No Fire in the Wire---Magneto Troubleshoot

[Super A]

Started tinkering on the white Super A this afternoon. Magneto impulse clicks when you hand crank the engine, was hoping I could just rub the points a little and make fire. When I got the breaker cover off, I saw the leaf spring on the moving point had broken. I had a new point and condenser set lying around, so I went ahead and took the mag off and replaced all that. Condenser was tricky but I got it. Had a time getting the screw loose on the stationary point but I got that apart and since I couldn't find my feeler gauge anywhere, I used a piece of the cardboard boxtop to set the points. Backwoodsy-hillbilly but the points connect and break so I felt like that was in the ballpark.

Long story short I still have no spark. The inside of the distributor cap looks pretty corroded, so I tried pulling the wire from the coil cover to the dist. cap and trying to get a spark from there (trying to arc it off the side of the engine block) but still no spark. The connection in the coil cover looks pretty good, and the inside "tab" that touches the coil itself is bright, shiny copper. (The coil cover could be original. It has the old IHC trademark instead of the IH "man on a tractor" logo) I did knock the glaze off the dimple on the coil, and on the rotor button.

The only thing I can think of is the coil itself. What else should I look for?

Boss I wish that auction with the white Super A had been before your Cubfest--then I would have had some help!

Al

[Boss Hog]

Al I have a hot mag here, send address , you can have it for postage cost
I dont do mags you know
Boss

[Super A]

Boss,

I knew you didn't keep generators around long but I didn't know about mags.....

PM Sent

Al

[Rick Spivey]

Al,

I'm a J4 man, not an H4, but if you cleaned and set points, and still have no fire, it's gotta be the coil, I think. Unless you have a grounded connection somewhere. Take Boss up on his offer, and see if that gets you going. If not, let's talk.

[Super A]

Rick,

When I opened it up, there was a little bit of tar-like stuff that had oozed out of the coil on one side. It wasn't much, but based on some other stuff I have read, it led me to suspect the coil.

There's one other thing. The wire that goes from the condenser to the movable point looked like it had gotten hot at the terminal end. Not hot enough to melt off the insulation, but it had distorted a little bit. Also, the insulation was nicked near the terminal. I tried to make sure I had the wire away from the magneto frame when I re-assembled it, but who knows--that could be part of the trouble too.

Anyway, I sent Boss a PM. Figure that is the best way to get going, though I do wanna figure out what is wrong with this one....

Al

[KETCHAM]

Coils were oil filled and do go bad.Replace coil,would be a good start.Love to see people jump when they get blasted by a mag!!!.Kevin

[RUSTY2]

Sounds like a coil issue.
Was the plastic (bakolite) connection at the ground post for the kill switch in tact ?

[Super A]

All the bakelite parts looked good. Leaning heavily towards the coil.

Al