No spark at plugs.

Donpet

Donpet

Junior Member
This is a freshly rebuilt 1932 v8 that I am trying to start for the first time. I have the engine turning by hand and by the starter but have no spark. The distributor is from Bubba's and included the coil and condenser. It is the helmet type. I installed it on the block with the understanding that it only fit one way and I have 2.3. To 2.5 volts at red wire on the coil. I have no spark with one of the plugs out. I'm not familiar with the workings of this distributor and need some trouble shooting advice. What can I check out on the car and is it accurate that the helmet only fits one way. Thanks
 
Try swapping out the new condenser with the old one. I had the same problem on my '39 Chrysler and spent several hours trouble shooting. I finally gave up and asked for advice and someone suggested swapping out the condensers. It turned out the new condenser was defective.
 
Hi there, you should have about 4 to 4.5 volts at the ignition coil terminal with the distributer timing contacts closed to complete the coil circuit. 2.5 volts is way too low. Check your battery voltage which should be 6.3 volts. Check the voltage at both sides of the ignition switch with the switch turned on, which should also be about 6.3 volts. Ignition switches are prone to wear and loss of voltage because of bad connections inside. What ignition resistor are you using ? An original ford resistor would be recommended. Check all terminals to make sure they are tight on the ignition switch and the resistor. If Bubba rebuilt your distributer then I would think the condenser would be all good, so don't mess with it. Regards, Kevin.
 
I have 6.3 at the battery, 6.24 at switch both sides, 6.23 at resister in and 2.4 at the resister out and at coil connection. I also measured my 36 and got 2.7 at the coil connection and the car runs great. So I really don' t know where to look next. I think I'll re-do all the ground connections. Thanks
 
The distributor fits only one way.Take a look at the drive on the back of the dizzy.It is off set just a little.The slot at the end of the cam is off set as well.
 
Donpet said:
I have 6.3 at the battery, 6.24 at switch both sides, 6.23 at resister in and 2.4 at the resister out and at coil connection. I also measured my 36 and got 2.7 at the coil connection and the car runs great. So I really don' t know where to look next. I think I'll re-do all the ground connections. Thanks
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Well, it might run at 2.7 volts, but that is not the correct voltage out of the resistor. I'm not sure what the minimum is, but somewhere around 3.0v and it should be in at least the 3.5 to 4.0v range. There is something wrong with the resistors or the way you are measuring the voltage. It would be strange that both resistors are reading this low. The numbers you are getting are not correct.
 
Donpet, I decided to do some ignition tests on my stock original 1934 Ford V8 (not restored or rewired) as this question has come up previously. The car starts and runs great. It is fitted with a 6 volt optima battery which reads 6.3 volts with the ENGINE NOT RUNNING. With the ignition switch turned on and the distributer timing contacts closed so that the ignition coil is drawing current the voltage on both sides of the ignition switch is 6.0 volts. Also 6.0 volts on the ignition supply side of the coil resistor. On the coil side of the ignition resistor the voltage is approx. 3.5 volts when the ignition switch is first turned on (resistor is cold). As the resistor warms up over a period of no more than three minutes the voltage gradually drops from 3.5 to 2.6 volts. By then the resistor housing is far too hot to touch. Voltage readings at the coil terminal are similar. The resistor and coil are original Ford parts. Now these voltage readings are not the same as would be on a running engine. With the cycling on off switching of the distributer contacts the coil current would be reduced somewhat as compared with the engine not running. Therefore all the voltage readings would be a little higher also (engine idling so generator not charging here). I did not start the engine to do any running tests. Normally the ignition would not be turned on for three minutes without starting the engine. More like 10 seconds, so at 10 seconds all voltages at the coil should be at least 3.5 volts because the resistor is still cold. Resistor ohms reading cold is .5 ohms. Interesting observations. Regards, Kevin.
 
How about jumping a wire across the resistor just to see if the added voltage helps. I have wired in a bypass on some hard starters in the old days. Then after it runs, trace it down and fix it right.
 
You also need to check the voltage before and after the switch on the column drop. What you describe is not enough voltage for the coil. If your battery is up to what it should be (>6 volts) you should have more voltage at the coil. Bypassing the resistor should also help during testing incase the resistor has too much resistance.
 
koates said:
Donpet, I decided to do some ignition tests on my stock original 1934 Ford V8 (not restored or rewired) as this question has come up previously. The car starts and runs great. It is fitted with a 6 volt optima battery which reads 6.3 volts with the ENGINE NOT RUNNING. With the ignition switch turned on and the distributer timing contacts closed so that the ignition coil is drawing current the voltage on both sides of the ignition switch is 6.0 volts. Also 6.0 volts on the ignition supply side of the coil resistor. On the coil side of the ignition resistor the voltage is approx. 3.5 volts when the ignition switch is first turned on (resistor is cold). As the resistor warms up over a period of no more than three minutes the voltage gradually drops from 3.5 to 2.6 volts. By then the resistor housing is far too hot to touch. Voltage readings at the coil terminal are similar. The resistor and coil are original Ford parts. Now these voltage readings are not the same as would be on a running engine. With the cycling on off switching of the distributer contacts the coil current would be reduced somewhat as compared with the engine not running. Therefore all the voltage readings would be a little higher also (engine idling so generator not charging here). I did not start the engine to do any running tests. Normally the ignition would not be turned on for three minutes without starting the engine. More like 10 seconds, so at 10 seconds all voltages at the coil should be at least 3.5 volts because the resistor is still cold. Resistor ohms reading cold is .5 ohms. Interesting observations. Regards, Kevin.
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I would like to use your testing on a no-start page on my web site if thats ok with you. I think a not start chart would relly help some with their issues...:eek::D
 
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