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no spark

229 Views 8 Replies 5 Participants Last post by  MadCow
I have a 2N that just suddenly quit and I haven't been able to get it running again. It seems to be an electrical issue. The circuit tester indicates the distributor is working fine but the spark tester says I'm not getting spark to any of the plugs. So I don't know what to do now. Anyone have an idea?
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Have you had a look into the distributor to see if the points are still set properly? It might be a bad coil as well. There are a few N series Ford Guru's here that I'm sure can walk you through some trouble shooting.
I'd pull the plugs, reconnect them to the plug wires, lay them against the block, turn on the key and crank...look for spark...if none at least pull the distributor cap and check...sometimes the rotor go goofy...if it's ok ...before pulling the dizzie put a jumper across the ballast resistor and try it...sometimes these things get goofy too. I've had these tractors for many years and have never seen a coil on one of these tractors just go out like a light bulb...not saying it couldn't happen ....Of course you have checked all electrical connections... don't be afraid to use a little ether to start.
Change the points, just hold on to
The old ones and the rotor button , I learned the hard way that the distributor may not be factory original after I chucked the old points n button also

clean your connections to starter battery, check n tighten and loose ones, check the state of your connection ends , make sure they aren’t broken or loose

I’m currently still fighting that battle with my NAA, to get it back going , I have a bigger ford too so I’m not hurting with it down but I say keep it simple stupid, that’s what I’ve learned
I have a 2N that just suddenly quit and I haven't been able to get it running again. It seems to be an electrical issue. The circuit tester indicates the distributor is working fine but the spark tester says I'm not getting spark to any of the plugs. So I don't know what to do now. Anyone have an idea?
Coil and ballast resistor. I had a very similar issue (front mount 8N). Also make sure your connections all up the chain are good. No rusted out or partially busted terminals.
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Coil and ballast resistor. I had a very similar issue (front mount 8N). Also make sure your connections all up the chain are good. No rusted out or partially busted terminals.
Replaced the coil and resistor. No go. But I have a question about the resistor. The old setup had 2 ceramic resistors, one hooked up normally, the other just directly wired to the first one. What's up with that and is that possibly why the new resistor didn't fix the problem?
Sounds like they had trouble getting the resistance right. You only need the one. Is it a 6 or 12v system? Did you get the right coil to match? Could be. Probably not. But could be that you burnt your new coil. Two resisters in parallel have lower resistance than one alone. I.e. Two 1 ohm resistors in parallel would be a resistance of .5 ohm. Measure resistance from the springy bit of the coil to the positive(on neg ground) battery terminal. Should be about 3 ohms if I remember right.

I've had it happen where the little spring on the coil doesn't sit just right in the 'cup' of the points. Make sure the coil is sitting on there right and making good contact. Also check the condenser. Usually that's just weak or inconsistent spark if the condenser is bad.

Prolly worth doing a distro tune up. It's like $20 and any one of those things could be your issue(rotor, points, condenser). Maybe a distro cap too while you're at it. Buy a second condenser while you're there and if the first one doesn't fix your issue replace it again. Many people have said the condensers are bad off the shelf.
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Sounds like they had trouble getting the resistance right. You only need the one. Is it a 6 or 12v system? Did you get the right coil to match? Could be. Probably not. But could be that you burnt your new coil. Two resisters in parallel have lower resistance than one alone. I.e. Two 1 ohm resistors in parallel would be a resistance of .5 ohm. Measure resistance from the springy bit of the coil to the positive(on neg ground) battery terminal. Should be about 3 ohms if I remember right.

I've had it happen where the little spring on the coil doesn't sit just right in the 'cup' of the points. Make sure the coil is sitting on there right and making good contact. Also check the condenser. Usually that's just weak or inconsistent spark if the condenser is bad.

Prolly worth doing a distro tune up. It's like $20 and any one of those things could be your issue(rotor, points, condenser). Maybe a distro cap too while you're at it. Buy a second condenser while you're there and if the first one doesn't fix your issue replace it again. Many people have said the condensers are bad off the shelf.
Replaced the coil and resistor. No go. But I have a question about the resistor. The old setup had 2 ceramic resistors, one hooked up normally, the other just directly wired to the first one. What's up with that and is that possibly why the new resistor didn't fix the problem?
My bad. I had a wire hooked up wrong to the resistor. Fixed it and boom, fired right up. So it was a bad coil and/or resistor. Thanks for the help.
My bad. I had a wire hooked up wrong to the resistor. Fixed it and boom, fired right up. So it was a bad coil and/or resistor. Thanks for the help.
You're the first I've helped on this forum. Glad to have been assistance!
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