From low spark to no spark , $90 later...

Good evening all,

Just installed a Pertronix EI kit purchased from this site and am getting no spark whatsoever. Tractor ran OK with conventional points and condenser up until today.

1952 Ford 8N sidemount, pretty stock other than a Just 8N's 12v negative ground conversion kit installed in May of this year, which has worked fine, thanks to the help and encouragement of members on this forum. The 12v coil included in the kit tests out at 3 ohms resistance across the terminals, which is what the Pertronix EI kit calls for. No external resistors anywhere, as this one wire alternator does not use one.

It sure is nice to get more than one 'rump' out of the starter and the tractor was running OK this summer. But the points were getting bad (small bump on moving contact, big pit on stationary contact) so it was time to replace these or go with the EI kit.

I'm pretty sure I followed the instructions - these are very good and the diagrams are clear, but I am getting no spark at any of the plugs now. Starter zings along on 12 volts and the engine turns over great, but no ignition.

In their troubleshooting section, Pertronix suggests disconnecting the red ignitor wire from the + coil connection and jumpering it directly to the battery, which I tried. Same results - no spark anywhere.

Is it possible to test this system at each connection for the correct voltages? I have a good analog VOM.

thanks,

Doug in east TN

Can't tell from the photos but where is the black wire connected?

Red wire should go to the - side of the coil and black to ground on the tractor. If you have it set up with the red to the + side of the coil and black to the - side you are not going to complete the circut.

Rick

(quoted from post at 20:18:21 07/29/12) Can't tell from the photos but where is the black wire connected?

Red wire should go to the - side of the coil and black to ground on the tractor. If you have it set up with the red to the + side of the coil and black to the - side you are not going to complete the circut.

Rick

Click to expand...

orry, Rick, and no disrespect, but I believe he has neg ground 1244A unit & if so, he has it correct, i.e., red ignitor to coil +, where it meets 12v wire from ign sw and black ignitor wire to coil (-).

Yes, that is how it is connected per the instructions. Sorry the font is so small on the picture.

Doug in east TN

i put this setup on my 46 2n but i used the new coil that thay recomnended. and it worked good. it may be a coil problem. Bob

Here is a better image of the coil connections.

This is the 3 ohm 12v coil that came with the Just 8N's 12v negative ground conversion kit, and it tested fine at 3 ohms this afternoon. Since the tractor was running most of this summer, I'm fairly certain it is not a coil problem.

Doug in east TN

Verify power to the coil .

Manually test the coil for spark .

Align the rotor to a spark lug and verify you have spark all the way to a spark plug . I have seen short terminal rotors that would not jump to the cap .

Verify the dizzy is turning .

Verify the gap between the EI pick up and magnetic collar .

If every thing else has passed , disconnect the - wire from the coil , hook to a test light and run to + on the battery , spin the motor and check for a flashing light .

Sometimes it is the obvious that gets overlooked .

Click to expand...

I see 2 wires on the top pic and 4 wires on the bottom pic ?

looks like you have an extra ground keeping the coil from firing ?????

You should have a keyed hot wire going to the coil +

from the coil you should have one red wire feeding power to the EI unit and one black wire coming from the ei unit to the - side of the coil to ground it out at the proper time .

The EI unit will get its ground from the distributor base .

(quoted from post at 22:00:55 07/29/12)

You should have a keyed hot wire going to the coil +

from the coil you should have one red wire feeding power to the EI unit and one black wire coming from the ei unit to the - side of the coil to ground it out at the proper time .

The EI unit will get its ground from the distributor base .

Click to expand...

heck for a spark at the coil output to distributor wire. If you have it there then the EI unit is fine. The problem will then be that you used the wrong holes in the plate to attach it to the distributor. They use the same unit for more than one tractor & if you use the wrong set of holes for your tractor, then it will be clocked wrong & will spark when rotor is between distributor cap posts & the spark won't make it to plugs. Swap holes.

I don't see the power wire coming from the ignition key-switch in your pictures......do you provide 12V power some other way to the circuit?

(quoted from post at 00:20:00 07/30/12)

(quoted from post at 22:00:55 07/29/12)

You should have a keyed hot wire going to the coil +

from the coil you should have one red wire feeding power to the EI unit and one black wire coming from the ei unit to the - side of the coil to ground it out at the proper time .

The EI unit will get its ground from the distributor base .

Click to expand...

heck for a spark at the coil output to distributor wire. If you have it there then the EI unit is fine. The problem will then be that you used the wrong holes in the plate to attach it to the distributor. They use the same unit for more than one tractor & if you use the wrong set of holes for your tractor, then it will be clocked wrong & will spark when rotor is between distributor cap posts & the spark won't make it to plugs. Swap holes.

Click to expand...

Like JMOR says.
I have some 1244A's that I swap between tractors.
I always have to remember to pick the right holes for
a 8N or a NAA.
CCW holes for the 8N, CW holes for the NAA.
(also, from your pics...don't forget to put the rotor clip back on the dist shaft)

My mistake. I do have the plate installed for clockwise rotation.
A side mount 8N is counterclockwise?

Page 58 of the I&T manual FO-4 shows the rotor goes clockwise (Figure FO86).
Guess I should have cranked the engine to make sure.

Anyhow, I am still at work but will try swapping this when I get home. This list is great!

My bad - the Pertronix wire is there, just really hard to see. There are two wires connected to the positive lug of the coil. The Ignitor red wire runs around the coil in front to avoid engine heat.

Doug in east TN

That makes perfect sense. The plate is installed using the clockwise holes. So the timing would never work.

The I&T FO4 manual might have a mistake - it shows the shaft turns clockwise in figure FO86.

I should have cranked on the engine to make sure when I had the cap off the distributor. My mistake!

thanks,
Doug

That's the way I wired it, per instructions.

These are really clear instructions and the diagrams are good too. They do tell you to make sure which way the dizzy spins, which I did not :-(

thanks,
Doug