am I correct in assuming...

[Guest]

that there should be no power going to the points when they are open?
I'm using a continuity tester set a new pair of pts in a '79 425 and when their' are closed the light is bright, but when I open the pts there is still a dim light on the tester. seems odd to me.

I'm new at this motorcycle stuff but havin' a lot of fun trying to get this running like should.

thanx in advance for any input.

Z

[Steve]

First of all,

If the key is ON and the 'kill' switch is ON, you should have power going to the points.

How do you have your test light connected? One side of the points should have 12 volts to it whenever the key is ON. The other side should also see that 12 volts when the points are closed. You will need to have your test light clip connected to a chassis ground to see this. If you are trying to use your test light to set ignition timing, connect your light clip to one side of the points and the point of the test light to the other side of the points. The test light should be OFF when the points are closed. When the points open, the test light will come on. Hopefully, this will be just as the F mark shows in the timing window. You will need to do this for both sets of points.

.

[zeebob]

Steve;
thanks for the welcome

I'm using a continuity tester... It was my understanding that the battery should be disconnected when using it. (the tester has it's own power... a pair of AA batteries.)
It has an alligator clip that I ground to a cooling fin on the engine. I touch the pointy end to the bottom of the points where the wire from the coils attach.
When the pts are closed the light is bright (a complete circuit), when I open them with my thumb I assumed the light would go out but there is still some power lighting the light on the tester.
I assumed that when the pts were open that no electric current would be observable in an open circuit. I guess thats my question... should there be?

thanx,
Z

[gearman]

There is still a small amount of continuity through the open points on some ignition systems. Using an ohmmeter (not digital, the old fashioned kind) is usually more accurate because it's easier to see the needle start to move as opposed to the light going dim. Ending up with the point gap within tolerance on both sets is pretty important. Don't forget to lube the cam or the rubbing blocks will wear quicker changing the point gap/timing. Here's a vid of breaker points in action:

http://s146.photobucket.com/albums/r247/gearman22/tutorial/?action=view&current=points.flv

[zeebob]

thanx gearman;
I seem to remember that pts use to come some grease for the cam... guess they don't anymore. I thought I'd use lithium ... the cams where bone dry.

regards
Z