Why won't it start (2008)

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Points? Electronic ignition? magneto? lightning in a bottle?

How exactly do you know it's not getting spark? because you "kick it all day and nothin" ???

Let me give you the best advise you will ever get. Fuel delivery problems are the easiest thing to test for, SO if I want to narrow down my search when a bike won't start, what do you think I do??

A) That's right, I take the intake filter off the bike, pick up the throttle and squirt some fuel right down each carb manifold. then I kick it over. If it starts or tries to run, then dies, I know I need to look at fuel delivery. If it doesn't even go "POP", I'm on to looking at the ignition system...

So, here you are. The bike didn't jump to life after the "fuel squirt test", so you know that there is an ignition problem and that's where you go searching for the problem. Do not put the air filter back on the bike because you could have BOTH a fuel delivery problem AND and ignition problem. IF that's the case, then you can possibly fix the ignition problem and the bike still won't start.

That's where your squirt bottle test saves your ass again. After you check your ignition wiring, adjust your points, switch to new plugs, or whatever you do to troubleshoot the ignition, always follow it up with the squirt bottle to make sure you get fuel to the cylinders. If you don't, then you can actually fix the ignition problem and the secondary fuel delivery problem keeps you from seeing that you're half way home...

I use this bottle

Why won't it start (2008)
 
Stock ignition, new points by po
When I take a plug out and kick it, no visible spark at all against the head.
It’s getting plenty of fuel that’s for sure, but I will try the squirt test today. I’ll also ck the wy wire.
Thanks
C
 
When you remove the “intake filter” as mentioned above, to test, BEWARE, you also removed the FLAME ARRESTER.
So, have a charged halon extinguisher handy, and snuff it out early, should it pop back and ignite.
Alternative method is plugs out, teaspoon of gass in each hole, spin ‘em in, connect the leads & test.
 
The white/yellow from the kill switch becomes white/blue and attaches to one side of the ballast resistor. You should get battery voltage there with ignition on. It's a bit easier to get a meter on that than going into the bullet connector cluster under the tank.

If you have power there, you should get 6 V on the other side of the ballast resistor when either set of points is closed and 12V when both are open.

Places where failures occur are the kill switch becomes intermittent (open) and you get no power to the ballast. Or, the white wire carrying power to the handlebar switch has a bad connection in which case the blinkers won't work either.

Or, the ballast resistor becomes open.
 
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BTW, also check the installation of the points and make sure the proper insulators are in place. Shorted points wiring will definitely give you no spark. And if either of the 2 condensers (capacitors) across the points is shorted, that'll do it too.
 
So I checked power to the kill switch, never loses power even when pressed, so I guess it’s getting power? Not sure if that info is helpful. Blinkers work fine btw.
Not seeing any spark generated between the point contacts. I suppose it’s gotta be the points or condensers.
 
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With both point sets open you should get 12 volts at both of them, through the ballast and coils with no load.
 
The obvious thing to check is how the points are wired. There's an insulator that goes with the wire connection at the points. If you assemble the insulator on the wrong side of the electrical connector, then the points don't signal the coils...
 
Addendum, I’m going through the entire electrical system, I found that the Zenar diode has been discarded and the wires tied off. Unfortunately it wasn’t replaced with anything and it has the O.E.M. point ignition.
The one condenser was crispy black and the ballist resistor cracked and brown. I assume all this was due to the zd removal?
Thanks your thoughts greatly appreciated
C
 
Not likely, but without a regulator of some sort the battery won't last long. More likely is that condenser shorted and the ballast overheated as a result of that.
 
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