Pertronix diagnostic tip 2cyl

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Jim LaGuardia
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Pertronix diagnostic tip 2cyl

Post by Jim LaGuardia »

So I came across a weird one, may shed light for others. Upon installing a new unit, the engine would not start(no spark). Since I have never found a defective module I decided to investigate before writing it off as bad. First off the Pertronix unit is 2 parts, module and pole piece.
The pole piece(trigger) contains 4 small magnets, the magnets are arranged by pole position(North or South).
I started by testing a known good module(on my Haflinger), as they tested alike next step was testing the ring. As soon as the ring was swapped with mine, it sparked fine and started. Next the new pole piece was tested on my Haf and it would not produce a spark, so after some thought on how this sensor makes a signal, a compasswas the correct diagnostic aid.
Using the compass on a flat surface, I rotated the ring next to it notating magnetic direction. The ring that worked was oriented (bottom view), flats to right and left starting upper left and then clockwise, North, South, North, South.
The ring that would not work had all four magnets North facing.
It was an easy fix(used thin blade at bottom of ring to pop retainer loose, re-orient magnets and super glue retainer).
Of note, I can see how easy it is to make this mistake in small batch manufacture as four cylinder pole piece have all four facing North and it is the same plastic housing with a modified lobe mount bore.
Been swamped with heavy work, more posts as soon as I get caught up :roll:
Cheers, Jim LaGuardia
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audiocontr
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Location: Buffalo NY

Re: Pertronix diagnostic tip 2cyl

Post by audiocontr »

Interesting! Is this my beast causing you issue?
1973 712m
1968 Haflinger
1965 Pathfinder
1978 GMC Palm Beach (Hey, its got 6 wheels!!)
tpond
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Re: Pertronix diagnostic tip 2cyl

Post by tpond »

Jim,

Thanks sooooo much for posting this! I just tried to fire up my truck after a full engine rebuild, and ignition system upgrade... no spark... well my brand new Ignitor ended up having all four magnets facing North. After fussing around with the plastic cover and switching the magnets like you outlined, it fired right up!

Nice having a workable solution without sending it back to them!

Thanks again
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