Riverside21 1 Posted February 27, 2020 I am currently in possession of two machines, a 1996 and a 1991. The 1991 puts out way more power than the 1996 and I'm trying to determine the cause. The 91 uses a gen 1 cdi and the 96 has the gen 2 "detuned" one. The plugs are oriented differently, but have the same wires going to the same locations with the only difference being a color change of gray to light green on the 96 unit. I can swap the 96 to the 91 with no problems, and do notice a drop in throttle response. When I swap the 91 gen 1 to the 96 I get no spark...so obviously something in the cdi isn't backward compatible even though the wiring diagrams are similar. Does anyone have any input on this? Are there any other electrical components that were detuned? I have ordered a Rick's hot shot cdi (direct from Rick's) to try on the 96. It claims 1000 more rpm, but still says uses the "stock curve" so I'm not sure I'll notice any improved throttle response for normal riding. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shadetree 5,554 Posted February 27, 2020 I don't recall the correct output ?, but I do know , not all c.d.i's will swap out in all their years, least not without a wire harness adapter. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shadetree 5,554 Posted February 27, 2020 and I stay oem c.d.i.'s with all my atvs. ricks is ok I hear ?, but there are fakes on ebay and amazon !. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Riverside21 1 Posted February 27, 2020 Yes, I got what I thought was a Rick's last year on Ebay and it was fake. I'd go stock, but I'm trying to increase some power. The 91 has way more pep than the 96 and I'm trying to figure out why. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shadetree 5,554 Posted February 27, 2020 18 minutes ago, Riverside21 said: Yes, I got what I thought was a Rick's last year on Ebay and it was fake. I'd go stock, but I'm trying to increase some power. The 91 has way more pep than the 96 and I'm trying to figure out why. and your 100% sure the cylinder has stock bore and piston ?. stock wise, there is not much anyone can do to increase the hp of these models. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Riverside21 1 Posted February 27, 2020 Yes, the 91 is completely stock and appears that nobody ever even adjusted the valves until I just did them. My 96 actually has a slightly higher compression, as I put in a new piston (std), rings and valves last year. The 91 pulls hills a whole gear higher than the 96 and actually builds power as it goes to the point of having to back down the throttle. Carbs are good and set the same on both machines. Other than the cdi differences the 91 has a larger stock headpipe and different muffler...so I'm not sure why the 96 is so lame. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shadetree 5,554 Posted February 27, 2020 I know for a fact, the 1996 trx300fw model came from the factory with defective c.d.i's !. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Riverside21 1 Posted February 27, 2020 4 minutes ago, shadetree said: I know for a fact, the 1996 trx300fw model came from the factory with defective c.d.i's !. Wow! Do you know what was defective? Did it have anything to do with the timing curve? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shadetree 5,554 Posted February 27, 2020 2 minutes ago, Riverside21 said: Wow! Do you know what was defective? Did it have anything to do with the timing curve? they just failed all together, would stop spark, the give away was when pushing the start button, it would not spark the plug until you let off on the start button, prob from china ?..lol. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Wheeler 2,476 Posted March 1, 2020 I have a Ricks & have hit 8500RPM on mine using my tiny tach. Ricks is the real deal! 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Riverside21 1 Posted March 2, 2020 My Rick's #15-605 arrived direct from them over the weekend. The case is engraved on the edge with the Rick's logo and a serial #. I notice a definite increase in power immediately and upon checking with a timing light all my marks are right on, whereas they seemed a bit retarded with the original cdi. The 91 machine still puts out more power, but this is the best the 96 has ever been so far. We swapped the larger exhaust from the 91 to the 96 for a test and really didn't notice any different. According to the parts lists both machines use the same cam, so I'm still not sure why the stock 91 puts out so much more power... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fishfiles 19,776 Posted March 2, 2020 88 to 90 was the years of the hotter cam ------ 88 had the best exhaust set up , it has a u shaped tube out the exhaust port , it was the only year that sported that exact exhaust , the 88-90s were rated at 20 hp , after that 18hp ----- if you take a 2nd gen 300 and run the early first gen cam and carb jets , upgrade the muffler and change the cdi to a Rick's with no rpm limiter , you can feel a difference , take a ride over to my house and I got multiple 300s set up both ways to take a ride and compare ---this one has a 88 pipe on a 92 engine with a slide on muffler onto the pipe , see how it bends into a big U , they say the longer the pipe the better , I don't know , believe 1/2 of what you hear Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
