sloromon
Member
here's yet another stupid question. does a dwell care about 6volt vs. 12volt? or is it more important to find one that switches between 6 cylinder and 8 cylinder settings? thanks!
jon
jon
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dwell voltage
- Thread starter sloromon
- Start date
Dwell Meter
Just so ~ if your Dwell Meter doesn't have a 4 cylinder scale , use the 8 cylinder scale and double the reading .
For accuracy , I like to set the dwell by removing all the spark plugs and dizzy rotor then adjusting the points gap whilst cranking the engine and reading the meter ~ if it bounced a lot , there's a problem with the points as it should read nice & steady .
higher Dwell : narrower points gap and better coil saturation for hotter spark but will need slightly more frequent service .
Most 6 cylinder engines like 30° ~ 33° dwell .
Most 4 cylinder engine like about 25° dwell .
If you cannot get the proper dwell reading unless the points gap is way off , you probalby have the wrong points fitted ~ this is a DPO mistake you'll run into once in a Blue Moon that can drive you crazy .
You can carefully file old pitted ignition points for many re-uses if you're really tight ($) but maintaining paralell contact surfaces is critical & you must check the resistance with either a points meter or a voltimiter set to read a .01 volts bleed , 6 or 12 volts , match your sysytem and don't blow the meter's fuse .
Any time you file or clean a contact point , you must needs remove the SWARF by sliding a bit of lint free paper between them once you're done filing . use only a burnishing typ file , they're very fine .
Just so ~ if your Dwell Meter doesn't have a 4 cylinder scale , use the 8 cylinder scale and double the reading .
For accuracy , I like to set the dwell by removing all the spark plugs and dizzy rotor then adjusting the points gap whilst cranking the engine and reading the meter ~ if it bounced a lot , there's a problem with the points as it should read nice & steady .
higher Dwell : narrower points gap and better coil saturation for hotter spark but will need slightly more frequent service .
Most 6 cylinder engines like 30° ~ 33° dwell .
Most 4 cylinder engine like about 25° dwell .
If you cannot get the proper dwell reading unless the points gap is way off , you probalby have the wrong points fitted ~ this is a DPO mistake you'll run into once in a Blue Moon that can drive you crazy .
You can carefully file old pitted ignition points for many re-uses if you're really tight ($) but maintaining paralell contact surfaces is critical & you must check the resistance with either a points meter or a voltimiter set to read a .01 volts bleed , 6 or 12 volts , match your sysytem and don't blow the meter's fuse .
Any time you file or clean a contact point , you must needs remove the SWARF by sliding a bit of lint free paper between them once you're done filing . use only a burnishing typ file , they're very fine .