I'm trying to improve the performance on my tired 360.

I upgraded my coil to a TFI coil. I also went to the larger cap and rotor, but I can't find that coil resistor, so I can eliminate it, so the TFI coil will get the full 14V.

 

i thought most resistors were right on the coil, id say if you cant find it it dont have one. the one that i have screws right to the coil bracket, good luck

 

I can't say for a fact but my guess is that your primary wire to the coil is a resistor wire. You wouldn't have a ballast resistor. Check the resistance of the primary wire from the ignition switch to the coil with an ohm meter. It would read "0" if it isn't a resistor wire. Disconnect the battery before testing!
By the way - Do not eliminate the resistor!

 

I heard somewhere that I'm supposed to eliminate it with a TFI coil.

Can't really test with a multimeter, because that resisitor is only 1 Ohm. Which is about the tolerance of my $6 multimeter.
Btw, this is on a 1975 F100.

 

I guess I could just run a hot wire from the battery to a relay and the current ignition wire could turn the relay on. That way I could run a fused heavy guage wire to the coil.

 

Just put a meter ON the wire. If it has a resistor in it, it will NOT read 12v. Simple enough.

 

I've done that and it reads 8V, so I know it's still in there somewhere.

 

You might find some info that you need by going to the following web site; www.autozone.com then click on Repair Info on the left side of the page, then click on Repair Guides on the left. Next enter your vehicle Info. This will show you some troubleshooting and diagrams of the ignition systems in question.

 

It's probably in the wire coming out of the firewall. Just like a fuse link, it is probably manufactured as a resistor wire.

Find the wire off the ignition switch and trace it. Run a new one off the switch and you should have 12v.

 

Ok, I just ran a relay, so now it is getting 12-14V to the coil.

It seems to be a problem though. The coil and ignition module are getting very hot. Too hot to touch.

Oh well, I'll just carry extra parts and tools with me and see if it lasts.

 

As I mentioned before - Do not bypass the resistor!

 

I've read on several different occasions to bypass that resistor in a TFI upgrade.

 

fordman428, that is the condenser. It is actually a capacitor. It filters any noise from the coil, so it's not picked up from the radio, CB or anything else sensitive to noise coming from the +12V supply.

Speaking of noise I was working on my turn signals and found that when my left blinker was on the Ignition Module was picking up that signal and firing the coil!

What kind of brainiac Ford engineer decided to run a pulsing electrical signal (such as the blinker) in the same wiring harness as the ignition module!?!?

 

The ignition module is getting hot because it's not designed to switch that much current when you bypass the coil resistor.

 

I think your right, BB.

I guess I'll go get me a GM HEI Module.