WELDING AND MOTOPLATS

[Rain Man]

I have to do some welding on my GS and was curious if  this affects the motoplat or ignition coil, and what recommendations or precautions to take, if any.
 Dankes !!

Raymond
 Down East Pentons

[TGTech]

Raymond,

   High ampherage and electronics do not play well together, so it is always my recommendation, to disconnect any electrical components from one another whenever you're welding on the chassis. In theory, if you have a good solid ground close to the weld, you won't do any damage. But do you really want to take that chance?

   Personally, I have welded on frames with the ignition system connected with no difficulty. But again, is it worth taking the chance.

Dane

[Rain Man]

Thanks Dane, I guess as a good precautionary measure and from a yearly routine maintenance standpoint, this would be a good time to remove the motoplat, clean the grounds and inspect the wiring and reset the timing.  
  My stinger fell off last ride of the season and I made up another bracket to weld  to the frame via those rubber exhaust gromets.
  Hope it all stays together !

Raymond
 Down East Pentons

[pketchum]

Raymond,

The timing of your question, and Dane Leimbach's answer, was much needed..  I was talking to Andy Lippert on the way back from a 42 mi. trail ride with my stepson Derek, at the Chadwick riding area new Springfield, MO.  It has 160 miles of trail in excellent condition!!!  We had a BLAST!!!

I found I'd cracked the frame, on my '79 KTM 250 GS, during my first race in the MOVMX Series and the need to weld it came up.  Andy suggested I remove my electric components.  He suggested that Dane would be able to answer if even the Motoplat ignition needed to be removed.

Thanks again,

Phil

[pketchum]

I was able to repair my cracked frame by cleaning a good spot real close to the weld area, and attaching it to ground, while the ignition system was still in place.  As a precaution I did disconnect all the electrical conenctions under the gas tank.

Phil