enough for charging though.. Fully charged battery got 6.4V.
I replaced stock selenium rectifier with modern R&R.

I will clean the carb just in case.

 

[mcgovern61]

Maybe AGM is not robust enough to withstand crude stock rectifier (no regulator.)

I would say that is accurate. AGM batteries charge at a higher rate than regular batteries.

 

[skiri251]

An update on this.
I put a brand-new China R&R and now charging voltage is around 7.4V
I also cleaned the carb again but actually it got worse.
The engine became even difficult to start. I managed to hold some rev by twisting the throttle but it did not idle at all.
Now it looks more like a carb issue...
It ran okay once before I put the new R&R in. Not sure why...
Maybe the carb and intake manifold joint is not air tight.
Meanwhile I ordered a new China carb (PZ-22 or someting)

On a different topic, my ink-jet printer's print head got clogged up.
Bought a cleaning kit and tried it but no joy.

So far, almost everything I touch causes trouble.. sigh

 

[dan filipi]

Low quality and budget priced usually bite me in the ass.

Medium priced color laser replaced my last inkjet (expensive cartridges) years ago.

 

[skiri251]

dan filipi » Thu Dec 17, 2020 7:34 am[/url]":wdir2m04]
Low quality and budget priced usually bite me in the ass.

Medium priced color laser replaced my last inkjet (expensive cartridges) years ago.

I was tempted to buy all-in-one B&W laser printer but cheaped out for B&W (not all-in-one) laser printer ($69 refurbished, $99 new.)
I don't print that much (that's the reason why it clogged up). It's inconvenient that now I cannot simply copy (scan it with can't print all-in-one, then print on cheap laser) but then again I don't copy that much either.

When my current all-in-one printer goes completely, I will buy all-in-one laser.

 

[skiri251]

Update on this:

I installed the cheapo Chinise carb but no joy. (Diffcult to keep idling, rev's okay in neutral but bogs in gear.)
So it must be the ignition, right?
I am trying to measure ignition coil seconday resistance but getting no connection.
I checked it when I bought new and it was the same.
Nonetheless it produces sparks (but not strong enough to give the engine enough torque... it seems.)

I googled ignition coils and every diagram shows secondary winding connected to primary ground.
I checked connectivity between HT lead and primary terminals with multimeter but there is none.

It is a dual ouput coil (two HT leads coming out) but it should not make any difference, right?

Are there ignition coils which secondary winding is floating?

 

[indianakid]

on a dual out put coil the two spark plug leads are the ends of the secondary winding.

 

[skiri251]

indianakid » Mon Jan 11, 2021 12:07 pm[/url]":1fzv4fje]
on a dual out put coil the two spark plug leads are the ends of the secondary winding.

Ahhh.. Thanks.
I measured continuity between the two HT leads and it was open also. So that means the coil is bad...