Author	[Modern View]
phil(va) 06-04-2012 11:40:28 71.2.160.210 Report to Moderator	I have a TO-30 that sits for long periods in a shed not close to my shop. Periodically I use it to mow the area around where it resides. Sometimes it goes 3 or 4 months without starting. Twice now in the last year I have gone to start it and got no fire. Using a screwdriver as connector in plug wire obviously no fire. Pulled cap and no fire at points. Both times, I put a 'dongle' fire indicating wire / thingy in line with a plug wire and a plug in order to check the spark further and each time it started right up. In other words, just pulling a plug wire and inserting a fire indicator in series in the plug wire caused it to start...! Is that weird or what? I don't know what you call those things but you can get them at Harbour Freight or Northern Tool for about 5 bucks. They don't do anything to help the spark to my knowledge, and in any event it was always only on one plug. Anyone else observed this? I know, you will say 'coincidence' but I did try it just before without the dongle and no dice. It's gotta be a catalyst somehow. [Reply]   [No Email]
phil(va) 06-04-2012 16:48:56 71.2.160.210 Report to Moderator	Re: TO-30 Spark in reply to phil(va), 06-04-2012 11:40:28   Interesting theory, Jerry, about causing the coil to fire higher. Of course I only had the device on one plug wire, but maybe somehow the coil sensed that? I had already cleaned the points and checked the connections and tried it before I hooked up the spark device. The first time I went to the tractor I didn't have the spark device. When I went back today, I tried it first without that device. Then when I put the device on the plug wire ... varoom. As I said, I've had this happen before. To be even more clear, I've had it happen on a lawn mower too, but that was a single cylinder engine, so perhaps that makes sense with Jerry's theory. [Reply]  [No Email]
Jerry/MT 06-04-2012 16:35:21 206.183.116.145 Report to Moderator	Re: TO-30 Spark in reply to phil(va), 06-04-2012 11:40:28   The fact that you got no fire at the points could be due to thin film of corrosion that formedsince you last used the tractor. That"s not unheard of. Possibly you disturbed that film when you checked for a spark and when you hooked up the in line spark tester, it fired off coincidently. I"m certainly not a EE but I seem yto recall that adding resistance to the high tension lead causes the coil to fire at a higher voltage so that"s another possibility. [Reply]  [No Email]
Charles in Aus. 06-04-2012 15:07:59 211.30.43.34 Report to Moderator	Re: TO-30 Spark in reply to phil(va), 06-04-2012 11:40:28   Perhaps the act of moving the ignition wire is completing the circuit . Corrosion or poor connection at the distributor end of the lead might be breaking the circuit until it is disturbed and completed by connecting the spark indicator. I would try cleaning all connections first. [Reply]  [No Email]