Virago Electrical

There is no shortage of good used stators and pick-ups for the early bikes. I have a pile of them here and don't consider them part of my inventory. A new stator can be had for $150; there are no new pick-ups or coils. Any old rectifier/regulator can be persuaded to wire up; the adventurous may fabricate one from scratch. New ones are $125. Gen I rotors are another story: there are none to be had used or new at any price. Years ago, there was a fellow in the Mid-West who ground off the rivets (no small job), flipped the gear over and welded the toothed part back on. I believe he charged a buck and a half. If you have an adventurous machine shop in your area, you might see if they'll undertake this sort of job. But expect to pay several hundred dollars.

I just got my new Rick's catalog and pricelist. Sadly, it's a combination of Excel and pdf and one can't simply copy and paste pictures out of it. It requires a lot of flipping back-and-forth to price parts.

I suggest that you look at their web site then comtact me. I'll sell it at the listed price. Rick's has a multi-page dealer agreement that among other things has the dealer promise not to sell any of Rick's products for less than Rick's sells them. Look at eBay: the same parts always at the same price. Is it price fixing? Feels like it, but no one is stopping it.

And what of Igniorg? I'll acquire the needed bits at a slight premium and you can hook it right up and make a few minor adjustments. A fully programmable TCI unit including shipping from the EU is $350. Pulse units (ignition pick-ups) are $50 each as are the coils to mate with the TCI. MAP, TPI, temperature sensor, shift accessories, multiple MAPs, and connectors total another $350. That's a total of $900 and for an additional $200 you can add a servo (controlled from the base unit) to turn a valve in your exhaust collector like those found in modern sports-bikes and metric cruisers.

Note well that some common pieces are rather expensive. If you look at the MicroSquirt Archive you'll find that they like LS7 parts. They are a lot cheaper and reliable enough for off-road trucks. An added bonus: the LS7 Yukon coils have what is possibly the most powerful spark on a street vehicle. I have tons of this stiuff waiting for me to start a new project. Fifty dollars in an auto parts store should be more than enough for everything except the spark unit. Plus, right now the EU is reluctant to sell electronic equipment to the US. I've dealt with customs and can take it. And the shipping is astronomical.

More to come . . .