Hello From Wisconsin

[_Spyder]

Hi there, I'm Spyder from the Fox Valley. I've been lurking as a guest for a month or two, but my bike has given me a reason to come out of the woodwork I have a newer Schwinn Admiral with some 80cc HT, out of commission at the moment.

Thanks for having me, and I'm glad to be a part of the Motor Bicycling forums!

 

[Greg58]

Welcome to the forum, if you're having trouble give a little more info and someone will respond to help you out.

 

[2door]

Welcome Spyder. You've come to the right place for help and advice. There's a world of talent here just waiting to help you get back on the road.

Give us some particulars about your problems and I'll promise we'll make every effort to offer some good advice. Specifically what does, "out of commission" mean? What's not working?

Tom

 

[_Spyder]

Re: Welcome

Thank you both very much for your welcome!

Right now she's got no spark. Had her running fine, as far as I could tell, for a few weeks in the Wisconsin winter/spring. I put about fifteen or twenty miles on it total on 20:1 after buying it from the builder after he had broken it in on 16:1. I'm using Lucas Oil. One day I was on my way back from work in the cold slime and it sputtered about three times, regaining power after each sputter, then died and wouldn't fire for anything. Good compression, good fuel fine - although the line had come off earlier in the trip, I killed it and restarted it after reconnecting the line and wiping fuel from the engine. In the weeks following I figured out I had no spark. Testing the magneto went well, but finally the CDI will not read anything, no matter where I put the contacts. Ordered a new one with crossed fingers this morning from GasBike since BikeBerry was out of stock, so I'm hoping for the best when it arrives. The bike otherwise all seems so kosher, so this will be a relief if it's the fix I need.

If its not the fix I need, I'll post a fresh thread with the bike's life story in the appropriate section. Thanks again!

 

[2door]

Spyder,
Once you have the new CDI you'll want to check all of your wiring connections. Many of us do not rely on the kit supplied push-on connectors. We prefer to solder those splices and use heat shrink tubing to protect them.
The kit spark plug boot can also be a source of trouble. The frequectly fail and can cause you head aches. A good automotive quality boot/connector with a new spark plug that has the top cap installed is better than the kit design.

Good luck and keep us posted.

Tom

 

[_Spyder]

Thanks for the tips! I finally got some time with the bike and the CDI didn't help me. Turns out the magneto coil, despite testing well to this day, was my culprit. After installing a new one this morning, it fired up like the morning of the day it died. Seems to me like some fuel or slush must have run down the wiring and shorted it. I'll be caulking it before the next rainy weather. Very awesome, I'll be riding to work tomorrow.

 

[2door]

Glad you're back in the saddle.
Mag coil failures aren't uncommon and can usually be traced to cold/bad solder joints on the core. If you take a close look you might see the problem and can fix it and keep the coil as a spare. They are prone to failure if subjected to moisture. Always seal the wire exit port at the front of the case and make sure the side cover gasket is good and in place.

Have fun and ride safe.

Tom

 

[silverbear]

Welcome to the forum!
SB

 

[_Spyder]

Thanks a lot for the welcome, silverbear! I appreciate it. I'm glad to be here; these things are a blast!