Is Pazon Ignitions still in business? Sure-Fire stopped working

Fast Eddie said:

And there endeth the lesson folks… check your spam folders before sparking international internet incidents…

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Andy@Pazon said:

You can't easily test the advance/retard on the ignition module - only when the bike is running and with a strobe light.
We have a dedicated test rig that can check the advance function and other parameters, over a wide range of rpm.

The self-test function checks for sparks (also confirming battery, connections, coils/leads/caps/plugs are good), but it is not a 100% perfect test for the module.
Very rarely a module will pass the self-test but the low speed operation and/or advance could be 'off'.
This can happen when (for example) the bike has a bad or missing engine ground, and sparks can jump where they shouldn't - for example inside the points housing and into the module via the trigger wires.
This can damage the module internal components.

Unfortunately the grounding issue is not uncommon with the Commando, due to the engine mounting method.

The Sure Fire system can be run with or without resistor caps/plugs, as it is not especially susceptible to radio frequency interference (r.f.i.).
If you have other electronic items on the bike (e.g. electronic tacho, intercom, alarm, etc.), these may be affected by r.f.i. if there is insufficient suppression in the high tension circuits.
So in those cases you may need to fit resistor caps or resistor plugs.
If you are using resistor caps we would normally advise using non-resistor plugs.
Similarly if you are using resistor plugs we would advise using non-resistor caps.
Too much resistance can reduce the available spark energy (although the reduction is usually quite small).
Also, we always recommend using copper cored plug leads with all of our systems.

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Fast Eddie said:

And there endeth the lesson folks… check your spam folders before sparking international internet incidents…

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swolh said:

Engine ground? How is the engine grounded? Is there a ground strap from engine to frame? When I pulled the tank to check wires, there was one blade connector that received two red ground wires. The male connector bolts onto the frame where the coils are mounted with a small
bolt. That bolt was loose. I tightened it and thought that might have been the problem - but still nothing when I kick it over. Could a bad ground there have damaged the module?

Later today (it's 2:15 am here), I'll run through the more detailed tests in your emails.

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johnm said:

I cannot remember if it's standard or not but I always run a nice big earth connector to one of the bolts that hold the head steady to the head. Or drill a hole the the head steady and ground to that. Just make sure you have a good connector to the motor. On the engine side of the isolatics.

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