[Farmall] International A died (and I am baffled)

[Howard Weeks]

Any oil on points is not a good thing.  It hastens their demise.

It has been a while since I measured it but a properly loaded point 
type ignition pulls about 2 - 3 amps when operating (running).  You 
should be able to lay your hand on the coil and it shouldn't be hot 
to the touch.  If you have a coil that is designed to work with a 
limiting resistor and it doesn't have one, the current will be about 
double what it should be and the coil will be very hot to the touch 
after running a while.  This extra current will ruin both the coil 
and the points after some period of operation.  If you measure the 
current being drawn and you find the current to be very low, it 
usually means that your spark will be very low and yellow.  Most 
common cause is dirty or bad points.  Assuming that the coil is good!

A set of good points, when closed, should show "ZERO" ohms 
resistance.  If they show even a quarter or half ohm of resistance, 
it will limit the current through the coil and the fire from it.  
They have to be clean and stay clean.  Just a little oil residue in 
the distributer will contaminate them and make them foul.  The grease 
on the cam lobe is okay in moderation.

Howard in GA

On 1 Jul 2009 at 19:29, ebony51 at frontiernet.net wrote:

> Jim,  Interesting.  Maybe there is a ballast resister I am not seeing.  And maybe I should take the external condenser off.  However, whatever the wiring, it has been working...well maybe, the points did burn out...perhaps for a reason beyond normal wear  There was some grease in the area,and I would think grease on points is not a good thing!
> 
> Larry
> 
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Jim Becker" <jim.becker at verizon.net>
> To: "Farmall/IHC mailing list" <farmall at lists.antique-tractor.com>
> Sent: Wednesday, July 1, 2009 1:55:33 PM GMT -06:00 US/Canada Central
> Subject: Re: [Farmall] International A died (and I am baffled)
> 
> That may mean it is time to find a different electrical shop.
> 
> I'm unclear as to why the external condenser was added.  If the one is still 
> inside the magneto, it would probably be closer to the right value alone 
> than having 2 condensers would be.
> 
> Jim Becker        jim.becker at verizon.net
> 
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: <ebony51 at frontiernet.net>
> To: "Farmall/IHC mailing list" <farmall at lists.antique-tractor.com>
> Sent: Wednesday, July 01, 2009 11:08 AM
> Subject: Re: [Farmall] International A died (and I am baffled)

Howard Weeks
Harlem, GA 
K5JCP