Proper Way to Gap Spark Plugs?

Which young bucks would that be Jim?

Reply to
aarcuda69062
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That's pretty much everyone but me ;-)

...Jim Thompson

Reply to
Jim Thompson

"Charles Schuler" wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@comcast.com:

But sharp points erode faster.

Note there are spark plugs with no protruding electrodes (fixed gap)on the market,some with multiple electrodes(2-4 ground electrodes).

Reply to
Jim Yanik

Thanks Rich for your help and encouraging advice in the other post! I am going to be doing this soon, but I have to find out why my oil pressure is low first, so I've been spending the last few days tracking down an oil pressure gauge. Strangely, Advance Auto, PepBoys, AutoZone, Sears, and Harbor Freight don't sell them. I'm getting one from NAPA today for $58 minus AAA discount. Comes with all the adapters.

Julie

Reply to
Julie P.

I had a '68 Galaxie when I was 18. But the fuel prices here (plus my lack of dough at that time) meant I could only afford to drive it around the block *once* before having to sell it! Sounded great, though.

Reply to
Paul Burridge

Lincoln's market is the over 65 crowd. They're not much interested in sticks. BTW, the LS borrows much from Jag.

Same target audience. It was supposed to be a "retro" 'bird. I wanted one, but decided a hangar queen wasn't a very practical use for >$40K.

Yeah, I was a bit dissapointed in the T-bird after all the hype. I'd hoped they did for the 'bird what VW did for the bug. It didnt' translate all that well.

I found that out the hard way. As I mentioned here some while back, the data plate on my Vision TSI said ".062. I went throught a set of

*expensive* (and impossible to replace in cold weather) wires every year.
Reply to
keith

A friend used that strategy on his daughters. On their sixteenth birthday he gave them the biggest gas-guzzler he could find. His reasoning was that he'd rather they drive than one of their friends, rather they drive the biggest hunk-o-metal on the road, and they couldn't afford to drive too far.

Reply to
keith

Operating cost wasn't an issue for *him* either (owned a pot-full of real estate around town). It was for his girls though. ;-)

Reply to
keith

My daughters started with a Torino (late '70's)... operating cost wasn't an issue... I just wanted them protected by a tank ;-)

...Jim Thompson

Reply to
Jim Thompson

Hmm. Teaching them to protect themselves by driving defensively is too liberal, I suppose.

Thanks, Rich

Reply to
Richard the Dreaded Libertarian

They suck. :-) I ran

Audio"phool" :-) I'm gonna remember that one!

Seriously, here's what I dislike about Bosch plats: the wire-thin center electrode DOES wear. Yes, Pt wears slower than Cu, but the much smaller surface area of the Bosch center 'trode means that it wears just about as fast as a normal-sized Cu 'trode. And worse yet, when it wears it retracts below the face of the surrounding ceramic. One bit of foulinng or other grit, and that plug will never fire again without being removed from the engine and the grit picked out. This isn't as often a problem on fuel injected cars as it is oncarbureted cars. I've had an engine go from running perfectly to refusing to start simply because the Bosch platinums fouled on the start attempt (carbureted, choke a bit overzealous -> carbon fouled plugs).. No it wasn't just "flooded," it REFUSED to start no matter how dry I got the cylinders. Copper or (for example) Autolite platinums would have started after a few seconds of cranking with the choke unloader engaged, but the Bosches wouldn't. New plugs, problem gone, no more Bosch plugs for me.

Reply to
Steve

No, but SPARKS do :-) Remember, the spark isn't "electricity," its a super-heated plasma caused by the electricity passing through the surrounding gas. The higher the peak current that flows in the spark, the hotter the plasma gets.

Reply to
Steve

I had a '68 Ranchero, and its part of what drove me to Mopars :P I actually miss that ugly thing sometimes.

Seriously, though, I had good friends who had a a 390-powered '64 Galaxie and a 390-powered '63 T-bird, and those were amazing machines.

Given the choice between a WRX and ANY 60s Ford (especially with a big-block) I'd take the Ford in a heartbeat. But I wouldn't trade my '60s Mopars for a Ford... ;-) The one thing to a WRX's credit- it does sorta *sound* like a real car. The opposed engine has a melodic exhaust throb instead of just a phart sound like most 4-bangers.

Reply to
Steve

On Mon, 14 Nov 2005 12:24:58 -0600, Steve wroth:

Thanks to a rusty old Mustang that couldn't stop when I did (red light) I got a bent up muffler on my WRX. Replaced it with a Borla cat-back exhaust system, 3" pipes, and their sweet sounding muffler. The total cost was the same as a new stock muffler alone!

Now my Rex sounds as good as it looks and drives.

Jim

Reply to
jmeyer

Tapping plugs to close the gap can shatter the internal resistor and reduce the plug's performance. Aircraft spark plugs must be thrown away if they're dropped, since their reliability is shot.

Dan

Reply to
Dan_Thomas_nospam

Huh. I wonder, then, why we crank the voltage/amperage on a welder to make a hotter arc? A weak spark's heat can be absorbed by the electrodes and the fuel/air charge, so a higher spark voltage, which raises the current flow across the gap, makes a hotter spark. Anyone who has replaced an old popint/condenser distributor with an electronic one knows that the engine runs much better. Dan

Reply to
Dan_Thomas_nospam

Huh. I wonder, then, why we crank the voltage/amperage on a welder to make a hotter arc? A weak spark's heat can be absorbed by the electrodes and the fuel/air charge, so a higher spark voltage, which raises the current flow across the gap, makes a hotter spark. Anyone who has replaced an old points/condenser distributor with an electronic one knows that the engine runs much better. Dan

Reply to
Dan_Thomas_nospam

You got to be kidding.

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This is a single shot

Regards,

Boris Mohar

Got Knock? - see: Viatrack Printed Circuit Designs (among other things)

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void _-void-_ in the obvious place

Reply to
Boris Mohar

The current flow in the gap determines "hot".

On some of the CD types I designed we measured AMPERES !!

...Jim Thompson

Reply to
Jim Thompson

How often have you welded with an ignition coil and a spark plug? or, put another way Is it the object of the spark plug to join two pieces of metal together?

Are you certain that both voltage and amperage go up? Have you actually measured secondary current under varying voltage requirements?

They may well, but it's because the electronics are not subject to degradation due to wear and that the electronics themselves lend themselves to more accurate operation at higher speed than a mechanical system does, but having done the actual measurements between the two types of systems, rest assured, an electronic ignition will have the exact same firing voltage and spark line voltage as a points system when installed in the same engine operated under the same conditions.

Object all you want, I'm only passing along what those who've made ignition systems and their diagnosis their lifes work say.

Reply to
aarcuda69062

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