Spark Plug Wires

[al_roethlisberger]

Well I think I remember Carl fitzing and fuming that he bought the OEM cables for something like $75USD, then soon found out that he could have made better cables for less

 

So, anyone have any source and/or opinions on reasonably priced alternatives, and which cables might be "better"?

 

Do our OEM cables have any "special requirements" I should know about ahead of time before going out and shopping?

 

Evoluzione.net has some "good ones" for about $30USD, but they only come in bright YELLOW... hrmm <_>

 

And for example: anyone know anything about those "Nology" capacitor cables?

 

al

[Cliff]

The only special requirements would be that you can attach it to the coils and the spark plugs. Other than that you could go down to your local auto store and pick up what ever colours go with your bike. You might want to get resistive type to help suppress noise.

[Guest callithrix]

Since my incident this weekend damaged my wires, I ordered a pair of wires from Magnecor. They aslo do custom orders. They offer wires in 7.5, 8.0 and 8.5 mm wire. Colors are black, blue and RED!!!. Iv'e had a set of these wires on my Sportster with no adverse effect for 2 yrs.Check out the website it's full of info.As always "Caveat Empor".

[al_roethlisberger]

Cliff,

 

I may be wrong, but I believe that since we have resistor plugs(NGK BPR6ES) as OEM, the wires are actually not resistor equipped??

 

 

Oh, and in regard to ordering a set of wires, how do I specify the correct "ends" of the cables when describing them to the person on the other end of the phone? The plug end is easy enough, but apparently there are a number of different possible coil ends(I called Nology, and they asked). Is there a "magic term", size, and/or model for the type our Magnetti Marelli coil towers mate to?

 

thx!

al

[Cliff]

You're correct. If you have resistor plugs you don't need it in the wires.

 

I'd just take the coil and spark plug/cap down to the auto store with you. If you find a small family business rather than the supermarket type of store you may find someone who knows what they're talking about.

[dlaing]

OOOOoooo!

So If we have resistor wires, we don't need resistor plugs!!!!

[gthyni]

OOOOoooo!

So If we have resistor wires, we don't need resistor plugs!!!!

Unless we got a radio on our V11s

(I sure do )

we don't need resistors at all

[Guest mcloutier]

Correct me if I am wrong, but don't our caps have 5K resitors in them. If that is true you definately want to run copper wire cable.

[dlaing]

But I thought we need to protect the ECU from noise?

Here is an interesting article:

http://www.mr2.com/TEXT/DavidKucharczyk/ignition.html (pro nology)

And more interesting info from

http://www.magnecor.com/magnecor1/mc/it-motorcycle.htm (look to their FAQ for anti nology rant)

The Magnecor list California and Centauro.

Callithrix, if you can give Magnecor the feedback they want, perhaps they can list wires for our bike!!!

 

This universal kit looks ok:

http://www.cranecams.com/motorcycle/evowires.htm

As does the one here, but you have to select your own connectors:

http://www.tognottisautoworld.com/Products...ts/MSD/7879.asp

 

Here are some cool products:

http://www.heeters.com/sparkplugs.shtml

copper core wire @ $1/foot

indexing washers!

cable splicer!

NGK and Accel wire kits.

 

I put 24 inch cheap carbon suppression cables on mine, about 28 inches would have been better. I plan on replacing soon.

[al_roethlisberger]

Yeah, I think I'm going to pass on the Nology cables for now, as they are super pricey, and after talking to a few folks, they don't seem to offer a lot of benefit to our 2-cylinder, relatively low RPM, bikes.

 

And if Nology's claim that they effectively advance timing a bit is correct, this is exactly the opposite of what I want with my dual-plug setup.

 

 

The Magnecores don't list the V11, but they do list the California/Bassa which should be the exact same cable, no?

 

al

[al_roethlisberger]

Correct me if I am wrong, but don't our caps have 5K resitors in them. If that is true you definately want to run copper wire cable.

 

 

That's true, and honestly very odd if you ask me. I don't know why MG included both resistor cap wires AND resistor plugs, both of which are 5k.

 

It seems to me that one would want one or the other, not both??

 

Thoughts? Not requiring both would make things much easier.

 

 

Further, here's a question:

 

Since I have the dual-plug thing about to be going... do I need 2 resistor plugs and 2 resistor wires for all in one loop(it is a "lost spark" system")? Or do I just need the 5k resistance at one point "in the loop" say one plug, or just one wire cap?

 

al

[dlaing]

Since I have the dual-plug thing about to be going... do I need 2 resistor plugs and 2 resistor wires for all in one loop(it is a "lost spark" system")? Or do I just need the 5k resistance at one point "in the loop" say one plug, or just one wire cap?

Are you sure that it is a 'lost spark' system?

I did not think it was....

In any case I think it would be best to have 2 resistorless plugs and 2 resistor wires for each cylinder head OR 2 resistorless copper wires and 2 resistor plugs for each cylinder head.

The red Magnecor wires look great and should last many years.

But then again, premium copper wires may last even longer and cost less.

Cheap copper wires insulated in fuel line will also last a long time.

 

But I am not sure what you mean by a loop, so I could be off base of your question....

[jrt]

So, do spark plugs come with different resistivities? There shouldn't be any difference between two 5K resistors in series and one 10K resistor.

 

My pessimistic guess is that Guzzi put in resistor plugs and wires because that was the cheapest bulk setup they could get hold of.

 

Jason

[jtucker]

I like the NGK racing wires:

 

 

I have them on my Ducati, and plan on putting them on the Guzzi, if I ever see it again!

 

They are nicely made, although you would need to track down the approprate ends that will allow you to use them with the Guzzi coils.

[al_roethlisberger]

I agree that the NGK cables look like a good cable, and I was looking at them as a possibility.

 

 

Are you sure that it is a 'lost spark' system?

I did not think it was....

 

Yes, as far as I know, the dual-output Magnetti-Marelli coils I have are "lost spark" as many dual-output coils are. I am not 100% certain, and I'll test the theory when I get them... i.e. If they are "lost spark" if I unplug one wire, that cylinder will die.

 

Definition of "lost spark": Although the coil has two output towers, the electricity travels down one plug wire, firing the first plug normally, then continues THROUGH THE HEAD, and fires the secong plug BACKWARDS and then the charge continues BACK UP the second wire back to the coil. This is less than ideal, but is how most OEM dual-plug coils work. The obvious drawback is that the second plug is firing less efficiently(weaker spark), but it seems to work fine in the real world.

 

So when I was referring to the "loop" earlier, this is why I was thinking that if the 5k Ohm resistor was specified for a one wire/plug combo, then I'm speculating that I shouldn't need another resistor plug and wire/cap for the last leg of the "loop" back to the coil??

 

And in fact, ultimately I should be able to simply either use ONE RESISTOR PLUG or ONE RESISTOR WIRE, instead of a combination of 2 or more in the whole "loop".

 

Does this sound reasonable? Does anyone see any problems with using a non resistor plug and wire in the second location for my dual-plug setup?

 

Hope that helps to clarify my prior muddy description

 

al