Need Help With No Spark Issue

Hey guys... a little help please!

My boat ran great last season after you guys helped me out.

I got it out of storage today... no spark!

A buddy of mine that KINDA knows a bit about engines and boats helped me out. But I trust you guys more!

We tested for spark at the plugs... nothing.

He put a spark plug in the end of the coil wire... no spark.

We tested voltage at the positive terminal... about 12 volts. He assumed since the coil had power but no spark at the coil wire... that the coil is probably bad.

Is this correct? What I read in the manual is that positive terminal should be at least 9.5 volts, and I should test the negative terminal, and that should be at least 8.5 volts?

Is that what I should focus on? Or can I assume that my buddy's intuition is correct?

He said I could get the coil checked at an Auto Parts store?

Please guide me boat gods!

Thank you! I'm learning what I can because I cannot afford "professional" help. I'm lucky if I have enough money to fill the gas tank due to a family members struggle with Alzheimers ( ugly disease)... so I certainly appreciate your guidance.

Cheers.

Joe

Your reading of 12 volts on the + side of the coil is good. Now, if you have a 12 volt test light, attach the clip to ground and touch the pointed tip to the - coil terminal. Have a friend crank the engine over with the key. The test light should flash. If it flashes and you have no spark, your coil is probably bad. If the light stays steadily on, you have an issue with the module or points. You can also test the coil by attaching a test wire to the - side of the coil. With the key on, ground this test lead and when you unground it the coil should spark.

Hey guys,

Thanks for the tips. I am ordering a pertronix on Tuesday... but unfortunately that isn't going to get me on the water this weekend.

Here's where I stand this morning...

I checked resistance of my coil... Keep in mind I'm kinda new to this multimeter stuff.

Resistance between + and - terminals read 2.1 ohms on the 200ohm setting (the lowest setting I have on my meter). The info I have says it should read about .75 ohms. Possibly this reading is not accurate due to the 200ohm setting on my meter.

Get a new meter... right?

Resistance between the - terminal and the coil output terminal read 7.31 ohms at the 20K ohm scale. My info says it should be around 10,000 ohms.

Stupid question... Do I need to multiply that 7.31 reading by 20K if the meter is set to the 20k setting? If so... that would put that reading at about 146K, a far cry from 10K.

I'm desperately trying get my family on the water this weekend. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Nutty Skier... I'm going to try the coil spark test as soon as it quits raining.

Thanks guys.

Joe

Update...

Pertronix EI and Ignitor Coil are on order.

But in the meantime...

I had my coil tested... the resistance test indicated faulty, so I bought a new coil and a ballast resister.

I installed both. I have 12 volts at both + and - coil terminals, and spark from the coil terminal wire. Still no spark to the plugs.

So my next question is do I look at points and condenser? At least until my Pertronix comes?

Cap, rotor, and wires are nearly brand new.

I cleaned the points with some 400 wet/dry paper... no help.

What's the next step guys?

Thanks again for all your help and advice. My family's dying for a boating fix on Monday.

Cheers.

Joe

Good news Brian! She's purring like a kitten. Installed new points and condenser... gapped, set dwell, and timing.

We're off to the lake first thing tomorrow.

My Pertronix EI should be here Wed or Thurs.

Thanks for all the help!

Joe

logicsound,Is the rotor turning???? If so sounds like a bad rotor or distributor cap.Are you getting a good hot blue arc out of the coil wire, you should be able to "HEAR" it fire,crack crack.........boat dr

Hey logic... did you just install the electronic conversion? If so... maybe you need to reset the timing.

After I installed the Pertronix my engine wouldn't start. I had to rotate the distributor a bit until it started... then warmed it up and set the timing.

I can't believe what a difference the EI kit makes... super easy starts, great idle, good performance. Best $100 bucks I've ever spent, and I learned how to use a timing light too!

Thanks for all your help and support guys... you rock!

Joe

78 SN 351 Ford w/ Elect. conversion won't start hot, changed out the coil and it started for a few days, but now its back. Gets gas, but when its hot won't start, any ideas?

If it was the timing wouldn't it be hard to start all the time, only when the motor is hot it doesn't have spark. Could it be the control module in my conversion kit? Napa wants $136.00 for it.

79, I think he is saying that he has no spark when the engine gets hot.

Joe, is this correct? If so what coil are you using with the Pertronix? Are you using the ballast resistor? What is the resistance of your coil?

Abolton, I have to apologize.   I got you confused with the man who started this thread. Now that I've re-read your original post I see that you never stated that your EI unit is a new one or that it is a Pertronix brand. It sounds like you are describing a thermal breakdown issue with your ignition module. So, let me see if I have this right,....are you saying that you have spark when everything is cold, but once the engine is hot you lose spark? And you have replaced the coil right? And it ran okay for a while with the new coil but then started doing the same thing again,....is that right? If I have correctly re-stated your issue, then I think you are right in suspecting your electronic ignition unit is the culprit.

Seen that before... they do fail like that.

You say you have spark... where? At the coil, or at the plugs? Did you try playing with the timing after you installed the new EI module? I know when I installed my conversion kit it would not start until I rotated the distributor a bit, got it started, then set the timing.

Good luck.

Joe

So embarrassed, but this site is so good I have to share. My problem turned out to be loose fuel line clamps. Sometimes it would start and sometimes not, it would suck air and the gas would drain back to tank. I thought it was the control module breaking down so it did cost me $130. to learn a little more about the wonderful sport of boating. If anyone wants a Petronix conversion kit, I will sell my old one cheap.   

Do not blindly start throwing parts at it. If you do not have a volt-ohm-meter, run to sears or walmart or auto parts store and buy one. They are cheap and useful. Then start tracing power starting at battery, then switch, then coil, then distributor. There are a ton of good videos on youtube on how to step-by-step diagnose ignition problems with your VOM. Works every time.