Info: Spark Plugs

[Praful]

Where do you think I insert my sparkies? In the petrol tank maybe??

You can insert whatever you like, where ever you like.....that's entirely your choice!

Dude, one good strong spark at the right time is what it takes for the gas to ignite! And a clean spark plug does not automatically mean that your engine is clean, because sparkes are designed to clean themselves/keep themselves clean! Some may be better at it, some not. They do not and cannot do this for the entire combustion chamber! Yes, if your plug isn't performing to its optimum, then it may result in less than optimal combustion (which will leave more deposits)... but thats about it!

Hope that simple ans. clarifies things a bit.

Ok, simple koshun....what is the primary cause of carbon deposition/formation inside the cylinder block/cylinder head?

[Raccoon]

Incomplete combustion...

Did I just score 100/100?

[Praful]

Incomplete combustion...

Did I just score 100/100?

No you scored 1/1 !

Next simple koshun...what can be the cause(s) of incomplete combustion?

[Raccoon]

Gosh... now I feel like a primary school kid or something! Neways, too many causes... cant type them all out now...

[sarbanoxley]

No temptation for me -no iridium for my xtreme

[Sarvajit]

No temptation for me -no iridium for my xtreme

But GPower is still there...

[Praful]

Gosh... now I feel like a primary school kid or something! Neways, too many causes... cant type them all out now...

'Feel'...Lol.....you can't farther from the truth!

I don't know if you can't try it or won't type it....but I guess you have understood and accepted what I have been saying all this while!

[Raccoon]

^^^Nopes... not at all - I'm sticking to my guns!

Anyways, lets not argue about this... not productive. To each his own. Its your money and your bike. Use whatever that makes you feel best.

[Praful]

^^ Fine you can stick to your carbon deposited guns!

But you yourself are not ready to delve into this deeper for the reason that its going to prove your statements wrong, Fine!

If that's productive, to each his own then!

PS: Me, nah I use stuff that "works" best rather than "feels" best!

[Raccoon]

Sorry to disappoint you, but my (Sho)gun and my CBZ have next to zilch carbon in their innards. And same goes for the car!

If you can prove my statements wrong without making this a Q & A session, I'm all ears...

[sankar]

If you guys are arguing about Iridiums being worth it for the extra performance or not then in MY case it was worth it! NGK Iridium did provide a better mid to top end performance than the ordinary NGK (new plug). With Iridium the revs pick up much faster and smoother.

Same experience with Iridium has been shared by two other guys who tour with us on their Std 350 Bullets. One guy was a non believer but he was a converted. According to them the Bullet starts easily, revs cleanly and feel smoother. Of course both have been persuaded by the local bullet mechanic not to use them telling that it would harm the engine!

So we three, now believe that Iridiums are worth it.

Another thing to keep in mind is that the Iridium gives 'consistent' performance, because unlike the normal plugs, NGK iridium is self cleaning and the electrode stays intact. It doesn't foul up even with the worst jetting as i have found out when i was trying to get the jetting right on my TM32.

[Praful]

Sorry to disappoint you, but my (Sho)gun and my CBZ have next to zilch carbon in their innards. And same goes for the car!

If you can prove my statements wrong without making this a Q & A session, I'm all ears...

A discussion ain't a discussion if one person is talking.....and from your all your previous post you don't seem too keen to enter into a discussion!

I'll put it simply across, carbon deposition is caused due to incomplete combustion and one of the among the many factors responsible for incomplete combustion is the 'Spark Plug'. Now this experienced by me and others who have used Iridium's over long term have had relatively cleaner insides compared to other plugs!

NGK Iridiums are a good long term investment for your vehicle....and will show the true benefits of running a cleaner engine over the long term!

Finnito...thats all I want to say!

@Sankar: The tennis match is not for iridium's giving better performance, but for running the engine comparatively cleaner and thus justifying the extra cost one pays for them . Whats your take?

PS: Nice to see you contributing on this forum too!

[rossiter]

@Praful, and Raccoon: Please keep in mind you guys are taking this personally. There's no necessity to prove each other right/wrong. Raccoon, you did say to each his own, but it seems the "discussion" has dragged on and the animosity continues unnecessarily. Let's keep the discussion civil.

Praful: You're right the plugs do cause incomplete combustion at times, but more often than not, it's the fuel octane or a lean A/F mixture that messes up the plugs.

Iridium/Nickel/etc: Quoting Raccoon, to each his own It is up to the reader to make an informed decision after reading posts by Raccoon, Praful, and others contributors.

[Praful]

I'll put it simply across, carbon deposition is caused due to incomplete combustion and one of the among the many factors responsible for incomplete combustion is the 'Spark Plug'.

Praful: You're right the plugs do cause incomplete combustion at times, but more often than not, it's the fuel octane or a lean A/F mixture that messes up the plugs.

I have clearly mentioned that in my post (the part in bold+underline) that Spark plugs alone are not the sole contributing factor and there are definitely other considerations!

But better plugs can certainly help offsetting the impacts of other factors to certain extent!

When someone comes up with statements that tend to imply that people have spent their hard earned money as fools either one has to be proved why they really are such fools to spend their money Or they have to prove it otherwise!

And to top it all this, coming from one who has zilch personal experience in using the product in question!

You are absolutely right, each to his own!

Many people dont find any percievable difference between them. I suspect those who do, had worn/improperly gapped plugs to begin with. Technically also, there isn't much to support the pricier sparkies... other than the marketing hype...

In fact I remember having read about the disadvantages of platinum plugs in some applicatons, etc...

That said, I'v not tried Iridium plugs myself. So not speaking from personal experience.

[rossiter]

I have clearly mentioned that in my post (the part in bold+underline) that Spark plugs alone are not the sole contributing factor and there are definitely other considerations!

But better plugs can certainly help offsetting the impacts of other factors to certain extent!

When someone comes up with statements that tend to imply that people have spent their hard earned money as fools either one has to be proved why they really are such fools to spend their money Or they have to prove it otherwise!

And to top it all this, coming from one who has zilch personal experience in using the product in question!

You are absolutely right, each to his own!

Praful, while I understand it is vital to question information in posts which may seem right/wrong, at the same time, I honestly believe that it is not upto us to prove it right/wrong. Don't take it to heart This is something I've learnt from past experience on this forum itself

Let it go man.

PS: I don't think I made my previous post very clear. Just to extrapolate my previous post, by itself, the spark plug does not cause any problem, leading to other issues. It is a completely reactive component and behave correctly given the right conditions. Seeing as how most of the time we either have bad fuel, bad A/F ratios/improper jetting, electrical issues,..there's a huge list. Which is what Raccoon probably meant.
More often than not, while diagnosing an engine issue, the mechanic tends to look at the spark plug to give him an idea of what went wrong, and does not zero in on the spark plug as the root cause of the problem.

I'm facing this in my bike as we speak. Misfiring, general sluggishness, and so on.. Will be pulling the plugs out to get an idea of what's causing all that.