Beware the condenser

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socalrider
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Posts: 550
Joined: Sat Jun 14, 2008 5:22 am
Bikes: 1963 pankenstein ; 1965 flh ; 1978 shovelhead lowrider
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Beware the condenser

#1

Post by socalrider »

1963 flh 198 miles on fresh to factory spec rebuild. For the entire 198 miles the bike ran fantastic was a one kicker hot and cold. Needless to say , i was very happy with the rebuild. Then all of a sudden this bitch wont start until about 20 kicks and then its backfiring throught the carb,runs on one cylinder unless i give it some throttle. So i go the usual suspects,condenser, points,spark plugs, spark plug wires,wiring, manifold leak test and finally carb.changed all aforementined out except wiring.did a bypass of wiring loom,i.e. Went directly from battery positive to coil and used a new wire from coil to points. Verified i had a good solid ground with ohm test. Still no go. Verify with another pan that runs well that everything from coil to spark plugs were good sets,first set i took off and replacement set, checked out to be good. So having heard about the poor quality of condensers sold today,i changed them out three more times,with a couple i had on hand and then a new one i bought.still no go. I thought about trying the condenser on the one running pan i still have but decided against it. Going to born free this saturday. Didnt want to take any chances of messing something up. Murphys law .I checked that no valves were sticking open and all was well there too. So I'm thinking the only thing left that could affect timing is the cam. Im thinking the gear sliped on the shaft and threw the timing off. Im bummed i got to pull the cover and everything else involved in that task not to mention the possibility of a andrews j cam with only 198 miles going bad. Then i look over at this 350 chevy engine i got on a stand that i know runs like a top. Ive started it several times on the stand. So i decide to try one more condenser, one that i know is good. Like magic she starts with one kick , after a bit of tweaking the slow speed needle shes purring like nothing ever happened! BEWARE THE BAD CONDENSER!

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