Timing light (with advance readout) buy from outside USA

[JonW]

Anyone looking for one of these should check this:

http://www.rzrd500.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=7918

[graham]

Just a note on timing lights with variable advance/readouts....

About 3 years ago I gathered together about 15 of these lights from all the sections around the TAFE college where I worked. they were all brands, none of them really cheapish, from snap-on down.

I was doing an exercise with the motorsport students, showing them the proper use of a timing light, and how to make your own calibration marks, as well as finding true TDC.

The degree readout on the timing lights was reasonably accurate on a battery powered Inductive Ignition....read four stroke normal type, but was highly inaccurate on magneto and cdi systems.....more than 10 degrees out in majority of cases....

If you are using them to reference timing on a twostroke CDI system with respect to the TDC mark, you could be way out. If you have one, leave the advance switched off and just use it as a fixed timing light on the flywheel timing marks.

Graham

[JonW]

Cheers for your input Graham, that makes pretty scary reading... I was hoping that this would be a great modern way of easily reading the timing but if its not going to give an accurate reading and just being used as a timing light then its juts an expensive light, ie not useful. Damn.

[2TInstitute]

Jon,the only thing that makes that scary is the variation will be in the CDI NOT the timing light. I have used my INNOVA brand for probably 3 years and about 15 programable ignition installs. Only once had a reason to doubt it, connected another ignition and found the same 'error' (+6 deg). So from that safe to say RGV VJ21 has 6 deg built into the stator somehow.
A friend has used his for a far longer time and has the same results as me. I was skeptical of the lights capabilities but a dial indicator and reference mark do not lie.

[JonW]

Ahh ok, so its the 2stroke CDIs that have messed with the pulse... ok, i see how that would give different results to a straight through reading. As an aside, How come 4Ts dont do any of that tho?

back on topic... I would be using it with my Zeeltronic setups and I can configure them to do what i want I guess, so maybe this isnt an issue? I just dont know enough about these things I guess... Im only looking for baseline stuff to make sure i have the right start point for the ignition, Im not looking to make a lot of changes at this time, and these seemed like a simple way to do it rather than what i felt was guess work with a bent wire pointer and printed degree wheel... maybe im being silly and the degree wheel would be fine for what I need, but i like a nice easy digital readout LOL!

[2TInstitute]

Jon just get one and stop worrying, strobe a TDC and reference mark against a straight 15 deg, and you will see that the advance on the light, or your 15 deg BTDC and your programmed advance agree. Job Jobbed. Back in the box until next time.

[JonW]

haha youre right Lozza I am a worrier about these things... Ive spent way too much on my engine to be blindly experimenting, hence why i like to know so much about what im doing. LOL

[JonW]

Anyway, this buy is still on for a few more days if anyone wants one...

[JonW]

Ok, looks like we have a total of 2 of these lights about to be ordered. anyone else want one?

[Link]

Hi Jon if still avaliable I will grab one if you can get it to Melb. Thanks Link

[JonW]

If anyone is interested i think the best plan is to add a comment to the original post on that forum and Chris who is doing the buy will sort out the prices for posting on as it may well be cheaper to send them all to me and I send on, else maybe direct is best.

I expect to close this group buy pretty soon, ie by the start of next week....