You need at least a coil to test it. The resistor wire and the coil primary windings are connected in series and form a voltage divider. Approximately half the supply voltage is dropped across the resistor wire and the remaining voltage is dropped across the coil primary. Use a stock coil for the test, a high-performance coil has a lower primary resistance and will throw off the voltage divider. That's why they have matching ballast resistors which are lower in resistance, to restore the divider.

Barry