ignition conversion to electronic

I appreciate all the feed back so far....when I bought my Commando new in 1974, the dealer in Ohio, an accomplished road racer over the years on BSA's, pounded me with mechanical points were the way to go when I asked, and down played the "age of electronics" .....just his philosophy as a builder I guess. I'm reasonably adept over the years on the basic mechanicals of maintaining the bike, I'm just trying to minimize the "oh s**t" factor after pulling out the guts of the ignition onto the floor and struggling with the install instructions of the unit purchased... that are geared more toward a mechanical whiz ...than what I regard myself....

So, a flip of the coin between Pazon Surefire and Tri-Spark??

If you are putting in a Boyer and over 50 years old.
I suggest that You
Get a kid or somebody you don't like much, to kick it over the first time until you get it timed right!
My bike kicked me about 4 feet into the air.

That I don't need....knee problems anyway [why I'm looking for an easier start....] and my wife would just stand there looking down at me with that " you fool " look on her face......

Tri Spark then...Mine had boyer and it almost threw me over the bars several times..Since TriSpark no kickback at all

chuckkett said:

So, a flip of the coin between Pazon Surefire and Tri-Spark??

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That's fine as long as you know that that flip will either save you or cost you about $150, depending on your point of view.

chuckkett said:

What are to pros and cons of converting my 1974 850 Commando from points to electronic? Is one manufacturer better than another?
I bought it new but At 64, I'm looking to make it easier starting if possible....

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Electronic is the way to go IMHO but which electronic, that is the question. I have had great service from a Boyer Mark III ignition in my MkII Commando for the past 8 years or so. I wouldn't hesitate to use a Pazon either and they are probably better than Boyer at this point. The Tri-Spark (with electronics in the timing case) remains to be proven in my book but others may disagree!!!

Trying to stop the thing walking out the door when strobing can be reduced by taking it off the centre stand and getting the throttle man to hold the thing up while you get an earful. You will get a more accurate look at the strobe marks as well.

A freshly installed but not strobed Boyer is normally over advanced a few degrees, just follow the instructions and then retard it a bit before the first kick, also go for the MK4 so a low battery voltage does not over advance the timing.