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Posted By Discussion Topic: 41 Coil     Super41 02-16-2014 @ 1:51 PM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 5 Joined: Feb 2014 I've been restoring a 1941 Super Deluxe, and thought I was finished. There seems to be something wrong in the ignition system (6 volt); the engine will fire right up, and it runs like a top. Drive for a while and shut it off, and you're stuck for a while (turns but won't crank over). I've read this might be due to an overheating coil. I'm sure way back when the car was new, it didn't do that, or they wouldn't have sold any! Any ideas on what I'm missing? Moisture in the coil? Thanks in advance for any advice/answers. joe b 02-16-2014 @ 2:35 PM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 389 Joined: Oct 2010 I had a similar problem with my '41, I would drive it and in as few 16 blocks or as far as 60 miles it would shut off. Became a flathead on a flatbed. Get it home and next morning it would fire right up..The problem turned out to be the condenser mounting. The bolt that held the condenser was slightly loose because the threaded hole was full of dirt and grease. The theory was that as the engine warmed up the condenser would move away ever so slightly. When everything cooled down ...all OK. The problem drove me nuts. Not to mention the roll back guy answering "Hi, Joe. Where are you today?" It's a long shot maybe but take a look. kubes40 02-16-2014 @ 4:30 PM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 3395 Joined: Oct 2009 What you describe is typically the coil and / or condenser. There can be other reasons this is happening but again, typically, it's the coil and / or condenser. For piece of mind, I might suggest you have George Haney rebuild your coil. TomO 02-17-2014 @ 9:48 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 7250 Joined: Oct 2009 Check your spark, it should be at least 1/2" at idle. Use a NAPA SER606 tester or equivalent. If your spark is weak, check the input voltage to the coil with the engine stopped. It should be between 3 and 4 volts with the points closed. If it reads closer to 6 Volts, tap the starter to close the points. Low voltage to the coil can be from poor connections or a bad ignition switch. Tom Super41 02-18-2014 @ 11:47 AM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 5 Joined: Feb 2014 Thanks for the replies! After I check out the things you've suggested, I'll get back and let you know how it went! Super41 05-22-2014 @ 11:31 PM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 5 Joined: Feb 2014 Update: Thanks for steering me to George "Skip" Haney kubes40. I had him rebuild the coil as you recommended. Once I installed it, it took a bunch of cranking and pumping to get her to turn over, but once she did, she starts every time now. Kudos to you sir! Chascwell2 06-01-2014 @ 2:37 PM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 35 Joined: Feb 2014 I am also experiencing distributer electrical issues when the engine warms up. Had to get towed in last Thursday.The testor in the spark plug wire shows the secondery current is going away. The problem is the same with two different condensors, also has a rebuilt coil , fresh from Skip Haney as well as new caps and points. A fuel pressure guage , in line, shows no loss of fuel pressure when the problem shows up running at a fast idle in the garage. Has any one experienced a problem rotor? It is the only thing that is not new in the distributor. The voltage in the primary circuit remains constant at 5.2 volts with the engine running and remains constant. chascwell supereal 06-01-2014 @ 3:01 PM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 6819 Joined: Oct 2009 As the input to the coil is pulsed by the points, there is not a constant voltage to read by a meter, unless it has the ability to see RMS (root-mean-square). My best guess is that one or both sets of points are defective. There are poor quality points being sold, usually with a shorted place where the wire is held by the small screw. We have found several with defective threads or a short thru the paper insulator. When one of the point sets isn't making good contact, you will see battery voltage at the coil input until one of the point sets makes contact. Then. the voltage should read about 3 volts. One of the sets "makes" the connection, while the other "breaks" it. If either set is defective, poor or no starting will result. If you don't see 3 volts when the points are closed, look at the connections at both ends of the resistor on the firewall. It is also possible that the ignition switch is the culprit, as the moving part wears a groove in the terminal block. A hot engine almost always requires that the ignition circuitry is in good shape. Old Fords do tend to heat if the cooling system isn't doing its job, but others, such as my '47, reliably starts hot or cold.

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