I've been having issues with my machine, I have good spark but it won't fire. I've replaced the coil, same result. Thought I had it down to the starter switch, still no go. I've pulled the flywheel and cleaned the stator and pick up coil. I. Do not have the specs to ohm out anything electrical. Looking for some common problems instead of throwing every new part to it. Or specs I've had this machine since nearly new and this is the only trouble I've ever had.

 

Early and late model resistance specs. Early model: Stator Green to Black/Red 446 ohms, Pick up coil: White to White/Red 97 ohms
Late model: Red to Black /Red 19 ohms,Red to Ground(No connection),Pick up coil: White to White/Red 97 ohms Will it pull start? If so,then the pick up coil may need to me moved inward.

 

It did pull start at first but not anymore.

 

Then you might want to look at this post if the resistance checks are within the 20% +/- range allowed.no spark to plug when using electric starter - Page 3 - ATVConnection.com ATV Enthusiast Community Plus will it try to crank on starting fluid? May be other than an electrical problem. Plus you're in the model year range of cam problems on the Sportsman 500. I'd check the valve clearance along with any exhaust cam wear. Plus you might pull the fuel line from the carb and crank the engine over to see if the fuel pump is working ok. Should be a steady stream of fuel.

 

Pick up coil checks in @ 99 ohms. Stator at 199. Guess that's my culprit. I was able to pull start it pretty frequently after I moved the pick up coil closer. Still no elec start. What's the proper gap to pick up after I change the stator?

 

Pick up coil is within the allowed range. Stator resistance is out of range if you have the early model with the Green stator wire. You still might try to move the pick up bracket in a tad. It's a fixed bracket,but it can be tapped in lightly to move the gap closer. Normal range is between .016-.040 according to the manual between the face of the pick up and the flywheel tab. Plus pull the black wire from the cdi to isolate the kill circuit and see if it cranks then.

 

Great news, I purchased a new stator and it fired right up. Thank you very much for getting me the specs on the resistance. It was very helpful to have that while troubleshooting.