6 volt coil

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svkiwi
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6 volt coil

#1

Post by svkiwi »

Sorry- here I go again with another rant about crap reproduction parts. The 'new' coil I purchased has shat itself in less than 500 miles!
Who sells a decent coil? I don't mind spending money on quality parts; what pisses me off is spending good money on rubbish. I don't care if it's not original appearance, I need it to be trouble free.
Please, I would really appreciate hearing from owners who have sorted their ignition; any adaptations etc that work. Thank you, Brian
flatboy1950
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Re: 6 volt coil

#2

Post by flatboy1950 »

Honda CD 200 coil is 6v and really hassle free ... if you can find one.
15 years ago they cost about double the price of a Taiwan repro .....
2 Small 6v coils from a DKW 2 stroke car work well too.
You have to dream up your own mounting for any of these non original coils.

Flatboy.
Pascal
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Re: 6 volt coil

#3

Post by Pascal »

Either buy an original one, or simply buy a round dual coil...they're much much better....
james
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Re: 6 volt coil

#4

Post by james »

What I'm told the reproduction coils are wired reverse polarity.
Switch your primary wires to the coil leads.
In your case the damage is already done.

Jim
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Re: 6 volt coil

#5

Post by VPH-D »

The round 'beer can' 6 volt coils are pretty much problem free, much more so than the 'replica' coils.
VPH-D
john HD
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Re: 6 volt coil

#6

Post by john HD »

I have had good luck putting new wires in original coils.

it is not as hard as it seems.

john
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Re: 6 volt coil

#7

Post by harleych »

1.I agree with John HD about new wire in old coil. I did it too & two
any 2 coils for 6 volt work well. but may be take more current.
wrong polarity for coil? sounds unusual.
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Re: 6 volt coil

#8

Post by Pascal »

Yes, the repop square coil should be connected backways (wire to points on the left/front lug, wires from dash to right/ back lug).
But that has nothing to do with the bad quality of the coil itself; the copperwire used inside is waay too thin and will easily break under heat/ vibration.
They're just 70-bucks crap...
Perry Ruiter
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Re: 6 volt coil

#9

Post by Perry Ruiter »

There is no polarity to a Harley coil. It doesn't matter which wire is connected to which terminal just as it doesn't matter which plug wire goes to which cylinder. Those who say polarity matters are relying on what they know about automotive coils, which are a different design. Attached are two coil schematics. The first, taken from a circa 1950 Delco Remy manual, shows the wiring of a typical automotive coil. You can see the primary and secondary are tied together on one end and hence polarity is important in that case. The second is taken from Uncle Frank's Q&A book and shows the internal wiring of a typical Harley coil. You can see the primary and secondary windings are independent of each other and so polarity doesn't matter ... Perry
Attachments
DelcoCoilSchematic.jpg
DelcoCoilSchematic.jpg (115.89 KiB) Viewed 8457 times
HarleyCoilSchematic.jpg
HarleyCoilSchematic.jpg (60.57 KiB) Viewed 8457 times
rd.king
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Re: 6 volt coil

#10

Post by rd.king »

I believe that Perry is absolutely correct.
But I would like to know if anyone has taken apart one of Taiwan Tedd's coils.
Are they independent circuits as original Harley coils or are they possibly connected like the automobile coil.
Is this why connecting them backward seems to extend the life of the unit.
Is this why they started stamping the -/+ on the opposing connectors.
So maybe svkiwi can take apart that burnt out coil and see.

Todd
svkiwi
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Re: 6 volt coil

#11

Post by svkiwi »

I think Todd is correct in surmising that these repo crap coils are in fact two individual coils. Upon receipt of this coil, I removed the top in order to color match the housing with the rest of my bike, and it was apparent there was two seperate coils inside. I didn't notice any + or - markings however, so wired it in same manner as the coil it replaced. I am awaiting delivery of a couple of replacement, made in Japan, round bodied coils, I ordered one and the wife suggested I buy another, just in case, so, "Yes dear, whatever you say"!! Fingers crossed, we are in the middle of summer down here, beuatiful long days for riding, and my scoot is laid up....
Mark44
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Re: 6 volt coil

#12

Post by Mark44 »

john HD wrote:I have had good luck putting new wires in original coils.
I just got my WL running after having it apart for several years. While trying to start it, it seemed that I wasn't getting a good spark, so I got a new coil from Warren at 45Restoration, and that solved things.

The spark plug wires on the old coil looked like they needed replacing, so I'll discard them but hang onto the old coil unless a continuity check on both sets of windings shows that it's definitely shot.
bob43wlc
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Re: 6 volt coil

#13

Post by bob43wlc »

john HD wrote:I have had good luck putting new wires in original coils.

it is not as hard as it seems.

john
Hi John,

I sent an OEM coil to Harbor Vintage who repair coils and they told me my coil was not repairable. Are you saying that it is possible to open a bad OEM coil and have it rewired? If so, can you tell us the procedure you used?

Thank you very much!

Bob
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Re: 6 volt coil

#14

Post by john HD »

Bob,

My comment was regarding replacing the spark pug wires not the internal wiring. I have used the method listed in any of the Harley shop manuals covering these coils. Warm it up, pull the old ones and immediately install new wires. Out of the the last 5 i have tried to repair i got 3 good ones.

The Internal wiring in these coils is immersed in tar and trying to get to the wires if you pry the top off is nearly impossible.

Get another coil and try again, there are plenty of them available and usually very inexpensive, probably because most folks won't or do not want to try replacing the spark plug wires.

All part of the fun in trying to fix these bikes!

john
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Re: 6 volt coil

#15

Post by 1oldsport »

John, what method did you use to warm the coil in order to replace the plug wires? 6v battery, battery charger or oven?
Thanks for your input
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