Adjusting the Kettering ignition that comes stock on many vintage Honda road bikes can be challenging. Back in the day, veteran mechanics had to develop their own techniques as the official manual was not very helpful, techniques that thanks to their grassroots origin are eminently effective. However, at this late a date newcomers to the Kettering servicing procedure can find themselves floundering and frustrated and it is this impasse with the necessary technique, this shock of reality, that likely compels today’s riders to search for aftermarket transistorized alternatives.

At least I hope it is. Because the elimination of the need for periodic adjustment is the only advantage transistorized systems offer 1960s-1970s Hondas (and the reason they were mandated by the government in 1978). They are not performance enhancers. All but one or two of those systems are simply variations of the basic Kettering design. Even those whose ignition advance is controlled electronically instead of mechanically, are simply later variations on the transistorized Kettering system. As such they offer no advantages over standard Kettering and in fact continue to bear all of Kettering’s weaknesses, the most notable its famous sensitivity to voltage losses in the wiring harness.

Kettering ignition timing is actually (and to a lifetime veteran mechanic like myself, oddly) without context for people of this generation. Today’s vintage rider just has no frame of reference. None of the other vehicles he has had contact with in his lifetime are like this, requiring what has to seem to him obsessive, out-of-the-box attention to detail when servicing the ignition. Most people think their carburetors are the most important. The fact is that ignition is many times more important than carburetion on these bikes, and this is incomprehensible to the average rider. He just won’t believe it. And since he doesn’t believe it he has no motivation to take responsibility for properly tuning his engine. In fact this is the only kind of customer I have problems with, and they are big problems. And unfortunately, substituting an aftermarket electronic ignition does not completely relieve the customer’s pain. Properly installing an aftermarket ignition often requires a level of expertise that is even then out of the scope of the average Joe’s skillset, and even his mindset. I know this because I know these systems, and I talk with these customers nearly every day.

There are in fact five issues aftermarket ignitions present which are seldom considered by the powersports media. First is that challenge of installation. You have to know something about how an engine works to do it right. Granted, the stock ignition has the same requirement, but the electronic ignition buyer is looking for shortcuts, and when it comes to the installation of either system, there are none. The electronic system is just as much work. Second, aftermarket ignitions are almost universally made to a price in the sense that they are demonstrably very cheaply made. If they don’t have the almost universal aluminum backing plate—ugh!, then they have an even worse printed circuit board (PCB) backing plate. Gasp! And the components mounted on that plate are very vulnerably attached and exposed. It seems the engineers give no thought to the product actually living out on the mean streets. The third problem is that these systems have a well-known reputation for lasting only a tiny fraction as long as the stock ignition system. Maybe for many of us who ride less than a couple thousand miles in a year this is not a problem. But even the years can still take their toll, if the miles don’t seem to. Fourth, the way aftermarket ignitions are installed is very poor practice, usually involving Scotchloks and similar types of absolutely abominable crimp wire connectors. This is not a small issue. Fifth, the ignition systems which include alternate “upgraded” ignition coils are often shipped with automotive resistive spark spark plug wire. This wire adds resistance to the system where it is not needed, it degrades over time due to its carbon base, and worst of all, its non-metallic nature makes really secure electrical connections—the kind that in motorcycling are fervently sought after, even crucial due to the vintage bike’s exposure to the elements—impossible. In more than fifty years of making a living in this industry, I have never been impressed with aftermarket ignition offerings, and I have of course seen many in that time: Martek, Prestolite, Gerex, Maxi-Dwell, Dyna, Boyer, MSD, and others.

Of course, there are those aftermarket Kettering replacement systems that are not reengineered Kettering, namely capacitive discharge (CDI) systems such as the MSD. CDI is theoretically a great ignition but it was designed for an environment street riders just never enounter, and thus is an answer to a question no street rider is asking. High-voltage rising field primary is no advantage on a streetbike, and unless it’s a multifire system, it is even less compatible for street use than the stock ignition. Recently, programmable ignitions have become available. I will take nothing away frim these, but realize at least some of the concerns mentioned above still apply: they are made cheaply and will not last as long as the original ignition system.