Motorcycle Repair: 1968 honda cl350 ignition coil, honda cl350, zero volts

Question
I have a '68 scrambler that has not run for a number of years.  I recently installed new points and a condenser.  I set the points the best i could.  The left plug does spark and I'm getting 11.88 volts with the key on at the connection from the coil to the left point but zero volts at the connection and and no spark from the right plug.  Also, the right coil gets very,very warm while cranking over the engine.  Has the coil gone bad?  thanks

Answer
Tom, It sounds like you may have grounded the point wire to the right side when you changed the points. It is somewhat of a delicate installation to ensure that the point wire is insulated from the point bracket. If you turn the little flag terminal just a bit, it should be free of any grounding issues, unless you got the insulator parts on the wrong side during installation. Once you have them installed, be sure that the point faces are completely clean. Some makers will put a preservative on the contact faces to prevent corrosion. Lubricate the point cam with some automotive point cam lubrication and/or put a drop of motor oil on the felt wiper, if there is anything left of it. New points will show some initial wear very quickly, causing the gap to close down a few thousandths of an inch in the first 100 miles of operation, so recheck the gaps/timing after the first ride or two.

The points are just mechanical switches for the coils that turn them on and off repeatedly. If the grounded point set is not opening the circuit, the coils just sit there getting saturated with the magnetic field that causes them to heat up.

If you have to, take the point wire back off and measure the voltage, which I am sure is close to the 11.88 you measured at the other side. Recheck your wire installation on the points, so the wire is not being grounded unless through the closed point contacts.

Point gap is .014" plus/minus .002", then set them so that they open at the F and LF marks respectively. I am working on a Honda 350 restoration guide story and have all the various service bulletins, including a step by step description of valve adjustment and setting the ignition timing. There were quite a few issues for the early models and the engine side cover gaskets should be replaced to prevent lubrication failures.

Contact me through my website www.vintagehonda.com and I can burn a lot of the data to disk and send it to you for a small charge, if you are interested.

Bill Silver