Re: Condensers Testing

[frankr]

There is nothing wrong with your test or the result. The meter jump is due to the electricity from the battery in your tester flowing into and charging the condenser. Once the condenser is charged to battery voltage, the electricity stops flowing and the meter drops back. So, your test is a rudimentary test to see if the condenser can take a charge, and it is. I say rudimentary because it doesn’t tell you what the actual capacitance of the condenser is. And having said that, it really doesn’t matter what the capacitance is, as long as it is reasonably close, when it comes to having spark or not having spark. It is possible in some cases to have some semblance of a spark even if you leave the condenser out. But of course in such a situation, it probably won’t run well, if at all.

I couldn’t help but notice the comment you made about the condenser not having enough voltage to fire a plug (or whatever you said about it). The condenser does not charge up to that kind of voltage.

Back to the question. Virtually all motors made since WWII have Alnico magnets in the magneto. They are virtually indestructible, short of melting them down, so that is not your problem.

I’d say that 99% of no-spark problems are due to dirty or mal-adjusted breaker points, assuming the coils and other parts are good. I’d revisit them.