QuestionHowdy,
Since I am one with the weather elements, I will send some snow your way. Using your advise here's what I've discovered. I removed the cover and looked at the coils, they all seemed clean and decent and I can test them later. When I removed the recoil I discovered that looking through two little windows, I could see the points, I assume they are the points having never really looked for points before. Anyways there are two of them, the one on the right moves open and close when I move the wheel by hand, the one on the left doesn't do anything.
I moved the wheel in a complete circle a couple of times to make sure. The one on the right( which works) would only open and close during one side of the wheel's rotation. The one on the left wouldn't open or close at all, it stays closed. I can move it with the flat head screw driver. It looks nice and clean, I sprayed a little WD-40 on it (because I didn't have any other cleaner). No luck. Now do I need to start going in deeper to adjust or what?
As a side note, this isn't just a matter of me getting this snowmobile running at this point, its a matter of "Me-n" buying stuff and getting it working while the wife sits quietly back and thinks of the time a Renault LeCar was purchased and blow up because of an inexperienced amatuer want-to-be mechanic.
-followup To
Question -
Arcticatman, I contacted you about two weeks ago about a 1972 arctic cat, Cheetah that I purchased. Some friends of mine have come over and cleaned the carb (Walbro), checked the electrical connections for the ignition and plugs. We haven't been able to get any spark from the plugs. They are new. The pull start seems fine with good recoil and the engine appears to have a good compression.
Could you advise me were to go from here? Luckily for me my friends have about four of these and are willing to work with me, however as usually time is short and the season for sledding is on. Thanks
John
Answer -
Hello John,
If you have any snow, please send it my way, it's warm out with absolutely no snow here, Looks like a day for the dirt bike! No spark problems are pretty common on the old sleds, but the cause varies from a problem with the kill switch, to a weakened coil, to damaged plug wires or caps. Here is what I recommend, as I know you don't want to replace expensive parts until it runs. The best thing to do, is remove the coil and take it on for a test at a small engine repair shop, or snowmobile dealers. This way, you will know if the plug wires, cap and coil are OK. Unless they are cheapskates, they will probably do it for close to nothing. The next thing to check is the points, usually even if the points are in bad shape, you can still get spark. Turn the engine by hand, and make sure the points open and close. You may just need to remove the recoil starter housing to inspect the points, as many of the older sleds have slots on the flywheel for this purpose. If the points are sticking, clean as good as possible, point/contact cleaner works well. If the coil and points check fine, Take a look at the kill switch. It can be frustrating to go over it. Try to follow the wires on it, to make sure they aren't cut disconnected. Remove the kill switch, and spray it down with electrical contact cleaner Try to get the spray to go inside the switch. Another part to check would be the key switch, just make sure it's plug is plugged in tight, and it doesn't hurt to put some WD-40 down the key slot. The last resort would be the internal coils on the stator plate, under the flywheel. They do fail over time. To replace them, the flywheel will need to be removed. I believe Kawasaki refers to them as exciters. You can get new ones here, as well as an external coil, if the testing results aren't good; http://www.denniskirk.com/jsp/product_catalog/MMYSkuDisplay.jsp;jsessionid=CPORI . Hope this helps you out, I've been on sick vacation from Allexperts for the past week or so, but I'm back and at it now, and will be here to answer any questions. Let me know if you run into any trouble, or need any help! Good luck with the Cat! --Arcticatman
AnswerHello John,
Glad you were able to get to the points. it sounds like you have a pretty easy job pf getting it going ahead of you. What happens, is the points move over time, and sometimes close (more often they open instead) OR, the cam lobe or other parts wear down, and will need to be replaced. Point adjustment is a basic annual tune up job, you will just need a good, small screw driver and a set of feeler gauges. When you look through the slots in the flywheel, you will see the two sets of points, opposite each other. In each set there are two points, the moveable point, which is on an arm and moves back and forth, and then the one that is screwed down and doesn't move. Now, turn the engines shaft until the gap between the points is as big as possible, it may take some time to get it just right. Take the screw driver, through the slot, and loosen the screw until the point will move. Now, insert a feeler of 0.022 and slowly move the point up to it. Be very careful not to move the movable arm while this is done. Tighten the screw carefully, with the feeler still in between the points. Now rotate the engine a few times, and check the gap, making sure the feeler gauges don't move the movable point. Repeat this step on the other set of points. When you adjust the points that don't open, you will need to loosen the screw, and move the point back as far as possible, tighten it, and turn the engine while watching it's operation. If the arm now moves, then you can proceed to loosen the point again, and adjust it to 0.022. If it sill does not move, you will need to install a new points. The little silver round cans, called condensers, should be replaced, too. They are all very cheap for most sleds. You can purchase new points and condensers here, POINTS: http://www.denniskirk.com/jsp/product_catalog/Product.jsp;jsessionid=NOJIZFL4FG1 and the CONDENSERS: http://www.denniskirk.com/jsp/product_catalog/Product.jsp;jsessionid=NOJIZFL4FG1 . Hope this helps you out. No one can resist buying a Cat, and I don't think you will be blowing it up! Best of luck you, let me know if you need any help at all. --Arcticatman
