Brad,Your explanation made very good sense! As a mechanical engineer, I always forget to use the water analogy when dealing with electricity.
Now I think can feel pretty safe in saying that my problem is probably the condenser (and the now fried coil).
Jeff 56 Sedan Trenton, NJ From: a292@xxxxxxx=C2=A0 To: mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx=C2=A0 Sent: Tue, 6 Feb 2007 4:52 PM=C2=A0 Subject: Re: IML: 56 Ignition Problem=C2=A0 =C2=A0 The ballast resistor is there to limit current. The voltage drop is=20simply a side effect of the limited current that the ballast allows to=20
pass through. It's the limited current that prolongs the life of the=20 points.=C2=A0 =C2=A0 Any resistor will show the same voltage on both sides until a load is=20 applied. It's sort of like if you connect a garden hose with a spray=20 nozzle on the end to a spigot. You can hold the spray nozzle open and=20turn the spigot on until there is just a trickle of water coming out of=20
the nozzle. The pressure in the hose is very low. Now turn the spigot=20 off and the pressure in the hose will build up until it matches the=20pressure in the pipe supplying the spigot. Turn the nozzle back on and=20
the pressure in the hose rapidly drops again. A similar thing is=20 happening with the voltage in your ignition system except that it=20happens almost instantaneously. A big difference in the ignition system=20
is that unlike the garden hose which will briefly allow a large=20 quantity of water through the nozzle, the ballast will not allow a=20large flow of current to pass through. I'm not very good at explaining=20
it and that's not the greatest analogy but I hope it makes since.=C2=A0 =C2=A0 In any case I would try a different condenser. I have had a bad=20condenser in the past and the engine would still run but not very well=20
and it causes a LOT of excessive arcing across the points when they=20open which will fry them in short order. Also the output voltage of the=20 coil will be very low which is why the engine will run so roughly. The=20
job of the condenser is to allow the magnetic field in the coil to=20 collapse in a controlled manner. It allows the voltage in the primary=20windings to rapidly but not instantaneously fall. It's this collapsing=20
of the voltage and hence the magnetic field which produces the high=20 voltage in the secondary windings to fire the plugs.=C2=A0 =C2=A0 Have a good day=C2=A0 Brad=C2=A0 ----------------- http://www.imperialclub.com -----------------This message was sent to you by the Imperial Mailing List. Please reply to mailing-list@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx and your response will be shared with everyone. Private messages (and attachments) for the
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