5 sparks for the price of one

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56G80S
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5 sparks for the price of one

Post by 56G80S »

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MOTOR-CYCLE- ... SwLa9UXqHK

I wonder what Groilly will have to say about these!

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spookefoote1956
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Re: 5 sparks for the price of one

Post by spookefoote1956 »

snake-oil-scam.jpg
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Pharisee
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Re: 5 sparks for the price of one

Post by Pharisee »

I remember those, or something very similar, being around decades ago.
I'm from the Fens.... Gimme six.
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Group Leader
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Re: 5 sparks for the price of one

Post by Group Leader »

I'll take 3 "Super Sparkers" and an extra-large bottle of your finest Oleum anguis please.

:roll:

Alan
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Groily
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Re: 5 sparks for the price of one

Post by Groily »

The old 'subsidiary spark gap' thing with a twist.
There are many who say you can't start a 2CV Citroën of a damp morning without introducing an extra gap, and there are loads of elderly French motorcycles trundling around with ''éclateurs" in the HT line, which show the spark hopping its happy way to the plug. But many moons ago, smart people looked into all this and were unconvinced. I certainly don't think introducing extra obstacles into magneto HT leads is at all a good thing, other than in certain test circs.
An academic paper from 100 years ago on the topic of subsidiary spark gaps - claims pro and con, and do they work - can be read here: http://naca.central.cranfield.ac.uk/rep ... ort-57.pdf
pkr87
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Re: 5 sparks for the price of one

Post by pkr87 »

When I was a callow youth a very long time ago I noticed one of the plug leads on an ancient Fordson tractor had been cut and a trouser button had been wired in to it. " What's that for Mr. Vant?" "that plug keeps oiling up and the button makes the spark better and stops the plug oiling up." Where did that bit of knowledge come from? When using a plug tester on the old Lodge three pin spark plugs, why do the sparks travel around the three pins in turn?
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Re: 5 sparks for the price of one

Post by Beefheart »

sometime in the 70s (in Welwyn GC) I had a tired old Triumph Herald an old chap who reckoned he had worked for Tim Birkins Bentley team (very possible) anyway he told me for a quick de coke pull the ht leads off leave about 1/4in gap and
rev it.I had a lot respect for him he had been a great help with many motor issues, so I gave it a try huge cloud of black smoke from exhaust I think it ran better afterwards.
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thornebt
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Re: 5 sparks for the price of one

Post by thornebt »

pkr87 wrote:When I was a callow youth a very long time ago I noticed one of the plug leads on an ancient Fordson tractor had been cut and a trouser button had been wired in to it. " What's that for Mr. Vant?" "that plug keeps oiling up and the button makes the spark better and stops the plug oiling up." Where did that bit of knowledge come from? When using a plug tester on the old Lodge three pin spark plugs, why do the sparks travel around the three pins in turn?
With multi electrode plugs the spark should just bridge the shortest gap. When that gap gradually erodes the spark will transfer to the next shortest gap. So the plug lasts longer. Cheers. Bruce.
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Re: 5 sparks for the price of one

Post by SPRIDDLER »

thornebt wrote:
pkr87 wrote:When I was a callow youth a very long time ago I noticed one of the plug leads on an ancient Fordson tractor had been cut and a trouser button had been wired in to it. " What's that for Mr. Vant?" "that plug keeps oiling up and the button makes the spark better and stops the plug oiling up." Where did that bit of knowledge come from? When using a plug tester on the old Lodge three pin spark plugs, why do the sparks travel around the three pins in turn?
With multi electrode plugs the spark should just bridge the shortest gap. When that gap gradually erodes the spark will transfer to the next shortest gap. So the plug lasts longer. Cheers. Bruce.
I think Paul was referring to the spark moving from one earth electrode to the other during the same test.
When I started my apprenticeship with a Rolls, Bentley and Jag main dealer my regular jobs were dunking parts in a wire basket into a huge tank of hot trichloroethylene and cleaning plugs on the Champion plug cleaner/tester. First it blasted them with grit and then fired them to check the spark under (combustion) pressure. There was a glass spyhole to observe the sparks.
Champion.jpg
P.S. You can make your own 'spark enhancer' by cutting the HT lead and pushing the cut ends into a tight fitting piece of polythene (fuel) tube. Adjusting the gap as required and observing the spark.
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56G80S
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Re: 5 sparks for the price of one

Post by 56G80S »

Groilly, great reference piece.

So all the extravagant claims are nonsense.

There may be some utility arising from use to deal with fouled plugs. Having said that, perhaps the more sensible route for fouled plugs is to sort out the reason why they are fouling and sort that out rather than slot in a palliative rather than curative method.

Sprid, your images are brilliant. I'll have to load up the photos of the mole count on the barbed wire fence on the morning bicycle ride.

Johnny B
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