Starfire System Monitor
(points and charging)

dayleedwards@rushpost.com

Price  is $16 US plus $4 US shipping
 

The Starfire System Monitor is a neat small unit designed for any bike using points and a 12 volt ignition system. This applies to the S series, and some H1 models.  It is designed to be permanently fitted to the bike, and will monitor the charging and ignition circuits.

1) It monitors the battery voltage, lighting  a LED indicator when the battery voltage rises to the correct level of (13.6 volts), giving a simple no-nonsense indication of state of the battery and charging system.  If, for instance the WHITE LED indicator goes out when the headlight is switched on, the alternator is not keeping up with demand.... either a fault has developed, or the headlight bulb is of too high a wattage.  White LED on.... all systems go.

2) The unit is also a very accurate timing light, making ignition timing a breeze. Each LED is associated with its own set of points, saving any confusion of which set of points  does what.  The LEDs will also indicate any problem with dirty points, and if so, which set is suspect. If the bike drops a cylinder for instance, the three lights can quickly diagnose the problem and tell you which cylinder is giving the trouble.

If the 3 LEDs flash in sequence when kicking the bike over, the fault will be in the secondary circuit, the coil or spark plug, or plug leads.   If the points, condenser or wiring  in the primary side is the problem,  the fault can be immediately identified, simply by noting which LED is not flashing, handy when stopped at the side of the road on a wet and windy night.  All coloured LEDs off.... means no ignition voltage.

Dwell angle too can be  measured simply by noting the degrees of crank rotation during the time the light for that cylinder is off. The battery indicator LED is WHITE,  the three points LEDs are RED, GREEN and YELLOW.

The unit measures just 2 inches X 1 inch X 1/2 inches, with a mounting tag at one end... small enough to be mounted anywhere under the seat.

Three wires (RED, GREEN and YELLOW) connect to the hot terminals (points side) of the three ignition coils, Left, Center, and Right. The ORANGE wire connects to the 12 volt ignition circuit, and the BLACK wire connects to ground.  

This "Idiot light" system is so much easier than messing with light bulbs, multimeters and wires each time a fault develops, and cheaper too.  This simple device can save lots of diagnostic time.