Crab distributor "smells" ???

[BUBBAS IGNITION]

Customer stated my distributor smells like a burned up train set!
Ok i have learned to listen to the customer , opened up the box this morning and now the front office smells like a burnt up train set.!!!
A quick loook and a quick smell show a very much shorted to ground condensor mounting screw.!! Why ?? Beats me , but it is what it is .
A correct condensor will be mounted and a test on the machine ( may need to clean up the new points and back to the customer ????
Oh well seen worse i guess....

[Bored&Stroked]

I would have thought it would smell more like the ocean??? LOL!

[BUBBAS IGNITION]

Will ship customer another unit tomorrow. Took his apart and will recycle back into rebuild stock.
Thought you should see what the points look like when they are overheated, could be from key on very long time , the shorted case issue or just plain too much current........??????
But they are toast now. Note limp spring on one set and burnt contacts.......

[40 Deluxe]

I'd guess the ignition switch got left on.

[39topless]

Hey Jim, your job stinks!

[BillM]

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Here is a picture of the normal mounting of an original condenser. Note the housing is threaded and a very short screw is used to mount the condenser. It looks to me that the threaded hole in the case was stripped out and the jury rigged mounting arrangement was close enough to the points that it was shorting out the current to the points.

[BillM]

Well on second thought, a short to ground at that point would shunt the current around the points so wouldn't be the reason the points were fried.

[Bluebell]

That's right, but power supplied on the distributor side of the coil is going to do it.

[Hoop]

Who installed the condenser as shown in post #1? The customer?

[A bones]

Obviously not a "pro" pick.

[jim1932]

Maybe he shouldn't have added the Old Bay seasoning?.

[BUBBAS IGNITION]

Originally Posted by Hoop

Who installed the condenser as shown in post #1? The customer?

Yep.....

[BUBBAS IGNITION]

Originally Posted by Bluebell

That's right, but power supplied on the distributor side of the coil is going to do it.

Hadnt thought that one out but your right it is positive ground....

[Bored&Stroked]

My guess is that they didn't have a resistor in the power circuit to the coil - so they fried the points.

[BUBBAS IGNITION]

STINKY DAY TWO.......
Ok day two getting ready to return a running distributor to customer. Two bags of parts were included for testing as well as the burnt up distributor. Look closely at parts picture . some problems there for sure.
Distributor part was easy as i was building some crabs yesterday and just built a new one from parts etc. Tested and it ready to go.

Tested the napa condensor and found something kinda odd as the condensor tested on my tester very low capacity when grounded thru the mounting bolt!! Tested at the condensor case and it was fine at 2.5 mfds. WOW the condensor is very important and using the bolt lost a good connection. Maybe thats why Ford screwed them to the case.

There was two rotors and two carpenter distributor caps. Also interesting as both styles of rotor was there!

I would have bet they were NOT interchangeable but THEY ARE !!

Using the late rotor (short) instead of the correct early rotor ( long) would have opened up the rotor gap approx .250- .300 over 1/4 inch !!!! Would have caused the coil to supply tons of high voltage to jump the gap!!!
The coils tested vary good and is a number that i havent seen much of , its a # 905 12 volt and tested at 3.5 ohms . Thats ok i guess and i will get a couple and test them for output over time.......

Unit is boxed up and ups label is printed for shipment !!!!!!

OOPS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hopefully a lesson for all readers ?????

[Bluebell]

Bored and stroked, It is the resistance of the coil that protects the points.
This is the result of a dead short (connecting 12v to the points side of the coil) It would only take a second or so.