coil education

[rob63mess]

Hey guys.... i bought a 1917 hack.... not knowing much about T's and their coils, can someone give me a quick lesson. I removed the coils from the box, cleaned them up and put 6 volts to them. 3 out of 4 were good as in they buzzed and sparked. My question is the wires that go to the top of the coil box terminals....do the come from the timer? And, what pevents the coils from firing continually....can someone explain the process of how the spark is delevered at the right time to the plug. thanks

[Model T Monte]

Timer has all the answers, pop the cover, clean it up an take a look. It sends the current different directions.

[Doug Money]

Also, don't run 6 volts to coils with out spark plugs hooked up or you can destroy the coils.

[tmodelman]

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Here is a simple diagram.

The vibrator coils fire or buzz as long as the internal contact in the timer case is connected to the rotor.

You get multiple sparks from the coil to the plug that way.

The coils work best on the AC current made by the Ford flywheel magneto, so flip the switch to mag, once you start the car on 6v DC battery.
A good mag should put out 18-24v AC in time with the mag pulses of the magnets on the flywheel.