spark plug wire/boot crapped out!

The Busted Nut · Aug 28, 2011

i was using my motor bike andit was skipping on some strokes. i checked the spark plug boot and all the internals came out on the plug. ****... so i did something stupid. i tear out the boot and stick the open ended cable onto the plug. its been working fine for now. i tried removing the entire cable from the cdi but it wont budge. how to i fix it???

retromike3 · Aug 28, 2011

the plug wires that come with the kits are worthless. the one I had broke in my hands. the thing I did was to go down the the local auto parts store and pick up a good shielded wire for about seven bucks. I then cut the end off that goes to the rotor cap and then took the old wire that was sticking out of the CDI and twist it out with a pair of pliers.(righty tightly-lefty loosely) Mine was stuck on with a bit of glue.

Next step was to stick my new wire in the hole and twist the new wire in. (There is a screw tip in the hole of the CDI that holds it in place) Since then no problem.

mike

WildAlaskan · Aug 28, 2011

I concure always replace the stock plug and wire with any regular or high Peformance wire and correct plug

And it is as easy as unthreading the wire turn left umloose

Mozenrath · Aug 28, 2011

I replaced my plug wire with this part:

https://www.napaonline.com/Catalog/CatalogItemDetail.aspx?A=BEL701050_0006443938&An=0

Just cut the large end off and screw it into your CDI. You may need to squeeze it in hard or shave off a little bit of the outer plastic to get it to fit in. I've been using it for a while now and it works great.

Since this new wire is longer and more flexible, I rotated my slanted engine head so that the plug was closest to the intake. Supposedly it should help the engine fire sooner or something like that; I haven't noticed a difference, but I figured why the heck not.

biknut · Aug 28, 2011

The Busted Nut said:
i was using my motor bike andit was skipping on some strokes. i checked the spark plug boot and all the internals came out on the plug. ****... so i did something stupid. i tear out the boot and stick the open ended cable onto the plug. its been working fine for now. i tried removing the entire cable from the cdi but it wont budge. how to i fix it???

Some of the spark plug wires are glued into the CDI. You can dig the glue out with a small screwdriver enough to remove the wire.

Once you get the stock wire loose it just unscrews from the CDI box, and then you can just screw the new wire in.

I was able the buy copper core spark plug wire by the foot, and a NGK boot at a motorcycle supply store.

Greg58 · Aug 28, 2011

My kit came with two boots, the first lasted about 200 miles the fell apart, the second got loose on the spark plug. I went to the local motorcycle dealer and bought a NGK boot for $2.60, this boot will be the first thing i'll change on all builds from now on.

kolomootro · Aug 28, 2011

mine broke too.i got a better one from sick bike parts,but you can use a car spark plug wire too.(cut the other side)
to remove the cable you turn the wire counter clockwise.

donutguy · Aug 28, 2011

Did you say you blew the center out of the sparkplug? I did the same thing a couple weeks ago and it went flying off to the side of the road somewhere. It also took the end of the boot with it.....never seen anything like that before.

Al.Fisherman · Aug 28, 2011

WildAlaskan said:
I concure always replace the stock plug and wire with any regular or high Peformance wire and correct plug

And it is as easy as unthreading the wire turn left umloose

Most will unscrew..turn counter clockwise. Some are glued into the CDI..those you have to cut off and dig out the remaining pieces with a pick.

When replacing use a wire core conductor. Some stores have them, I found 1 out of three that had bulk wire..O'Reilly's. The others that did have it wanted to sell it in 100' rolls. The clip below is from old school when I was in high school. Only to be used with wire core and not resistance lead. Can't even find them locally...funny..when I asked about them, the counter men look at me like I was crazy.

http://motorbicycling.com/f23/added-modification-wire-set-33074.html

biknut · Aug 28, 2011

donutguy said:
Did you say you blew the center out of the sparkplug? I did the same thing a couple weeks ago and it went flying off to the side of the road somewhere. It also took the end of the boot with it.....never seen anything like that before.

Was the spark plug a Great Master?

wan37 · Aug 29, 2011

I need some advise I got a 48cc grubee shyhawk gt2b kit,I broke both sparkplug caps,and plug is junk its the cheap three prong one.So whats the best sparkplug and wire to get I have a bunch of auto parts stores around me....thanks

retromike3 · Aug 29, 2011

NGK makes a good plug I don't remember the exact model number.

mike

wan37 · Aug 29, 2011

okay ngk is brand of spark plug ,so any body know the plug number,and gap it should be.I also would like a plug wire number.I have a autozone,napa,advanced auto parts,o'reilys.There all pretty close. Thanks a bunch.

Al.Fisherman · Aug 29, 2011

Al.Fisherman said:
When replacing use a wire core conductor. Some stores have them, I found 1 out of three that had bulk wire..O'Reilly's. The others that did have it wanted to sell it in 100' rolls. The clip below is from old school when I was in high school. Only to be used with wire core and not resistance lead. Can't even find them locally...funny..when I asked about them, the counter men look at me like I was crazy.

http://motorbicycling.com/f23/added-modification-wire-set-33074.html

Chinese LD Z8C :
CHAMPION Z8C
N.G.K. C6HSA, G6M, b6hs
MOTORCRAFT PE2
MARELLI CU6N
ENKER T70
Diamond e3 12

wan37 · Aug 29, 2011

Thanks
I will go get them and have fun riding it today.Oh whats gap suppose be on the ngk b6hs or are they already pre gaped.

biknut · Aug 29, 2011

I run NGK BP5HS gapped @ .030

The slightly cooler BP6HS works pretty good too.

Al.Fisherman · Aug 29, 2011

wan37 said:
Thanks
I will go get them and have fun riding it today.Oh whats gap suppose be on the ngk b6hs or are they already pre gaped.

Don't ever trust the pre gap on a plug. Once I buy a plug, I over gap it and then close the gap to what I need. I've read years ago (new plugs made today may not have this problem) that without doing this the gap can be change in the heating process. Old school, I still do today.

From the NGK site...

Do I need to Gap my plugs?

Maybe, but likely not. Many plugs are pre-gapped for their most popular applications, however, the gap can be altered if the plug is dropped or mishandled in packing/shipping. Therefore even if the plugs are supposedly preset for your motor, it is always wise to check the gap on each plug prior to installing. For information on how to adjust the gap see Proper Gapping.

Proper Gapping

In most cases the factory set gap should conform to your vehicle specifications. However if it is necessary to widen the gap, do so with a tool that only pulls back on the ground electrode without touching the center electrode or the porcelain. To close the gap on a plug, gently tap the plug, electrode first on a hard surface.

Here is a good site about spark plugs.
http://www.dudeworld.com.au/ARTIPLUGS.HTML

Saddletramp1200 · Aug 29, 2011

If you live in a town large enough to have an auto wrecking yard just go there look for a late model car that's been hit in the front and ask if You may have or buy a plug wire for your bike. Junk yard owners don't care about small things like that. Greedy ones may charge a dollar or two. (c)

PerryP180 · Aug 29, 2011

I've found it makes installing the spark plug wire on the cdi unit much easier if I use a screw about the same size as the one on the cdi to start a hole. Sort of like a pilot hole. I took the little collar from the stock spark plug wire to boot connection and use it to cover the connection at the cdi box.

2door · Aug 29, 2011

The controversy surrounding the use of solid metallic core wire verses resistance wire will never go away. There are those who maintain that the resistance wire, non-metallic conductor or TVRS wire will work as well as or even better than the old school metallic core wire. Then there are the dinosaurs among us who believe that due to the questionable ignition systems we are dealing with and comparitively low seconday voltage produced by the CDI that the less resistance, the better the spark.

Both types of wire have been used successfully on the HT engines with little to no discernable difference in performance.

One advantage, at least for me, to the metallic conductor wire is that I can solder the spark plug end connector to it and I feel I get a better connection at the CDI screw in connection than the carbon impregnated threads of a resistance wire.
I've experimented with both types and found the only disadvantage to the resistance wire was the CDI connection loosened after several hours of operation but that was fixed by 'glueing' the wire in with a silicone adhesive. Never had that happen with a copper core wire.
Like so many aspects of this hobby, each builder needs to experiment and find what works best for them. I will say that whenever I see the suggestion to use 8mm wire that I will counter that advice by warning that 8mm will not fit the CDI and will require trimming some outer insulation which can compromise the integrity of resistance wire construction and the insulating quality of the outer layer. 6 or 7mm is a better choice.

If one plans to use the pre-made resistance wire available today in most auto parts stores I suggest getting one with a factory installed spark plug boot on one end and using it as is without modification other than cutting the other end to the required length. As stated above, the screw in connection to the CDI might benefit from a little adhesive to keep it securely in place and to maintain a good electrical connection.
Tom

spark plug wire/boot crapped out!

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