Lost my (mojo) Spark !

[AnimalJack]

Before I ask for even more advice I want to say thanks for the help with the handbrake problem -I took your advice and my van almost blew the gauges off the wall of the MOT station when he pulled the lever up !

Anyhow......came down through mid Wales last night...........very rough conditions..made alot worse by , what I think is an ignition problem , it got worse and worse . I changed the points and condenser -and the LT tab and lead and Ive sort of lost the spark somewhere ...............I can get a spark across the points (ig'n on) but then when I replace the cap7leads it doesnt continue to the plug ? any ideas would be very helpful

[MarkyB]

Rotor arm seems favourite.
Pull the centre lead into the distributor cap and put it against the engine to check that the sparks are getting that far.

[mike.perry]

Have you got a .015 thou points gap?
Have you got the wire and insulator sleeves in the correct order in the dizzy?
Is the carbon brush in the top of the dizzy cap ok?
I had a similar problem last week. I drove through a deep puddle and the engine started misfiring. Fair enough, I've just soaked the electrics. Keep going and it will dry out. It kept misfiring for a couple of miles until I had to stop at traffic lights, then it stalled competely.
I went through all the usual checks, spark at the points, non at the plugs.
I set the points on the cam and sure enough no gap. Despite the clamp screw being tight they had closed up. Reset them and instant, well almost instant as I had flooded the engine, cure. It just made me a little late for the AGM. If I had known about the buffet I would have brought my own sandwiches, but that's another story.

[bmcecosse]

Or - during all the general work on the ignition - did the little carbon brush fall out of the dizzy cap ?

[alzax3]

Or have you got what I've just dealt with on our van? All ignition components renewed last May. Rough running on the way home in the wet yesterday, suspected points/condensor or damp under the cap. This morning, won't start, soft spark at the points when you flick them, similar soft spark at a plug when attached to the end of the lead. Proper gaps and all terminal ends clean. Changed the coil and problem cured.

[MarkyB]

They have been making the heels of points from cheese for a while now.
Always worth a quick check that they haven't closed up.
Will tick over, but won't rev is symptomatic.

[bmcecosse]

I agree with that - soft plastic on the points heel - but the shaft does need a touch of grease, and doesn't often get it!

[AnimalJack]

Thanks I will have another go tomorrow and let you know how it goes

[AnimalJack]

Thanks again for the encouragement..............I bought a new distributor cap - a new set of leads and a coil, I checked the points again and got the spark - then through to the plugs..............Its great to get running again - I will just need to get the timing right as I moved the distributor -(and many other things) during the confusion .!
I can see the carb pot needs topping with oil and I have often wondered - is it best to use ordinary engine oil or is a thinner oil better ?

[MColes]

3-in-1 is best. Can pick up a bottle for pennies at Wilkos

[AnimalJack]

MColes, Thanks Matt