I can fully understand the flow of an ignition system. I know what happens when the key is turned, where the energy flows, and how the systems work. I even understand such details as the flow of current through the primary and secondary windings of an ignition coil, the magnetic field created, the purpose of the condensor, the collapse of the energy field, and so forth. That being said, I am a dunce when it comes to checking these components. Let me also state that I have put electrical service in my garage which involved tapping into house breaker panel, buring the conduit/cables, installing breaker panel in garage for 110 and 220V outlets, wired the whole garage. My father in-law who is an electrician saw my work and said it looked better than most of the guys he's worked with in the past 35 years. The reason for me stating this is to inform you that I do know how to use a multimeter to check AC and DC but I don't know much else on a multimeter so keep that in mind.
Now that you have a little background on the anomaly that is me, the main reason for my post is because I need to know how to check the pickup coil in my distributor. It is an aftermarket unit so the pickup coil just unscrews and is an easy swap. It is the same style as the factory unit with the same reluctor wheel and pickup coil so testing it would be the same.
I checked to see if there was spark between the distributor cap and the ignition coil but there is nothing. I've put the ignition coil and condensor in another one of my trucks along with the ignition module and the other truck ran fine with these parts in it so they work. Since I can't exactly pull the whole distributor to test it in the other truck since it has a different camshaft, the distributor is the only thing I have not been able to check yet.
Can anyone help me?

 

Do you have power to the coil + terminal when the key is on?

 

FD, you might check out this thread. Post number 7 may have some help. Good luck with it!


https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...g-pick-up.html

 

Give this link a read...https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...l#post14880906

 

I looked on those links you guys provided and it was kind of information overload. I just need someone to break things down as simple as possible because I have only a few spare minutes each day to spend online before the kids pounce on me and my wife reminds me of the five dozen other projects going on.
I have two spare ignition coils that I can use to get the truck started. One is a new from the box, grey colored, generic autozone coil and the other is an MSD coil that was on the truck when I bought it(age unknown). I've tested the grey coil in another truck and it ran fine for the whole day in the woods logging. I tested both coils to the best of my ability and this is what I've come up with:

*GREY COIL- With the multimeter set on ohms and at 20K I touched one multimeter lead on the positive post of the coil and the other lead on the negative post. The reading was (0.00)
- With positive lead of multimeter touching positive coil post and negative meter lead in the center plug wire hole of the coil, the reading was (7.53)

*MSD COIL- Multimeter on ohms at 20K with positive multimeter lead touching positive coil post and negative lead touching negative coil post, the reading was (0.00)
- With positive lead of multimeter touching positive coil post and negative lead in the center plug wire hole the reading said (1.)

***NOTE*** Before the Grey coil gave the reading of 0.00 the numbers jumped around a bit but then settled at 0.00, with the MSD coil it did nothing. No numbers popped up for even a second, all it did was say 0.00 the whole time.

I don't know what any of this means but I was hoping someone could give me some insight.
Also, I have two distributors on my workbench ready to be tested. The one is an ACCEL Model 71202E(This is the distributor I just took out of the truck, same dist. when I bought it) and the other is a stock Ford duraspark II unit. The truck has a custom ground camshaft in it that matches the ACCEL's gear and it's not compatible with a stock Ford Distributor gear so I will have to change distributor gear if I switch it back to stock. Could someone give me a simple explanation(not a link) of how to bench test the Ford Distributor and then I'll try to apply that information to the ACCEL Distributor because the wires are different colors than stock.

*Another Side Note* I've been using a handheld ignition bypass switch to start the truck from under the hood so the trucks ignition switch is ruled out.

 

Nobody was able to decipher the results I got from my ignition coils?
I would still greatly appreciate a layman's how to explanation for bench testing the distributors I mentioned. Again, if possible, I would like someone with the know-how to explain it in their words and not post a link where I have to search a bunch of other people's posts. I spent over an hour trying to find a decent youtube video or concise website post that explained how to test a Duraspark II distributor and coil but came up with nothing.
I will be waiting for a response before I go on with anything else. I could just pull the truck out of the garage with my tractor but I really prefer the truck to move under it's own power because I have enough lawn ornaments that were never suppose to be lawn ornaments. I'm sure you guys know what I'm talking about.

 

Ok sorry that we all do have a 100% grasp on exactly what you need. Some of us know more about other things and just try to help where we can, even with nothing more than a link.

But rest assured this guy below does and he can explain it in any terms you need.

Ford Truck Enthusiasts Forums - View Profile: fmc400

I am sending him a PM of a link to your thread.

 

can't decipher your results on checking the coils as you had your ohms range set too high when checking between + and - poles.

post 2 asks an important question that is still unanswered...

post 3 say provides a link and specifically points out post 7 which provides what I would consider laymen's terms...no need to re-type them here...

you're really going to have to some of the work.

 

So....tell me what I should have my multimeter set at then instead of just telling me the range is set too high. I already told you I'm no whiz with a multimeter.

No it doesn't. Since you quoted and/or mocked me by using the word "Decipher", that obviously shows that you read my last post. In that post I had moved on from looking for spark at the distributor(content of my first post) and I moved on to testing the two ignition coils I have as well as bench testing my two distributors. To test an ignition coil you don't need to have power going to it so post 2 is no longer an important unanswered question but in case you were still wondering, yes, I had power to the coil when I was cranking the engine.

Again, NO it doesn't. Your definition of "Specifically" and mine must differ because I read that post#7 in the link and nowhere in there did it say how to test an ignition coil and if you are refering to the author's description on how to check a distributor, even that did not specifically answer my question. Part of my question was what the MULTIMETER should be set at in order to reach a reading. Yes, that post said "Ohms" was the unit of measurement and it also said what the reading should be for testing a distributor, but it never once said what the multimeter needs to be set at(200,2k, 20k,200k,2M) to get to that reading.

You really need to read posts more carefully before you answer them.

 

Wow .....

 

I reckon the participation here will really take off now, lot's of folks here will want in on some of that!

Seriously, I don't know what people did before the internet, web forums, archives, .pdf manufacturers and owners manuals, etc. Even super obscure stuff is just seconds away if you look for it. If it isn't actually on a webpage, buy the manual/book/whatever on eBay or Amazon.

One thing about testing electrical components if they test bad, they *probably* are. But if they test OK, they only might be. High voltage coils in fact are one area where substitution is OK, because it's tougher to test them effectively without specialized equipment. They get hot, and maybe intermittent. They may get shorted turns in secondary, the ohms still may look reasonable, and it will spark - but not a good spark.

One thing you can try when there's goose eggs on the ohmmeter is simply switch to a higher or lower range.

 

Wow, all that back and forth yet nobody was able to give a simple answer of what the multimeter should be set at exactly for testing a duraspark II distributor and what results I should see if it's good or bad.
I have not touched the truck since I was on here last because I have had no time for it but I was hoping someone without the need for sarcasm and a superiority complex would have come along by now to add something positive.

 

You might get a better response if you weren't snapping at people who were just trying to help ...


As was pointed out, your range was too high on the primary side. Pick the lowest range that's above the value you're trying to measure. Try different ranges if you're not sure. The primary side should be single-digit ohms - I just checked one I have sitting in the garage at 1.7Ω. The secondary side should be single-digit kilo-ohms between the center + pin and either primary pin. I measured mine at 8.7kΩ. I measured the resistance between the orange & purple wires at the distributor at 0.638kΩ.


The question in post #2 is worth revisiting though - if we take a step back, why are you looking into all this? You've verified by swapping parts that your coil and ICM are good. Do you have 12V to the coil? Could be a problem on the truck, not with an ignition system component per se. Could also be an issue with the distributor, as you say - even if it tests good (pickup coil could be out of position/broken bracket).