Condenser failure out of the box

[Declan_Burns]

Here's an excellent article written by Eric Worpe on how conventional ignition systems work and why the modern repro rubbish condensers are known to fail right out of the box.
http://ttypes.org/ttt2/conventional-ignition-systems
A follow up article is scheduled on how to DIY a reliable condenser but the photos are clear enough for most people to follow.

Regards
Declan

[bmcecosse]

Excellent! And finally puts to rest the oft repeated 'expert' view that the capacitor is charged up, and then powers the spark. It is of course the stored power in the coil magnetic field that supplies the spark, the capacitor forming the tuned circuit to lengthen the spark duration, and to quench any spark at the dizzy points.