Well, I got a decent beta going of the writeup.. No pics yet. It's still in the early stages, so send me comments on what you wanna know/see. I do still have a lot more to add and organize, but for those who wanted to see it...

12a/early 13b ignition writeup

 

Good writeup, I like it! It's nice to be able to see things layed out and in order. All the info needed is here in the forum, but it can get kind of overwhelming trying to put it all together.
-John

 

I can't tell you how much this helps. I have a good idea of what changes I still have to make, but it's good to see someone else's checklist, too. Updating in the forum is a pain because you can't modify old posts as information changes, so this looks like a great way for us rotary squirters to keep a single up-to-date reference. Great work.

My first change would involve the MS mods. Firstly, you can get the daughercard into the MS 2.2 enclosure pretty easily, I'm told, and can get it into the 3.0 if you make your transistors very, very short. You can mount it upside-down on the lid rails and run a 4" umbilical so you can open things easily. Basically, it's not absolutely necessary to go outside the case, but you need to plan ahead. And looking at the photo in the FAQ regarding the pullup resistors has confused me. Are they just in parallel with the existing wiring, or do you need to cut the LED lead from the board and connect it solely though the pullup? I'd like to see that clarified by someone in-the-know.

 

You simply solder the pull up resistors onto the LED no cutting necessary. You can easily add them after the MS is built. I know this is correct because my MS spark works nicely.

 

jayroc nice write up thanks for taking the time doing it. I have yet to zero my timing. I have a V3 board on a second gen S4 6 port engine. I cant quite get it running but its sooo close. I installed my CAS correctly using the first timing mark on the front pulley (yellow). I also lined up the marks on the gear on the CAS. My trigger angle is 60. Ive had it running for a max of like 10 seconds then it dies and wont restart. I think my biggest problem is I have 4- 720cc injectors whick are bigger than stock because its a turbo13B. I recalculated the reg fuel and turned the cranking PW down by 2 ms. Beyond that and tips would be much appreciated. Its very close but something is off a bit still.

 

It's very easy to foul even brand new plugs irrepairably with an excessively rich unsuccessful start attempt especially if the timing's not spot on. BTDT, spent lots of time chasing nonexistent problems due to this. I have found that some of the nasty smelling older non-eco friendly brake cleaner will resuscitate plugs thusly fouled. As does a short pass through a nice hot oxy-propane or oxy-acetylene flame. A good approach is to do the math and research, project what you think is in the ball park then lean that by 30% or so. Keep adding 2% or so per start attempt and you'll soon get to the lean end of the small set of values where you'll have a successful, clean start. Add a little to that and you'll get a feel for how the engine reacts to various ASE and cranking numbers. You probably won't get it exactly perfect the first time you tune; several cold starts may be required but it's definitely worth it!

-Mike

PS: jayroc, I'm very pleased to see you running!

 

Thanks for the kind words, folks. Especially Mike. You're my hero! heheh

custom13b, you definitely need to zero your timing, dude! It could easily be off by 5 degrees if you didn't do that.

I did some looking at error's daughterboard and the cases I got.. There's really no way to get it to stay put unless you install it into the top slot. It won't fit there unless you didn't use sockets for the ICs, and soldered the conditioner resistors on the bottom side, even then you have to bend the transistors.. Looks like the best way is to solder all the wires to the top side and install it upside down in the top slot with some electrical tape insulating the sides.. I'll try that with my next build. I have a new v2.2 board and daughterboard ready to be put together. I'll probably end up selling for upgrades.

 

that's pretty much what I did, except I used some RTV to insulate it and hold it in the slots... (instead of electrical tape)

I soldered it with all the components on the top of the board facing down towards the MS board, and I put it in the very top slot. I also had to align it so that the load resistor pot was not on the same side of the MS case as the heat-sink with all the TO-220 parts.

 

Mike your absolutely right about the plugs been there done that a few hundred times..lol. jayroc I understand Ive gone into megatune and set my trigger angle to 55 and tried 60 even 55. I also set the fixed angle to 0 however it still wont run so the timing light cant be used yet. This car is being stubborn. Ive been playing with the req fuel numbers and the cranking Pw. Im pretty sure I have more than enough fuel so Im just working on timing now. Right now the only goal is to get it running and get a decent idle. Battery should be charged again ..time to **** off the neighbors again.

 

If you lay the daughtercard in the top slot and upside-down, you can position it to just clear the huge MOV, and it'll settle in nicely above the board. The shorter your transistors are, the better. For those reading this that haven't yet built a MS unit, It sounds like a huge pain in the ***, but it keeps you from having to make a safe home for the daughercard in another enclosure and elimnates two points of entry (one for each enclosure) to worry about.

 

Arg! I can definitely attest to this happening. I upped the cranking pulse widths trying to get it to a good cold start point and my plugs fuel fouled very quickly. grrr. These were new NGK plugs, too. Good thing these got good warranty..
Granted, my VE and warmup tables are on the rich side as well, so that didnt help, I'm sure.