Packard Forum Index » Post-War (1946-54)

Is your key on when checking for spark?

Hook your meter back up to the coil like before and see what it reads when cranking your engine.

Maybe your spark tester is bad?

Did your coil wire test okay?

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No I'm just using the under hood jump starter I wired up. I was wondering if the key needed to be on.

I do have another spark tester i can try.

I did not test my coil wire. Do I test the Ohms?

Recent voltage readings at coil were with key off.

Key on - we have spark on cylinder one!

I just tried starting my car and voltage drops are the same as yours while cranking.

Sounds like your ready to go!

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Thanks for confirming.

Cranking slowed down. Back on the charger.

I have another new 6 volt in my Plymouth I can pull if I have to. Shouldn't need to though.

I opened the carb and when I manipulate the linkage fuel sprays out of the jets.

Let's back up just a little. First and if not already, connect the hot (power) wire to the coil's negative terminal as it's a positive ground car. The other side is the positive to the distributor gets no power and, of course, is a ground that is interrupted by the points. Most are marked on the end near the terminals.

To be sure that the points are making a good connection, remove the wire from the side of the distributor or coil and measure from the distributor's terminal to ground. When the points are open, there should be no reading but when close, it should read zero or close to it. If the reading is high, then there is resistance somewhere so clean the contacts and try again.

One quick way to test the coil without cranking the engine is to disconnect it from the distributor and connect a wire with a spark plug to its high voltage post that normally does to the center of the distributor cap. Clamp the spark plug's housing to a good ground, then with the key on and a small jumper sire intermittently connect the coil's disconnected distributor terminal to ground. As you're basically emulating what the distributor does, each time it's connected, the plug should spark. This, of course, is just a quick easy test that does not take into account that the coil might be weak and not work when hot but it's a place to start.

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That is how I have it hooked up. Hot wire to negative coil side. Positive coil side to distributor ground.

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Key on - cranking via remote starter I see 6.5 volts on the meter with the Points closed measuring from positive battery terminal to the screw on the terminal of the distributor that leads to the negative terminal of the coil.

Points open it drops to .5 volts and then continues to drop to .004 volts eventually.

This is with the wires connected still.

I had spark on cylinder one. Should I check it on the others?

I'm talking about measuring resistance of the points and distributor itself, not voltage. Checking the resistance as I described will also help identify any ground issues with the distributor as a good ground is required. On my 1951, it's the type of distributor that rotates with vacuum advance so that has an external ground wire but I don't think my 1954s have that type so they rely solely on the physical ground of the housing to the engine block.

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I don't think I understand the procedure. I removed the wire from the coil that leads to the distributor . Using the ohms reading - black wire to negative terminal on battery and red wire to wire off of distributor I get OL on the meter.

Red wire to positive to positive terminal on battery and black wire to distributor wire I get 4.5 ohms to a reading that starts off low, goes to about 30k ohms and then goes to OL.