Reply To: ignition kit prices

[frankr]

Some of you guys are missing the point (no pun intended). Preventing arcing is only part of what a condenser does. Think of a condenser as a closed can. And think of electricity as “stuff”. Actually, it is “stuff”—electrons that have been yanked out of atoms.

Ok, if the can holds a gallon of stuff and you cram a gallon of stuff into it, it will fill up and the pressure inside will equal the pressure cramming the stuff in.

On the other hand, if you only cram in a pint of stuff, it will never fill up and the pressure won’t equal the pressure of the source because the source ran out of stuff to cram in.

In a magneto, the coil develops a voltage (pressure) as the magnets pass the first legs of the coil. Then the magnets pass the other legs and the voltage reverses. That reversal causes a considerably higher voltage in the coil, which tries to arc across the points. Instead of arcing, the “stuff” flows into the condenser. Remember the analogy, the bigger the container (mfd) the lower the pressure inside at a given source pressure and amount of stuff available.

All this is a long winded way of saying that after the reversal is completed, the condenser stops accepting stuff and the stuff surges back out and adds to the new voltage being generated in the coil, just as a second flashlight battery doubles the voltage from one battery. So….a big condenser (mfd) contains less pressure (voltage) to add to the coil voltage. But a small condenser has accepted less stuff (electrons) to discharge back through the coil. The whole process affects the coil’s output (spark) voltage

This probably will go way over heads, but is about as simple as I can say it.