'37 ignition

[farmertom]

what is output of o.e. ignition coil in volts '37 v8? thanks,Tom.

[fordscript]

About 18000 volts.Anything less than 14000 is no good....imo

[farmertom]

thanks fordscrpt,i was beginning to think no one would reply. i just replaced the remote condenser and beer can coil that i had installed 31/2 years ago.with another nappa FA-54 condenser and this time instead of a macs generic coil i got a standard motor parts 6volt blue streak coil. puts out alot better spark. the '37 when i got it had allready had the remote can coil and condenser in place which had started to fail about a year into my stewardship.back in the '60s all the 6cyls and 283 327 chevys i didnt keep long enough to go through coils and condensers. hope this new coil and condenser last longer than 31/2 yrs.although fairly cheap and easy fix. i'm wondering what the other members are getting out of coils and such. Tom.

[JayChicago]

My guess, I'm no expert:

Some thousands of volts for a millisecond. How many thousands? Dunno. Never saw it specified anywhere. Would not be able to measure it without special equipment.

The coil will build voltage until it discharges across the spark plug. A good clean spark plug with proper gap would discharge the coil quickly, at less voltage. Any excess capability in the coil serves no purpose. High voltage coils are needed for high compression engines, and a flathead ain't that.

[JayChicago]

Your latest post came in while I was typing.

A bad condenser will produce a weak spark. And condensers are fragile, limited life. Some are bad right out of the box.

[farmertom]

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fordscript and JayChicago,i forgot to mention the new blue streak coil i just installed claims 25,000k volts. starts right up. not to hot of a coil? what do you guys think? Tom.

[farmertom]

JayChicago,yeah this what ive heard about condensers having a short life.i drive my '37 almost every day middle of march-november no salt on roads.what about coil life span in your guys opinion? Tom.

[JayChicago]

Originally Posted by farmertom

what about coil life span in your guys opinion? Tom.

The original coil mounted on distributor is known to be fragile, prone to failure. Recommendation today is to have an original coil rebuilt by Skip Haney. He uses modern materials (don't ask what, his trade secret), and then they last for many years.

But you are using the remote can coil, which is bigger and more robust. Chances are your problem was just the condenser, your old can coil is still good, and your new can coil will last for years. I have read that the remote can's adaptor plate on the distributor can sometimes be a problem. And, in my opinion, all of that added stuff on an original car is just too uuugly.

[tubman]

The only conventional coil I have ever had fail (over 65 years and dozens of cars) was one in a new Corvair that developed a split in the "tower". It was intermittent and only showed up in damp weather.

[JayChicago]

Originally Posted by farmertom

fordscript and JayChicago,i forgot to mention the new blue streak coil i just installed claims 25,000k volts. starts right up. not to hot of a coil? what do you guys think? Tom.

I don't know the answer to that. I'm thinking while the extra capability is not needed, I can't see how it hurts anything. But maybe I'm wrong. Maybe under some unusual conditions it could cause arcing in the distributor while a lesser coil would just not discharge at all.

[tubman]

Originally Posted by JayChicago

I don't know the answer to that. I'm thinking while the extra capability is not needed, I can't see how it hurts anything. But maybe I'm wrong. Maybe under some unusual conditions it could cause arcing in the distributor while a lesser coil would just not discharge at all.

That reminds me of the time about I put a top-end MSD ignition system (distributor, control box, and coil) on the 276 Merc in my old '36. The spark was so hot that it actually "ate" through the central (coil) terminal on the MSD distributor cap after a couple of months. After a couple of such occurrences, I replaced the red MSD cap with a respectable OEM black GM cap (which fit perfectly) and solved the problem.

It seems in some case, you CAN have to hot of a spark.

[farmertom]

tubman,I would understand that those MSD ign. coils put out at least 50,000k volts so i guess needn't be concerned about the new blue streak coil i just installed then. Tom.