Newb 8n points question

I have been reading the forums for a while but joined today. I am at a loss. I have recently became the owner of a 1952 Ford 8n. Previously it was my wife's uncles. He purchased it several years ago. He grew tired of changing points so he asked me if I would take a look at it. 6v positive ground system

What I have done:
Purchased a new coil from Tractor Supply. The coil indicated no external resistor was necessary on 6v.

I have had great luck with Pertronix in the past so I talked him into purchasing a kit. I made sure to get the kit for the 6v positive ground. I never could get this thing to spark. I tried everything I could read on the internet and even called their tech support line.

I went to Napa and bought a new set of points just to see if we could get it started. Set the points @ .025 and the thing fired right up. Bush hogged for a couple of hours and then started bogging down before quitting. Filed the points to get it back into the barn.

Went to TSC and bought another set of points. Ran for about 4 hrs and the same thing happened.

Here is where I am: Some of the old timers around here say there should be a resistor on the "firewall". I have searched but didn't find the resistor for my side mount distributor. Only for the front mount.


Any help is greatly appreciated.

It's s round coil; it does not need a resistor. Do not buy any tractor parts at TSC. Do not file points unless you plan to replace them soon. Go back to NAPA and get Bluestreak points. Set them at .025 and don't forget to lube the can.

PS........

I forgot to add, as soon as it stops running, check for spark.

Have you tried a different condenser? An off value condenser can allow the points to pit.

I agree, use only quality points, not the cheap stuff. A side by side comparison will make the reason obvious.

Doesn't take much weakness in the battery or over current demand in the starter to drop 6 volt electronic ignition below the minimum operating voltage threshhold

With 6 volt the side mount just uses 6 volt coil, no added resistor. 12 volt coil marked "external resistor required" is usually a 6 volt coil relabeled.

Yes i have tried different condensor. Replaced it both times. How do you determine if bushings in distributor are worn?

I just spent a day fighting this, as mentioned go get you some quality points and condenser there is a vast difference carquest or napa sells the blue streak points ask for them, then autolite 437 plugs don't use champion, for some reason fords do not like champion plugs and wont run long on them, while you changing the points out inspect the little rubber bushing where the power from the negative side of the coil goes thru the distributor housing, make very sure nothing there is grounding to the housing, then you should be good to go for a good long time, points put in properly will always be better than retro fitting electronic ignition, these old tractors were made to run on them, there simple to change and set on the rare occasions you need to, the archives here are full of posts about electronic systems fitted to ford N's and then the problems begin, always better to keep it original

[i:654c4848f0]"points put in properly will always be better than retro fitting electronic ignition, these old tractors were made to run on them, there simple to change and set on the rare occasions you need to, the archives here are full of posts about electronic systems fitted to ford N's and then the problems begin, always better to keep it original "[/i:654c4848f0]

I'm curious where you got this information from??
Surely not from direct, personal experience...

How do you go about determining if the bushings in the distributor are worn?

(quoted from post at 04:04:56 09/01/14) How do you go about determining if the bushings in the distributor are worn?

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Check the shaft for any lateral movement.

If I grab it, it wiggles maybe a quarter inch or so. /keep it clean

Is that acceptable?

(quoted from post at 20:18:10 08/31/14) If I grab it, it wiggles maybe a quarter inch or so. /keep it clean

Is that acceptable?

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Side to side? NO! Shouldn't be able to detect side to side play at all.

Nothing at all wrong with IE. The 6 Volt ones are very susceptible to voltage drop. It the starter drags just a little, low batt charge or the battery connections are not really good you may use too much power or lose to much power to both crank it and fire the electronic ignition system at the same time.

Rick

Just to clarify, it is not the entire distributor that moves, just the shaft that the rotor attaches too.

It may not make a difference but this distributor is missing the dust cap as well...

Thanks for all of the replies so far. I really do appreciate it.

(quoted from post at 04:49:58 09/01/14)
Just to clarify, it is not the entire distributor that moves, just the shaft that the rotor attaches too.

It may not make a difference but this distributor is missing the dust cap as well...

Thanks for all of the replies so far. I really do appreciate it.

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Did you misunderstand what I said in my earlier reply ? Any lateral movement of the shaft is a no-go.

No misunderstanding. Just clarifying.

Thanks

When you are doing your points filing stuff after it quits, it's because your spark checker shows no spark, right?
I ask, because it's easy to get set on something when the problem might be elsewhere.

ok, it quits, immediately check for spark.
If none, first, check that distributor side insulator where the wire goes thru
for an intermittent short.
If it still has a key switch, it is highly suspect, most are junk.
(don't trust it just cuz it started, sometimes works, sometimes doesn't, is common)
Run a bypass jumper wire to be sure.
Only then, start messing with the points.

And don't rule out a fuel problem.
A fuel restriction will make it run rough, then quit.
While you are working on the points, the carb bowl will ever so slowly fill back up and it will start. sneaky.

When troubleshooting in the field, a spark checker in your pocket, and a draincock instead of a plug on the fuel bowl, will tell you where the problem is in seconds.

almost 60 years of personal experience as well as observing the total unreliability on the tractors of my younger friends that believe everything has to be converted, they will fire right up, if everything is perfect, but it isn't a lot of the time , also it carries over to trucks too my old 'dumb' trucks work every day all day while their 70 thousand dollar new pickups sit in shops with some computer gee gaw out, while they still have to make the payments on them, new is easier, when it works, when it doesn't your stuck , if a set of points burns up the tractor will quit, since you always carry a spare set in the tool box fixing it takes about 10 minutes and costs about 20 bucks, [ for the new spare set to put in your tool box] electronic???? if you can go to town, and if they have a new one

(quoted from post at 06:28:04 09/01/14) almost 60 years of personal experience as well as observing the total unreliability on the tractors of my younger friends that believe everything has to be converted, they will fire right up, if everything is perfect, but it isn't a lot of the time , also it carries over to trucks too my old 'dumb' trucks work every day all day while their 70 thousand dollar new pickups sit in shops with some computer gee gaw out, while they still have to make the payments on them, new is easier, when it works, when it doesn't your stuck , if a set of points burns up the tractor will quit, since you always carry a spare set in the tool box fixing it takes about 10 minutes and costs about 20 bucks, [ for the new spare set to put in your tool box] electronic???? if you can go to town, and if they have a new one

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Really? I know a lot of people driving new expensive trucks and very seldom are any in the shop for anything other than an oil change. Of the guys driving their old ones like you most spend a bit of time under the hood doing repairs and messing with cranky old ignition systems. I had a laugh last week. Guy I know with a Chevy grain truck, 1976, twin screw, 427 gas. He's having trouble finding a custom made set of plug wires for it. Seems that the brand he likes don't sell parts for those big engine anymore.

Just why do you think they went over to IE in the first place? Better and more reliable and it extended tune ups by a factor of about 4 back then. Todays gas vehicle averages 100k between tune ups and has no major mechanical issues for 200K miles. Yep sure want to go back to the 80K valve job, 100K rings and bearings and 12K tune up.....NOT.

So just because you don't like em no one is suppose to have them? I'm on my 2nd year with IE in one of my N's. Got a friend with a larger JD 6 cylinder tractor with IE added. He ran the tractor 5 years before he new it had been converted. It was only when the mechanical advance froze up that he pulled the cap and couldn't find the points that he knew. That was last winter.

Rick

Changing points to EI is a far cry from having a new, computerized vehicle.
As has been said here many times, points and EI are just a switch. It does not turn your tractor into a new one.
That said, EI is a switch that does not degrade with use like points do. So the dwell remains constant, spark remains constant, and power and fuel consumption remain constant.
EI does not get your "invisible corrosion" that points are apt to get from sitting.
And the best part is you do not have to monkey with it. Ever!
Lastly, there is no reason you can't stash an old set of points in your tool box and IF the EI craps out put them back in there.
I carried a set of points in my tractor for 6 years and never used them. So I finally put them in a tractor I was fixing up to sell.

to each his own , I don't know why the man cant find a custom wire set for a big block chevy I put a set on my '80 454 last year carquest has them or can get them, I haven't looked, but lmc truck probably has a set, also making up a set of them is easy and quick, I did that for my '71 ford as I wanted to rout them differently than the factory did

(quoted from post at 09:09:57 09/01/14) Changing points to EI is a far cry from having a new, computerized vehicle.
As has been said here many times, points and EI are just a switch. It does not turn your tractor into a new one.
That said, EI is a switch that does not degrade with use like points do. So the dwell remains constant, spark remains constant, and power and fuel consumption remain constant.
EI does not get your "invisible corrosion" that points are apt to get from sitting.
And the best part is you do not have to monkey with it. Ever!
Lastly, there is no reason you can't stash an old set of points in your tool box and IF the EI craps out put them back in there.
I carried a set of points in my tractor for 6 years and never used them. So I finally put them in a tractor I was fixing up to sell.

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I know that every almost every small block Chevy I see at the car shows has ditched the old points distributor and replaced them with the new HEI electronic ignition, which was a drop in MAJOR upgrade in my opinion. I see no reason why that would not be a good thing on a tractor as well.