High Performance Spark Plugs - Anyone tried these?

Hi,
Did a search through and couldn't find any posts about these plugs so thought I'd ask.

These ZC/CS Brisk plugs look pretty sexy(at the bottom of the linked URL)... I'm saying that since I've been trying to find an effective way to really clean the normal NGKs I ran into this plug which looks pretty funky with the triple spark and no plug gap issues... or buildup in the gap while I'm trying to tune I would think.

I'm thinking when they say High power sparking system it might be talking about CDI over TCI or...

Anyone try these?

 

Try this link at the BMWLT.com website. You do know they are $20 each don't you? The author of the post lives in Finland and rode his bike to Germany for service. He also talks about difficulties he had with a K&N filter. It's definitely worth a look. Double click the pics to see the text.

Loren

http://www.bmwlt.com/forums/showthread.php?t=54713

 

Are we talking surface fire plugs, like a mazda rx7 has? they were designed for marine use and while they do perform well, they have a tendancy to create a fire like a blow tourch and if the jetting isn't prefect to rich, blow holes in the pistons. I might use them in a motor that burns a little oil or runs a little rich, but not in one that runs right. I don't know what conditions you might ride in or what shape your bike is in but wouldn't run them unless I just couldn't find a plug that works.
My bike is a little rich and I've had Autolite 63's in it over 11 mos and 8 US states (in the US, west to east). NO problems
Spark plugs were made to be changed.

 

tci or cdi isn't high power sparking system. the coils only put out around 7,000 volts. the gaps on those plugs won't work with such a weak ignition system.

cars are high power sparking systems. they put out around 50,000 volts. they have Distributorless Ignition Systems. DIS for short. spark plugs can last upwards of 100,000 miles as it is. they don't need high performance plugs.

a racecar engine putting out 500 horses might prefer those types of plugs.

or maybe a NOX kit on the bike.

but a motorcycle engine only puts out 50 horses give or take depending on the size of the engine. regular plugs are just fine.

spark plugs can be hotter or colder, depending on what number you get. i've noticed worse gas mileage with colder plugs. a hotter plug runs the risk of motor meltdown if spark is too hot.

 

I feel myself backing away from the idea... reading that BMW post made it seem like a common type of plug for BMWs though... Still, I don't like the idea of a hole melted in the top of a piston either!

Ack! Damn google throwing up these results to tempt me. I type in 'spark plug cleaner' and some how end up looking at wierd spark plugs!

Thanks for the thoughts and opinions.

 

i get great wear and longevity out of NGK's iridium plugs. they are a few dollars more than the standard ngk, but nowhere near what those brisk plugs cost.

the funny looking tapered plug is snake oil and i actually could see it hindering the combustion process.

 

So after th tci tribulations, which tci are you running th 5G2 or th 4H7 ? May have something to do with it....but I'm no eggspurt

 

I to like the iridium plugs look online for a good price if you get them do not gap them

 

The bottom line.

Here in the States, the stock NGKs can be got for under $2 each. That's my kind of "performance."

 

LOL those things do have a certin snake oil attraction to them. If I read how they operate correctly I invision a mini "Telsa coil" going off in your engine.
Although I must say after years and years of buying the latest and greatest snake oil products I can say with wisdom I find tried and true is 99% of the time the way to go.

 

I made the mistake of buying 4 standard NGKs the other day without asking the price and the guy slugged me $24. I'm pretty sure I bought the last set and had them shipped from the UK for a few bucks less... but what do you do.

I'm still using the 4H7! (going by the reluctor match I should be on the 5G2 oops) but in my defense the bike runs really well now and I haven't successfully been able to identify those little greencap values(print is worn off both of them) to replace yet on the other TCI... must get back to that project too!

I'd like to try the iridium too but I found that I have a set of fouled plugs already, only a couple of 100Ks old, that I swapped out with new plugs when I was doing the carbs, just to shotgun eliminate... if you know what I mean and while syncing and tuning the new plugs got a bit blackened... I was looking at my garnet paper, brass wire brush, points file, feeler gauges and began lamenting that there had to be a more effective way of cleaning these things back to sparkling new! Thus the google search for some easy way to clean them and the Brisk plug find!

I've been told that if you want them perfectly clean, just glass bead blast them! If I had a bead blasting kit then... well I'm not sure I could justify that purchase.
I keep thinking about the golf ball cleaning machines(pop the ball in and turn the handle, like a pencil sharpener, and out pops a clean ball) and I was sure there was a little gizmo that did the same sort of thing for spark plugs or maybe some solvent that would remove the carbon without manual abrasion.

I know it's not a hard thing, cleaning the plugs, but I would like to pull them and know the colour or buildup that is on them is from the current tune and not the result of the buildup that was on them, from before, being burn't from the latest tuning configuration.

Anyone know of such a gizmo or solvent?

 

NGK in most motorcycle shops run $5-6 bucks each, auto parts stores usually charge less than $2 but don't carry hot bp6es, just 7s' (stock) & 8s (cold)

 

Sure. If you insist on cleaning them, these should be commonly available on your side of the world as well, albeit likely by a different manufacturer: http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/ ... 3249_13249

However, I would recommend against using "abrasive grit" I would use either blasting soda or beads in it.

 

They make a little gizmo just for spark plug cleaning fill it full of sand and hook it to an air hose I just buy new plugs myself. I was told or read somewhere that you really cant clean plugs you can wire brush the flaky carbon off of them but if there fouled the only thing that will clean them is a high pressure hotter than Haiti environment. that would be inside a running cylinder. I think thats why alot of people have a hard time tuning there bikes is they try to tune it on fouled plugs and then take a ride and the engine idles up on them so they tear the carbs apart over and over.

 

Sand blasting plugs is a waste of time, silicone (sand) conducts electricity and will quickly foul agian. Blasting soda would be better than glass beads for the same reason

 

Those $12.00 Spark Plugs aren't going to make your Bike run any Better than if you use AC/Delco or Champions.

The people who make them get richer.

You're better off getting Standard Plugs, ...
And using better Gas.

But, if buying a set makes YOU feel better, ... the advertising worked!

 

Agreed, sometimes spark plugs, especially resistor type plugs, can alter the spark curve a few degrees, thats why some plugs seem to make the engine idle a little faster. I had a friend that put those things in a 390ci Caddi motor and it ran better for a while, but burnt holes in his pistons.

 

Padre,
Autolite 63's are AWESOME !!!

When I was at my lowest hour with poorly tuned carbs, those plugs still fired and made the bike run pretty good.

 

Would you rather throw a can of gas on a small fire, or a big fire?

There's a lot of misunderstanding about spark plugs. People think that a larger spark makes a bigger boom. They don't. More gas and air makes a bigger boom, but they might need a bigger spark to get a good boom, once you add all that air and fuel under high pressure. A bigger spark with the same amount of gas makes the same amount of boom. This is because the initial energy of the spark is far, far less than the energy released by the burning of the fuel.

What some "high end" spark plugs do, however, is last longer. The iridium plugs last a lot longer, though I don't know exactly how much. They are used in some commercial small boat engines to reduce the maintenance time.

However, I can change all 4 of my plugs out in a few minutes. I would rather buy 5 brand new plugs, than have one old, but still ok plug. Even if it lasts longer, it's not like having a brand new plug. (On my car that might be a different story, but I bet I could change all my Maxim plugs out in 4 minutes, and maybe even less, if I was in a hurry.)

Those plugs with the 4 electrodes? It's not because they can produce a spark in 4 different places at once. It's so the spark, over time, causes wear equally on all four electrodes so that each electrode lasts longer. It's cheaper than putting iridium on the ground. There is lots of metal on the ground side, so you can spread the wear around. On the electrode side, you are a bit limited on space.

Savvy marketers, however, capitalize on peoples lack of understanding of electrical physics to claim things like "produces more spark" which people read as "produces more energy", and more energy means bigger boom, right? Wrong.

The energy produced comes from the coils, not from the spark plug. If it came from the plug you could just get more spark from increasing the plug gap. If you doubled the gap, you would double the spark, except that the voltage wouldn't be able to jump that gap. Even if you did get a bigger spark, imagine this picture....would you rather throw a can of gas on a small fire, or a big fire? You will get caught up in the explosion and die no matter how big the igniter of the gas is.

The scrupulous marketers at least say that they produce more spark WHEN THEY ARE OLDER, than a regular spark plug would at the same age. That is true, because there is less resistance, therefore more voltage, therefore more energy.

The moral of this story....don't throw gas on a fire.

 

I will respectfully disagree, silicone is an insulator, not a conductor. Silicone will only conduct when doped with another material.

Soda only, no beads. The grit from either glass (or silicate), silicone carbide or aluminum oxide would be harmful to any engine. I've owned both the small blasters and the large units and there is no 100% way to be certain that the abrasive medium is completely removed from the insulator cavity. With soda you are assured of a clean finish as it will rinse away with just about anything, carb cleaner, alcohol, water.

 

I'm not so sure the Brisk plugs are common amongst the BMW crowd. You have to realize that many of the guys riding these bikes don't blink an eye spending $3,000 or more on ONE of SEVERAL sets of riding gear. (I'm not one of them!) $85 for a set of 4 plugs wont make them bat an eye.

I have 23,870 miles on mine and on my next night off I will replace my Bosch plugs with either Bosch or NGK's. Whichever I find at the best price. Hard to beat NGK's. I use them in ALL (3) of my boat motors. They last remarkably well in the 50:1 gas/oil mix 2 strokes and seem to never get tired in the 4 stroke.

Don't forget to add just a dab of never seize to the plug threads. Makes 'em spin right out when you are ready to replace.

Loren

 

Changing the Spark Plugs in a XJ-Bike, ....
Even if you fool around and Gap the Plugs with Feeler Gauges rather than a Plug Gap Tool ...
Even is you treat the threads on each Plug with Anti-Seize Compound, ...

Is going to take you less than an hour.

Therefore, ... the smart thing to do is:

Spend less Money buying Standard Spark Plugs ...
But, ...
Change them MORE Often.

Instead of spending $12.00 on One Plug
Get 4 Plugs and change them out regularly.

 

Here here Rick +1^^^^

 

Throwing gasoline on a fire??

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fW9mHlzd6rk

 

My point exactly....even a small spark creates a huge explosion!

 

OMG!!!!

R-O-T-F-L-M-A-O !!!!

That should go viral.
What a phawque-up!

 

All I know is the best spark plugs in the world never make up for an improperly tuned/adjusted/maintained bike.

I'd rather change out the goodies but stockies more frequently than pay four times as much for something that lasts/performs only a hair more -- if there is any gain at all.

2c

 

I just put my fouled plugs in the vice, cleaned them up with my wire brush and garnet paper, checked the gap and decided that it wasn't that hard after all.
Gonna keep my eye out for good plug deals on the BP7ES while I'm about it too.

Thanks for the advice.

Glad I asked!

 

I think a Big-bucks Plug would be worth the investment if you had some Elaborately-endowed Full-dresser that you had to clear Plastic, Cooling and Bling out-of-the-way before you even touched the Plug cap.

A Plug that was rated for longevity might be worth the dough.

But, because there is so little to be gained in the XJ-Bike; putting-in Plugs that are "Designer" in nature ... would be like sewing-on Rhinestones.

 

i've been known to use fire to start a gas. but i don't generally use more then a tablespoon. LOL.

 

What sort of gas are you starting though?... this is the question!

 

Are BP7ES's that hard to find in Australia? Chacal has them for 11 bucks a set.

And I only use the 91 octane to start fires with. Nothing but the best for my eyebrows.

 

Oops I should have quoted snowy66s post before that last post...

Just picked up on hit mis-wording.

 

i usually use 85 octane fire. it's cheaper. or charcal starting fire.

if i want a really big bang. i'll use hairspray or some other flammable spray. just for kicks and giggles.

haven't seen those spray cans with fire in em anymore though. kinda sucks.

 

There is an iridium equivalent to the NGK, however I don't think you will get
any more bang for your buck, they simply last longer.

 

OK - one more fire idiot, this time let's use 5 full gallons -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kqawkwrz ... re=related

 

I have run NGK iridium's in my xj650 1982 for a few years now and find them to be great! The bike idles better, and runs quieter when I use 98 octane fuel. A friend uses them in his honda cbr600r and he feels the bike runs more responsively throughout the range, I did not see this with my bike though.

I run 95 octane, and use the bike daily.
definetly not snake oil...

cheers,

 

I forget about our friends being across the pond sometimes. *98 OCTANE!! Are you nuts? How much does that cost!!****

Oh, wait a minute....

 

Rick, it's still not worth the price of admission for these exotic schemes, I mean plugs! I still use $4 to $6 plugs and they work fine.

Changing plugs is not too bad on my dresser. Remove the tip over wing, left side. Remove lower fairing left side. Remove spark plug cover plate from top of valve cover. TAKE PICTURE OF PLUG WIRE ROUTING SO IT WILL GO BACK TOGETHER. Unfold wires from trough. Grip metal tab on end of spark plug cap and pull to remove cap.

Install is the same process only reverse order.

The good news is that plug changes are only called for each 24,000 miles. And you have to go this deep each 24K anyway because valve lash has to be checked, and the lower fairing and upper fairings have to be removed anyway to get to the air filter, again, each 24K. This service takes about 3 hours. The second time you do it!

XJ's are SO much easier to maintain with the exception of those 4 pesky carbs! Which is one of the things that makes these bikes so cool!

Loren

 

I use Autolite double platinums.
I have modified my ignition system to use GM 2 pin coil packs and gm HEI modules instead of the tci unit and double platinums are required.
They however are cheap ( around $3 each IIRC ) and are very difficult to foul.
I use the 5/8" hex with the solid top ( doesn't unscrew) the number is APP3923 IIRC.
They have the same heat range as stock.
BTW platinum plugs were developed for weak ignitions because they take less voltage to fire.
Also they don't seem to wear ( I put 100,000 miles on a set in my car )
The fine wire does unshroud the tip so in theory it works better but in practice who knows.