Posted by arthur p bloom on Thursday, June 24, 2004 at 10:03PM :
In Reply to: Ignition problems posted by Shawn S on Thursday, June 24, 2004 at 9:20PM :
Although I am reluctant to get involved, as my flame suit is in the wash, here is MY OPINION of what is perhaps confusing you.
For this discussion, we assume a negative-ground truck.
Any resitive device (such as a lamp or coil or relay) on an automobile, which is connected to positive power, will register "hot" at the source side, and "hot" at the other side. This is referred to as a "sneak path" and is one of the more common error-causing situations in trouble-shooting.
Take the wire that goes from the coil to the distributor, and remove it from the coil. When the ignition switch is ON you will get + at the coil terminal with the hot wire, and you will also get + at the other terminal (the one without the wire). This proves that the primary coil is continuous (OK condition)
Still with the wire removed from the coil, use a test lamp, or voltmeter, and go from a known + source (like the + side of the battery) and touch the distributor wire that WAS connected to the coil. It should indicate a ground when the points close, and an open when the points open. This is normal operation. When you crank the engine, you should see pulses on your test lamp or meter indication the points are (1) grounded properly and (2) opening and closing properly.
Try these two tests, and let us know what you found. These are the first steps towards figuring out the problem.
(+) .....resistor.....coil.....points..... (-)
apb
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