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Ford 9N, 2N & 8N Discussion Forum

2N Plug not firing

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Roy

09-10-2003 15:17:14

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A couple of weeks ago I posted a question regarding my 1943 2N being impossible to start when I let it sit over night, but starting immediately if I towed it a few feet. Someone suggested low compression not drawing the air/fuel mixture up. That wasn't it, so I fiddled with the spark plugs and discovered two weren't firing or were firing weak and erratically. I discovered that if I loosened the plug wire, leaving it loose on the plug terminal, the plug fired nice and strong, and the thing started like a champ. I have two plugs acting this way, so apparently it just wouldn't start on two good plugs when being turned over with the starter. So, the questions are: why does leaving the plug wire loose make the spark plug work and how do I correct the upstream problem? Could it be that when the starter is being used it drains off voltage and the coil is too weak to fire hot enough? Why just two plugs acting this way if the coil is weak? Could I have a couple of bad spark plug wires that the weak coil can't overcome? Help! Roy

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Buckeye Fan

09-10-2003 18:07:19

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Re: 2N Plug not firing in reply to Roy, 09-10-2003 15:17:14

Roy, a cracked distrubutor cap can also cause the symptoms you experience, inspect it for hairline cracks, this will allow the spark to follow the crack to a ground. Good luck. Buckeye

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Dell (WA)

09-10-2003 15:37:18

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Re: 2N Plug not firing in reply to Roy, 09-10-2003 15:17:14

Roy..... ....the first thing I'd do is replace your sparkies. The hotter Autolite AL-437 seem to do well with modern no-lead gasoline and oil fouled sparkies.

They used to make a sparkplug with an internal "air-gap" to help it overcome oil fouling engine operation. Your loosened sparkie trick is acting like that airgap.

Then I'd seriously consider the merits of NEW COPPERCORE sparkie wires. Your descriptions are consistant of bad sparkie wires. DO NOT USE modern anti-radio static carbon core sparkie wires..... ....Dell

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Jerry (AL)

09-10-2003 18:26:25

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Re: Re: 2N Plug not firing in reply to Dell (WA), 09-10-2003 15:37:18

Dell, when i first got my 8N, it was negative ground. I just ran it like it was but have always noticed I didn't have a nice BLUE spark but sort of blue. On and off, particularly when hot, it has been a little slow to start. Do I remember a post a while back where someone said you got a hotter spark with the positive ground or am I just over 55 and getting senile? When I got it, the prior owner had spark jumpers, for lack of a better term, on two plugs. It now cranks and runs fine without after I put in the right plugs. Think it might help to go to positive ground? May be the ballast resistor causing a poor spark when hot? Any thoughts?

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Dell (WA)

09-10-2003 18:49:19

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Re: Re: Re: 2N Plug not firing in reply to Jerry (AL), 09-10-2003 18:26:25

Jerry..... ...I'm told you can loose upto 40% of your sparkies with incorrect coil polarity with respect to battery polarity. (I have personally seen -25% on a scope as part of an ignition class experiment) As a general rule, its coil (+) to battery (+).

When you say you have a ballast resistor, that implies you have a square frontmount igniton coil that is internally hardwired for positive ground. If this is the case, then you might want to consider changing battery polarity and "re-polarizing" your genny/VR to the new battery polarity.

And NO, your ballast resistor doesn't care positive or negative ground but your coil does..... ...Dell

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Jerry (AL)

09-10-2003 20:21:07

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Re: Re: Re: Re: 2N Plug not firing in reply to Dell (WA), 09-10-2003 18:49:19

Thanks Dell and yes it is a 49 front mount distributor.

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