Hello Folks;

Getting closer to my dream come true and looking for some help with my stator, which seems to not be working properly.   I'll start by saying that before I started on my project I was able to run my 68 DT1 and I had plenty of spark.  I didn't; however, test the lighting on it as the previous owner had done some funny wiring to what I believe was to bypass the need for a key which was missing.   I went through the entire wiring and I believe I got it back to original.   I have done most of the bike fixes I wanted to and I am in the final stretch of putting everything back together...I hope.   I was careful to not make any changes to the stator in the process although I believe it has been repaired prior as you can see from the photos.  I did however improve the insulation and cleaned it up.  What I am now worried about is that not having tested the lighting coils before to see if they were functioning I may need to do more work on the this power plant.  

Here is what I know at this point:

1. Before I got started on my project I was getting ignition spark; however, I did not test the lighting and so not sure of the condition of the charging coils.  My learning wasn't advanced enough to realize maybe only the ignition coil was working.
2. The stator looks like it was repaired by the previous owner.  No details on what was done there.
3. I only cleaned the points as per the service manual and improved the insulation of the wiring coming out of the stator with shrink wrap.  The previous work looked a bit scary with bare wires all over.  I simply worked from the outside wired back in to the stator with shrink wrap to clean it up a bit.  I believe I was very careful not to modify any of the connections.
4. Problem:  When I went to set the timing I connected one lead of the tester to the black wire from the stator and the other to the engine for ground.
5. The result was the test showed continuity and was on buzz mode constantly and it would not stop regardless of where I turned the magneto.  
6. I have included photos to help confirm that it is not an earlier 68 with a different power plant than the later ones.

I have a RX1 tester coming as I anticipated I might have a problem with this and would need to dig a bit deeper into this part.  As luck would have it it looks like I will need to troubleshoot the stator to isolate the problem.  What I think I need to do next is do a better test of every part of the stator to see what is going on and what needs to be fixed or replaced.  I have a new condensor and points.

My question for those who are seasoned on this subject is what is the best way to approach this issue and isolate the problem and determine if it is serious and needs DEET to come to the rescue?     

Any thoughts on what I can try would be very much appreciated?  

Thanks a bunch,

Luke 
   
 

#4 and #5 are not problems, they are normal. 

It's your bike but I would not try to install new points and condenser.  You already have good spark.  Nothing can be gained, the spark you have could be lost... 

 

Thanks MarkT.   

I don't think I said what I needed correctly after looking at it again I was probably trying to cover too much and because I don't fully understand the electrical system.   What I really want to do ultimately is set or check the timing.  I studied this some more and I believe what I am doing when setting the timing is to have the points open and close at the proper time.  I don't have a low resistance points checker, rather I have an inexpensive analog tester with the lowest ohms setting of RX1.  I believe I have the dial indicator set up correctly to find TDC and now I just want to figure out how to check or set the points correctly.  The shop manual refers to reverse and forward motion of the crankshaft and I assume they are referring to clockwise and counterclockwise respectively. 

I also don't have a metric dial indicator and I am working with an SAE version and .126 inch as the BTDC timing setting.  I am using the tester to find the point where the lowest resistance reading and begins moving to the highest reading as I believe that is the point where the points are just opening up.  The tester I have has a dial on the left side and I set it to the lowest setting and at RX1(ie: the tester swings to the far right on the ohms scale).   At BDTC.126in I adjusted the points to correspond with the tester moving from its lowest reading to its highest as I turned the crankshaft counterclockwise.   Is this correct or is there an easier way for someone like me with little experience?  

Also, is it possible that even though I set the timing correctly I won't get a spark in the end? What I wanted to do in the previous post was determine if the stator for the ignition, lighting and charging systems were working properly before setting the timing.  Now I think I should just set the timing and pray I get a spark at the end of this. 

Can you help me with this?   
    
Thanks...Luke
   

Sounds like you have it right.

Zero your meter with probes connected together, make sure you are on Rx1 scale.  Connect one lead to a good engine ground and the other to the black wire to points.

When points are closed, meter should read perfect zero like it did when you calibrated it to zero.  If not, points are likely dirty or you have a bad wire or connection.

When points open, the meter should move up to something between 1 ohm and 2 ohms. 

You turn the engine CW a little past 0.126" BTDC, points should read closed.  Now turn CCW and when dial indicator is at 0.126", the points should just open right at 0.126" BTDC. 

If points are opening too soon, reduce the point gap slightly.  If they are opening too late, open the point gap slightly.

After you have the timing set perfectly, final step (many skip this) is to rotate flywheel until points look wide open, maximum gap.  MEASURE maximum point gap with feeler gauge.  (DO NOT ADJUST GAP!)  If the measured gap is within spec in the manual (usually 0.012" to 0.016" or thereabouts) all is good.  If not, points might be worn out and need replacing.