So this test is the test basically for all coils mine is on a 12.5 Kohler very informative & many thanks perfect timing discovered no spark yesterday ! Will proceed with mounted coil of course saves work leaving installed if good coil ! 👍
Thanks from Texas! I bought a cheap Amazon coil and it only lasted about a year. I bought another cheap Amazon coil because they are about 1/4 the price of an OEM coil, and since they only take about 20 minutes to switch out, I'll take my chances again. Its great to be able to test these coils and KNOW if they work or not! For those who don't own a set of gap spacers, a regular business card works just as well to set the gap from the engine.
This saved me ..I had a very intermittent starting issue this season on my 21 year old Toro CCR2450 snow thrower where 80% of the time it would start and run great. When I tried to troubleshoot it twice of course it ran great and the spark looked ok. Then I tested the magneto (Briggs) and it had 1k ohms resistance ... not 2.5k. I replaced the magneto and all is well again. Thank you so much!
I must have missed this video at first. Ah, we lost the internet for a day or so because of a lightning strike that took out out wifi modem, phone system and tv. Anyway I found this electrifying video this afternoon. Great way to test these coils. I never knew that. Thanks for the great information. Thanks for sharing the video with us. Stay safe.
I call Foul! lol Why? Well....you're MY Sub! But....I digress....at least you pick good blokes to watch, so I'll give you a pass my good friend lol. Cheers!! Zip~
@@ZippoVarga Not sure why the call of foul so that messes with my little mind. I now shall have to sit on the floor and cross my legs and think OOOHHHMMM,
Very good channel with great video. I have tested coils like this for years. Sometimes a coil will test good and then not work when it gets hot from the engine heat. If you have a coil that has a heat up problem you can take a bit of tractor trailer repair tape and wrap it around the coil body. This acts as a heat barrier and heat sink. The tape is aluminum on one side and black sticky tar on the other. Just cut a small piece and place it on the outer plastic body of the coil. This will keep the coil ast a constant temp. I believe the coil wires inside have thin or cracked insulation coating. The wire looks like it is bare but actualy has a coil of polymer. This polymer will crack and get hard over time. Then the coil voltage is affected. On hot days my tiller will stop running. The coil tests great when on the bench. After about 10 minutes of running it stops with no spark. The coil is directly over top the piston head and cooling fins. The heat rises and the coil starts to short internaly. I put the trailer repair tape on the bottom and wrapped it around to the top. The metal part of the coil does not get tape. I installed the coil and it has been working now for 5 seasons. Hope this fix can help someone with a similar problem.. Cheers!
Went to a screw fix to pick up a multi meter not so much as a purse on that coil Mick enjoyed the live stream was helpful in so many ways and thanks for the question shout sir Mick
My magneto checked out fine. It's were the 2 contacts that go up against the center wheel were gumed up and not making a contact. Business card with, perfect. Thank you for how to test.
Great video Mick. A multimeter is a very useful tool. Use mine all the time. In fact used this morning to prove to my brother in law it was because the battery was flat that my sister’s vehicle wouldn’t start. He swore blind he had a battery charger on it an he had charged it up. Anyway after an hour of charging she started up no problem. Saved them calling a mechanic for a 1 minute test with a cheap multimeter!
I hadn't changed the spark plug th-cam.com/users/postUgkx-6W-PtUzBRTmACHywsECak2ToY2OpjxN in my Toro 20" Recycler in the 6 years I've had it but have been good with all other maintenance. This season I noticed it sputtering a little bit every so often and just didn't feel like it was running as smoothly or as powerful as it used to. Switched out the spark plug for a new one yesterday and could immediately tell an improved difference. So I may have to make this a little more regular than every 6 years, especially for a $5 part!
Very helpful video, my coil was showing 11 so I knew my problems were not with coil, after some cleaning out if the carburettor, I got my mower working. Thanks for the help.
well done. I suggest before throwing out that Honda coil, check the plug end on the plug wire - the end screws onto the wire and sometimes if that's done multiple times, the wire becomes buggered, breaking the contact. The wire also screws into the coil itself - check that end as well. The briggs coils all have the wire manufactured right into the coil itself, but the end can be check on some this way as well.
Thank you for explaining this Mick. Have ordered one right now, takes the guesswork out of it and replacing coils just in case. If you are on a tight budget might save someone that bit of money.
Great test Mick, done it on the old coil from the "OLD" mower this morning and reading was 11.8 on all 3 surfaces, so will send that new coil back. New mower doing great mate & getting used to the "Self Drive" now. Keep up the great work & say hello to Riley Boy 👍👍
Clearest, simplest vido I've seen! Wish I'd seen it a long time ago. New magneto/coil has come with TWO wires; black, and black with white stripe. I suppose the b/w goes ...Well, I suppose nothing, I just ask what do I do?? Anyone?
Thanks Mick !! That was easy ! I have been trying to learn about small engines through your channel and a few others and until now haven't seen one on testing coils. Much appreciated
Great and informative, especially if you do not have a workshop manual to show you the ohms specs and limits.Good that you showed the different types of coils too.Cheers.
Mick, your video solved a problem. My mower showed a small spark at each lanyard pull, but would not start. Early in the video, you reveal a coil can spark, but too weakly to start the engine. QED-- now to find a reasonably-priced ignition coil. * PS-- Your Midlands accent is a killer.
Resistance readings from a coil/CDI unit, will indicate if there is an open circuit, but not whether the insulation or semiconductors are breaking down when running.
Good video Bloke. However, the older Briggs & Stratton coil has three coils inside, plus a couple of transistors that control the direction of the currrent flow in the primary. I.e, there's the high voltage winding that you're checking, but there's also the primary winding plus a trigger winding on that little metal post on the bottom of the coil. No way to check either the primary or the trigger winding, or the transistors, as far as I know. Just something to keep in mind. Cheers!
I checked the continuity on the coil and all is good but the mower still won't start? Cleaned the spark plug the carb is pumping fuel and it still won't start, so what else could it be? Thank you
Nice and simple to follow, thanks Mick. New solenoid, ignition coil is fine (4.36 across all points) and a new sparkplug n battery. It turns over but still nothing. Any suggestions? Husqvarna 125 and it worked two weeks ago... I'm stumped😞
Maybe I'm wrong, but is the iron core not a single piece ? With the primary and secondary coils wound around the centre part ? Then it stands to reason that with one lead plugged into the spark plug connector and the other lead alternating between the left and right metal pick up above the magneto ... would result in exactly the same readings. You're taking two readings from the same metal core.
Cheers Mick. Coils can also fail short circuit as well as open circuit. If they are open circuit it could be the HT lead though they are hard to replace the way they are built.
Remember 20K Marker ! Thats a note for me , I am german and you speak a little to fast for me. But your video is really helpfull , thank you so much. 🤗
Just gave you thumbs up #300 Mate! I've missed a few of your videos, and for that I apologize! I am a bit busy and there are a lot of us small engine guys out there that I try to keep up with. It was great chatting on the LS yesterday. Hope all is well! Cheers Mate! Zip~
Mick, here is a new development in my mower ignition coil problem. Originally, the mower had hit a half-buried tree root, mangled its blade and sheared its crankshaft key. Both blade and flywheel key have been replaced, after great effort. and with care to proper alignment of the key channel and flywheel. 1. For a brief period, my ignition coil had produced a small spark, and I heard a single, soft detonation when I pulled the starting lanyard a few times, but the mower could not start or sustain any rpm on its own fuel. 2. When starting fluid was injected into the carburetor, the motor ran briefly, which indicates there was still a spark. But on its own fuel, the motor produced no detonation. Now-- with even starting fluid-- there is no sound of detonation when the lanyard is pulled. 3. This afternoon, I checked the ignition coil with the standard external test-wire-to-ground (earth), and there is no spark. Although I have used my VOM set to Ohms (20k), and still get a consistent and satisfactory reading of 4.63 on both ends of the ignition coil, and on the deadman's switch (reading taken when switch was disconnected), there is no spark and no detonation on lanyard pull. Although I had planned to purchase another coil, I held out hope the 4.63 reading meant the original coil was still OK, since the value was between 2.50 and 5-6.0. Is this clear proof that even a good reading on a physically-intact coil can be misleading?
Hi mate. Sorry for not replying but I’m not getting any notifications of some comments for some reason. Sounds like a good coil. Double check the Ht boot and ht clip. If need be take it off and re attach it. If not then it sounds like a new coil is needed
Thanks you have explained exactly the same problem as what I have been having with an ignition coil on a disc cutter . The readings come back fine , I’ve checked the the ht lead for continuity fine .I’ve noticed most people on you tube are just reposting videos of others with there own take , subsequently I’ve put a coil on from a working disc cutter and it now works as it should . These methods don’t seem to be the rule as I have had the same problem as you . Thanks for posting 👍
@@themowerman Mick, here is a status update on the suspected ignition coil issue. I replaced the original coil with a new one, and now, Ohm readings are even higher, and with a clear, strong spark.
hello and thank you very much for the video. My AL-KO_470br petrol lawn mower with Briggs&Stratton-625 engine no longer starts. I changed the carburettor and the spark plug but it didn't work. Now I have ordered a new ignition coil and tested the old ignition coil according to your video clip. I set 20k ohms on the multimeter and got values of 10.5 on the magnets. Is this value OK? Then the ignition coil would not be defective, but the distance to the drive shaft was very small and dirty. Best thanks and greetings. Thanks from East-Germany.
I've done an extensive survey if ignition coils with a multimeter as I go through my working day and still haven found the process to be a worthy method of testing a coil, other than one occasion when I found a primary winding that tested way out of limits, 360 ohms when it should have been 0.5 to 1.5, which you don't seem to check for, the cut out tab back to ground. Every bad coil I've had, has tested within limits, primary and secondary windings, meaning the failure is electronic, transistor or diode
Nice video. Thanks very much for posting. I have recent acquired a castle garden el63 ride on lawnmower which has no spark. I believe there are five safety switches which can give you no spark if they are not met but now I have another thing to look at. Have you ever worked on one of these. Doesn’t seem to be a lot of information about these out there at all which is a bit of a shame. Do you think you could do a video on safety switches for the larger lawnmower? Keep up the good work Ryan
Thanks for the video. Just a note - if you are doing a twin cylinder mower then you will likely need to measure the resistance of the secondary coil through the two leads and not to the ground. (The coil I just installed appears to have one lead hooked to one end of the coil and the other lead to the opposite end. The mower wouldn't spark/run until I hooked up both leads to the spark plugs.)
Hi Micks, I'm writing from Argentina and working with a Briggs Stratton, model 122T02, 625 Series, 190CC. First, the resistance between high voltage plug and ground terminal is about 10.3 Kohms, that's correct? Second, I don’t understand how stop system works. The coil ground terminal is connected to the coil core, so, when the coil is fixed to the engine frame, the electrical connection is accomplish, despite this, the ground terminal has a cable to a terminal near to stop lever. This terminal also is tied to engine frame. The other end of the lever move a pad to brake the flywheel, in summary, looks like the stop system just consist to brake with a pad the flywheel… that’s would be the operation? Thanks for spend your time with this. Best regards, Gustavo Lehmann.
You can have good resistance readings on a coil and it can still be bad. This test does not test the condition of the semiconductors within the ignition module. A spark test at pull cord rpm's would be a more accurate test.
@@patagualianmostly7437 Not quite my friend. if there is corrosion between the coil body and the engine then you will get no spark and my friend you will have spent out on a coil for nothing. how many coils have you replaced on you're change the plug principal? maybe you were throwing good coils out when you didn't need to? A £10-00 millimetre may have saved you money. Great tutorial as usual Sir Micks
Yes, but I think the coils shown were not electronic. I agree, if electronic then you can have a good testing coil on the bench. But I may have an intermittent fault. This can happen after a short run when a component in the electronics intermittently fails .
Rover mini rider ride on is spluttering and stops when motor gets hot but runs fine before hand I thought it might have been a plug so I replaced it but problem still there. The carburettor has a solenoid i pulled it out and checked it's staying in when powered up. Any suggestions? Can the coil break down when hot.
What should the reading be between the kill switch terminal and the iron core of the coil? I haves a Briggs engine on a mower which won't spark but its showing 5k ohms between HT and core, 5k ohms between kill switch terminal and core (which would point to it being a good coil) but 0.7 ohms between core and kill switch terminal?
Hi mick, briggs coils like to be under 5000 ohms ( 3000-4000 ohms) anything over this is pointing to a coil going bad. Also red lead goes in com, although not critical for this test. Keep up the good work 👍
Actually I made mistake Black lead goes in COM not red otherwise if you test a car battery for example if the red lead was in COM it would show -12v and not the normal 12v. Hope that makes sense
My rudimentary electrical knowledge makes me always put the negative lead at the end destination since electricity travels to ground. Continuity checks doesn't matter just mild OCD. :-)
i tesed both my coils and 2 different muti meters. i couldnt get readings on any of the points you describe testing. all thought my machine runs? im testing on clean metal as well so its not a connection issue......
The bad ones are bad- Sec side tested. BUT the good ones can STILL be bad as the primary and switching in the modules can fail. really only way to be sure is check for spark when on machine or swap with known good. Also you can have heat breakdown in the windings causing HOT shorting and failure but starts cold well and will start to misfire/fail when hot after running a while. Caused by insulation material burning off inside and wires touching and thus less coil windings for good spark and you MAY still get a weak spark but it wont fire the mixture. or a little bit only. Very messy to diagnose as it seems engine runs well for 20 mins then vapour lock? with fuel starvation or a bad coil cutting out then.
Not bad Mick.... But your knowledge of Multimeters was clearly basic...as you admitted. (BTW: That's not a bad meter for the price!) The Black lead ALWAYS goes to the COM (Common) socket. It is the red lead that gets switched around for different functions. When making simple resistance tests on the coils as you did....it is not really an issue..... Red wire, black wire....electricity is colour blind! However... if you were testing a battery and you put your two probes across the battery.... In your case, the red onto the +ve terminal and the black onto the -ve terminal... The display would read "-12v" (A car battery, say.) because you have reversed the connections to the meter. If you reconnect the meter leads as I say, Black to COM...the meter will read simply "12v"...as is the accepted display (NOT +12v...as one might expect.) It also gets a bit complicated when testing Diodes (Of which there are two in some 2 cylinder Ride-on Mowers for instance) This is because the meter supplies a voltage to check the flow direction... (A DC voltage obviously, from its own internal battery...just as it does to measure resistance...as you demonstrated.) So it is important to know which lead is actually +VE & which is -VE..... (Mind you: Most diode failures are either Open Circuit in both directions or shorted in both directions: Either result is a failure, of course.) Within these more modern coil packs, there is a couple of transistors arranged in a "Darlington-Pair" these eliminate the need for points as they switch current in the primary winding... causing the "Collapsing Magnetic field" which in turn causes the huge Step-up voltage in the secondary..... ....which of course, becomes the "Spark" we are always looking for at the spark plug..... (Phew.... Got there!) But, you are of course right.... basic resistance checks of the two windings will tell you if a pack is a duff one. Immediately. ...we need to remember: We are only checking two windings....not the trigger circuit electronics. And another factor I have found over the years..... A cold coil pack can work fine.... then goes bad as it warms up on the machine: Windings expand & short out. Due to heat or vibration....windings...or electronics? Who can say with such sealed units? It's the way of the world Folks!
Wow took me some time to find a good video on testing coils!! Question for you, can it happen that the coils are good but the dead man connector isn’t? I seem to have an issue with my engine not shutting off when a good ground switch is applied.
I tried to test my coil but don’t get any readings on multimeter. I get a reading only on the deadman connector. I also checked for continuity and I have a short with meter leads (one in plug and the other on the deadman. Is that normal?
If it has continuity to one mounting hole, how would you think it could ever not be good to the other? And when the meter is showing a 1 on the left, that isn’t reading one. It is reading overflow, or open.
Mick, you are saying the red lead goes into the Comms socket. All the other videos I have watched on TH-cam use the black lead in the comms socked...would you please explain?
I thought my coil was bad and bought a new one. Both coils test good per the video. Tried 3 spark plugs, re-gapped the coil several times and not getting a spark. Deadman wire tested good, but it is not connected. Any suggestions?
@@themowerman Thanks for the reply. It was actually disconnected to remove it as a problem. I did figure it out. I cleaned the mounting areas between the engine cylinder and the coil and this improved the grounding of the coil. Now I have a strong spark. Aluminum does get a corrosion film on it and so does the steel.
So this test is the test basically for all coils mine is on a 12.5 Kohler very informative & many thanks perfect timing discovered no spark yesterday ! Will proceed with mounted coil of course saves work leaving installed if good coil ! 👍
Thanks from Texas! I bought a cheap Amazon coil and it only lasted about a year. I bought another cheap Amazon coil because they are about 1/4 the price of an OEM coil, and since they only take about 20 minutes to switch out, I'll take my chances again. Its great to be able to test these coils and KNOW if they work or not! For those who don't own a set of gap spacers, a regular business card works just as well to set the gap from the engine.
Great comment ta for watching
This saved me ..I had a very intermittent starting issue this season on my 21 year old Toro CCR2450 snow thrower where 80% of the time it would start and run great. When I tried to troubleshoot it twice of course it ran great and the spark looked ok. Then I tested the magneto (Briggs) and it had 1k ohms resistance ... not 2.5k. I replaced the magneto and all is well again. Thank you so much!
You are very welcome my friend.. that's what the video is for..
Excellent demonstration! Thank you for being so specific. I'm glad that you used defective coils to compare them to the good coils.
I must have missed this video at first. Ah, we lost the internet for a day or so because of a lightning strike that took out out wifi modem, phone system and tv. Anyway I found this electrifying video this afternoon. Great way to test these coils. I never knew that. Thanks for the great information. Thanks for sharing the video with us. Stay safe.
I call Foul! lol Why? Well....you're MY Sub! But....I digress....at least you pick good blokes to watch, so I'll give you a pass my good friend lol. Cheers!! Zip~
@@ZippoVarga Not sure why the call of foul so that messes with my little mind. I now shall have to sit on the floor and cross my legs and think OOOHHHMMM,
Very good channel with great video. I have tested coils like this for years. Sometimes a coil will test good and then not work when it gets hot from the engine heat. If you have a coil that has a heat up problem you can take a bit of tractor trailer repair tape and wrap it around the coil body. This acts as a heat barrier and heat sink.
The tape is aluminum on one side and black sticky tar on the other. Just cut a small piece and place it on the outer plastic body of the coil. This will keep the coil ast a constant temp.
I believe the coil wires inside have thin or cracked insulation coating. The wire looks like it is bare but actualy has a coil of polymer. This polymer will crack and get hard over time. Then the coil voltage is affected.
On hot days my tiller will stop running. The coil tests great when on the bench. After about 10 minutes of running it stops with no spark. The coil is directly over top the piston head and cooling fins. The heat rises and the coil starts to short internaly. I put the trailer repair tape on the bottom and wrapped it around to the top. The metal part of the coil does not get tape. I installed the coil and it has been working now for 5 seasons.
Hope this fix can help someone with a similar problem.. Cheers!
Ta for the information mate I appreciate it
Went to a screw fix to pick up a multi meter not so much as a purse on that coil Mick enjoyed the live stream was helpful in so many ways and thanks for the question shout sir Mick
Thanks for the straight forward no BS explanation. Now I'm off to fix my pressure washer. Cheers ! from Canada's Westcoast
Your welcome..
Excellent video. I am not the brightest bulb, but this video was really easy to understand. Thank you Mick.
No worries
My magneto checked out fine. It's were the 2 contacts that go up against the center wheel were gumed up and not making a contact. Business card with, perfect. Thank you for how to test.
Your welcome mate.. glad you got yours sorted
Thank you. Brought back an old machine back to productive life.
Your welcome
Great video Mick. A multimeter is a very useful tool. Use mine all the time. In fact used this morning to prove to my brother in law it was because the battery was flat that my sister’s vehicle wouldn’t start. He swore blind he had a battery charger on it an he had charged it up. Anyway after an hour of charging she started up no problem. Saved them calling a mechanic for a 1 minute test with a cheap multimeter!
Yeah that's it.. a quick way to test..
I hadn't changed the spark plug th-cam.com/users/postUgkx-6W-PtUzBRTmACHywsECak2ToY2OpjxN in my Toro 20" Recycler in the 6 years I've had it but have been good with all other maintenance. This season I noticed it sputtering a little bit every so often and just didn't feel like it was running as smoothly or as powerful as it used to. Switched out the spark plug for a new one yesterday and could immediately tell an improved difference. So I may have to make this a little more regular than every 6 years, especially for a $5 part!
Very helpful video, my coil was showing 11 so I knew my problems were not with coil, after some cleaning out if the carburettor, I got my mower working. Thanks for the help.
Fantastic
Rt on brother thank you I had no clue on how to do it. So I checked my coil out and it’s all good. It must be my spark plug.
well done. I suggest before throwing out that Honda coil, check the plug end on the plug wire - the end screws onto the wire and sometimes if that's done multiple times, the wire becomes buggered, breaking the contact. The wire also screws into the coil itself - check that end as well. The briggs coils all have the wire manufactured right into the coil itself, but the end can be check on some this way as well.
Yeah I did check it.. it's no good ta for watching
Thank you for explaining this Mick. Have ordered one right now, takes the guesswork out of it and replacing coils just in case. If you are on a tight budget might save someone that bit of money.
Hi mate.. yes exactly.. it's an easy task and saves so much time.. thanks for watching
Amazing instructor, you simplify the test of a coil. Thank You and God Bless.
You are welcome
Thanks from St. Louis, Missouri... SUPER HELPFUL
Your welcome
Once all said a very insightful video, thank you
Great test Mick, done it on the old coil from the "OLD" mower this morning and reading was 11.8 on all 3 surfaces, so will send that new coil back. New mower doing great mate & getting used to the "Self Drive" now. Keep up the great work & say hello to Riley Boy 👍👍
Fantastic news mate
Clearest, simplest vido I've seen! Wish I'd seen it a long time ago.
New magneto/coil has come with TWO wires; black, and black with white stripe. I suppose the b/w goes ...Well, I suppose nothing, I just ask what do I do?? Anyone?
Thanks Mick !! That was easy ! I have been trying to learn about small engines through your channel and a few others and until now haven't seen one on testing coils. Much appreciated
Oh your welcome mate hope it helps. If you need any videos doing let me know. I'm looking into doing Mick's top tips
Only coil testing video that I could understand. Thank you Mick.
Ta mate
Very straight forward video. Thanks for making it pretty simple and I learned a lot. Cheers...
Thank you mick that was a very easily learned well taught lesson ! That was definitely down and dirty!
Great and informative, especially if you do not have a workshop manual to show you the ohms specs and limits.Good that you showed
the different types of coils too.Cheers.
Your welcome
Hi Mick. Thanks for the link to see how to test a coil. My meter is different. What is the setting I'm looking for please?
Mick, your video solved a problem. My mower showed a small spark at each lanyard pull, but would not start. Early in the video, you reveal a coil can spark, but too weakly to start the engine. QED-- now to find a reasonably-priced ignition coil.
* PS-- Your Midlands accent is a killer.
Lol Midlands.. I'm south coast lol
@@themowerman Sorry-- only a few hundred miles off. Portsmouth?.
Thanks, you saved me a lot of time plus mechanics in this area prefer bikes to small engines.
No worries
Great test wish I done that yesterday had the carb out in bits petrol all over me lol ordered coil well done
No worries
Resistance readings from a coil/CDI unit, will indicate if there is an open circuit, but not whether the insulation or semiconductors are breaking down when running.
Thanks Man........from Nebraska USA (Found my coil wire is broken in the boot) Also a new coil was bad from the factory.
Glad I was able to help ya out
Good video Bloke. However, the older Briggs & Stratton coil has three coils inside, plus a couple of transistors that control the direction of the currrent flow in the primary. I.e, there's the high voltage winding that you're checking, but there's also the primary winding plus a trigger winding on that little metal post on the bottom of the coil. No way to check either the primary or the trigger winding, or the transistors, as far as I know. Just something to keep in mind. Cheers!
I checked the continuity on the coil and all is good but the mower still won't start? Cleaned the spark plug the carb is pumping fuel and it still won't start, so what else could it be?
Thank you
Hi mike not sure if your red lead should be on the common socket but at the end of the day it’s a lead. Thanks for sharing.
I believe it to be correct mate
I am coming back (watching videos again } Nice meter.
Thanks me old friend. Was good talking last night
Nice and simple to follow, thanks Mick. New solenoid, ignition coil is fine (4.36 across all points) and a new sparkplug n battery. It turns over but still nothing. Any suggestions? Husqvarna 125 and it worked two weeks ago... I'm stumped😞
Could it be a timing issue
Maybe I'm wrong, but is the iron core not a single piece ? With the primary and secondary coils wound around the centre part ? Then it stands to reason that with one lead plugged into the spark plug connector and the other lead alternating between the left and right metal pick up above the magneto ... would result in exactly the same readings. You're taking two readings from the same metal core.
Cheers Mick. Coils can also fail short circuit as well as open circuit. If they are open circuit it could be the HT lead though they are hard to replace the way they are built.
Yes mate they can see and Alos when hot it's part of the process we have to follow to find the fault
Enjoyed watching this again to remind me . .
Remember 20K Marker ! Thats a note for me , I am german and you speak a little to fast for me.
But your video is really helpfull , thank you so much. 🤗
No worries
Thank you mick, that was a clear ,easy to understand, demonstration !
Good video. Very helpful when diagnosing a no start mower.
Thanks ed your stickers have just showed up
Thanks for sharing that Mick you are a star have got exactly the same multi meter as you have got there 👍👍👍👍
Your welcome Alan mate hope it helps
Thanks my grandpa needed this
Your welcome
Thanks for very good effective and simple test.
Man I’m working on a briggs flathead welder right now buddy thanks for the knowledge this really helps I’m losing spark so thanks a million
Excelent video this just helped me diagnose a briggs and stratton coil 😏👌
Fantastic.. glad it helped
Best vid out there on the subject... Thank you very much...
Your welcome
Just gave you thumbs up #300 Mate! I've missed a few of your videos, and for that I apologize! I am a bit busy and there are a lot of us small engine guys out there that I try to keep up with. It was great chatting on the LS yesterday. Hope all is well! Cheers Mate! Zip~
Thank you. Very useful. Straight forward.
Your welcome
Mick, here is a new development in my mower ignition coil problem. Originally, the mower had hit a half-buried tree root, mangled its blade and sheared its crankshaft key. Both blade and flywheel key have been replaced, after great effort. and with care to proper alignment of the key channel and flywheel.
1. For a brief period, my ignition coil had produced a small spark, and I heard a single, soft detonation when I pulled the starting lanyard a few times, but the mower could not start or sustain any rpm on its own fuel.
2. When starting fluid was injected into the carburetor, the motor ran briefly, which indicates there was still a spark. But on its own fuel, the motor produced no detonation. Now-- with even starting fluid-- there is no sound of detonation when the lanyard is pulled.
3. This afternoon, I checked the ignition coil with the standard external test-wire-to-ground (earth), and there is no spark. Although I have used my VOM set to Ohms (20k), and still get a consistent and satisfactory reading of 4.63 on both ends of the ignition coil, and on the deadman's switch (reading taken when switch was disconnected), there is no spark and no detonation on lanyard pull.
Although I had planned to purchase another coil, I held out hope the 4.63 reading meant the original coil was still OK, since the value was between 2.50 and 5-6.0. Is this clear proof that even a good reading on a physically-intact coil can be misleading?
Hi mate. Sorry for not replying but I’m not getting any notifications of some comments for some reason. Sounds like a good coil. Double check the Ht boot and ht clip. If need be take it off and re attach it. If not then it sounds like a new coil is needed
Thanks you have explained exactly the same problem as what I have been having with an ignition coil on a disc cutter . The readings come back fine , I’ve checked the the ht lead for continuity fine .I’ve noticed most people on you tube are just reposting videos of others with there own take , subsequently I’ve put a coil on from a working disc cutter and it now works as it should . These methods don’t seem to be the rule as I have had the same problem as you . Thanks for posting 👍
@@bobjit252 your welcome
@@themowerman Mick, here is a status update on the suspected ignition coil issue. I replaced the original coil with a new one, and now, Ohm readings are even higher, and with a clear, strong spark.
@@bobgreene2892 what was the reading?
hello and thank you very much for the video.
My AL-KO_470br petrol lawn mower with Briggs&Stratton-625 engine no longer starts.
I changed the carburettor and the spark plug but it didn't work. Now I have ordered a new ignition coil and tested the old ignition coil according to your video clip. I set 20k ohms on the multimeter and got values of 10.5 on the magnets.
Is this value OK? Then the ignition coil would not be defective, but the distance to the drive shaft was very small and dirty. Best thanks and greetings. Thanks from East-Germany.
@@jomente clean the coil and flywheel... And the two posts the coil sits on with sand paper and try again...
@@themowerman Thank you for the advice.
Can I also put the ignition coil in an ultrasonic bath?
@@jomente I wouldn't
Excelent explained , Many Thanks for your time !
Your welcome
Awesome video thank you for showing how to check them coils
No problems mate
Great example and great explanation brother thank you so much .👍👍👍👍
No worries
On the Viking 4rtp mate getting. 10.4 on all three that showing really high or is that a really good coil ?? Cheers
Thanks Mick, Great video explaining a how to for coils
Your welcome mate
I've done an extensive survey if ignition coils with a multimeter as I go through my working day and still haven found the process to be a worthy method of testing a coil, other than one occasion when I found a primary winding that tested way out of limits, 360 ohms when it should have been 0.5 to 1.5, which you don't seem to check for, the cut out tab back to ground. Every bad coil I've had, has tested within limits, primary and secondary windings, meaning the failure is electronic, transistor or diode
first class keep it simple many thanks
Awesome audio. Had no problem hearing you Mick.
Fantastic thanks mate
Nice video. Thanks very much for posting. I have recent acquired a castle garden el63 ride on lawnmower which has no spark. I believe there are five safety switches which can give you no spark if they are not met but now I have another thing to look at. Have you ever worked on one of these. Doesn’t seem to be a lot of information about these out there at all which is a bit of a shame.
Do you think you could do a video on safety switches for the larger lawnmower?
Keep up the good work
Ryan
Thank you from Kansas.
Easy Peesy nice and simple explanation thanks
No worries
Fine and dandy for simple Ohms readings but if you are doing DC volts or diode testing you put the leads on backwards....
Great tip on checking the coil 👍🏻
Ta for watching mate
Spot on very well done Mick!!!
Thank You for your easy to understand info!
You are welcome
Very helpful! Thank you Sir!
I may have heard wrong but did you put the red lead into the com port?
Brill class mick iv got to get a tester i like that one you make it look easy cheers...
Well I try to make it easy for other to get the job done.. thanks for watching
@@themowerman plessure i like that tester to looks ok to use
Seems like you need to check the primary and the secondary idk. Good video.
Great demo . Very well explained
Ta mate
How's she goin'? Great way to do a quick test on coils Mick. Thanks for sharing. Handy to be able to do this!!! Take care!!
Your welcome my friend.. have you got that saw cutting straight yet lol
@@themowerman Working on it buddy!!!
I finally understand. Thanks Mick
@@SCROWMD no worries
Thanks for the video. Just a note - if you are doing a twin cylinder mower then you will likely need to measure the resistance of the secondary coil through the two leads and not to the ground. (The coil I just installed appears to have one lead hooked to one end of the coil and the other lead to the opposite end. The mower wouldn't spark/run until I hooked up both leads to the spark plugs.)
hello if it is extremely hard to start a chain saw using starting fluid , what would be the most likely cause?
Timing, piston rings, leak by, carb, coil, could be lots of things
OK you help me so far but what happens if the coil’s test OK but I still don’t get spark
Change it.. I had that the other day..
Very good video Mick! Very useful info and well explained
Hi Micks, I'm writing from Argentina and working with a Briggs Stratton, model 122T02, 625 Series, 190CC. First, the resistance between high voltage plug and ground terminal is about 10.3 Kohms, that's correct? Second, I don’t understand how stop system works. The coil ground terminal is connected to the coil core, so, when the coil is fixed to the engine frame, the electrical connection is accomplish, despite this, the ground terminal has a cable to a terminal near to stop lever. This terminal also is tied to engine frame. The other end of the lever move a pad to brake the flywheel, in summary, looks like the stop system just consist to brake with a pad the flywheel… that’s would be the operation?
Thanks for spend your time with this. Best regards, Gustavo Lehmann.
@@lhcdmc no.. does it have a throttle control?
Yes , It have.
So the end of the throttle cable should be connected to the micro switch that controls the spark...
You can have good resistance readings on a coil and it can still be bad. This test does not test the condition of the semiconductors within the ignition module. A spark test at pull cord rpm's would be a more accurate test.
Exactly.... If it don't spark...Change the plug.... if it still don't spark. it's bad. End of story. (But we all love to know WHY!? Don't we?)
@@patagualianmostly7437 Not quite my friend. if there is corrosion between the coil body and the engine then you will get no spark and my friend you will have spent out on a coil for nothing. how many coils have you replaced on you're change the plug principal? maybe you were throwing good coils out when you didn't need to? A £10-00 millimetre may have saved you money. Great tutorial as usual Sir Micks
Yes, but I think the coils shown were not electronic. I agree, if electronic then you can have a good testing coil on the bench. But I may have an intermittent fault. This can happen after a short run when a component in the electronics intermittently fails .
@@swarfs They are electronic. They have a Darlington pair transister within to increase the pulse to higher level.
Will I see a spark only if the plug is connected to an earth ? Or will I still see it if I just hold the lead with the spark plug connected in my hand
Rover mini rider ride on is spluttering and stops when motor gets hot but runs fine before hand
I thought it might have been a plug so I replaced it but problem still there.
The carburettor has a solenoid i pulled it out and checked it's staying in when powered up.
Any suggestions? Can the coil break down when hot.
Yeah mate they can ..
I learned something new.
Thanks Mick, very helpful 👍🏻
Your welcome.. hope it helps
What should the reading be between the kill switch terminal and the iron core of the coil? I haves a Briggs engine on a mower which won't spark but its showing 5k ohms between HT and core, 5k ohms between kill switch terminal and core (which would point to it being a good coil) but 0.7 ohms between core and kill switch terminal?
Same. I wish you would have got an answer. Lol
Sounds like a bad coil or bad connection
Hi mick, briggs coils like to be under 5000 ohms ( 3000-4000 ohms) anything over this is pointing to a coil going bad. Also red lead goes in com, although not critical for this test. Keep up the good work 👍
Ta brother
Actually I made mistake Black lead goes in COM not red otherwise if you test a car battery for example if the red lead was in COM it would show -12v and not the normal 12v. Hope that makes sense
Good information Mick, thanks.
Thanks Very much for watching
Thanks Mick very good teacher thanks oh, keep up the good work
Thanks mate I appreciate your feedback
My rudimentary electrical knowledge makes me always put the negative lead at the end destination since electricity travels to ground. Continuity checks doesn't matter just mild OCD. :-)
i tesed both my coils and 2 different muti meters. i couldnt get readings on any of the points you describe testing. all thought my machine runs? im testing on clean metal as well so its not a connection issue......
The bad ones are bad- Sec side tested. BUT the good ones can STILL be bad as the primary and switching in the modules can fail. really only way to be sure is check for spark when on machine or swap with known good. Also you can have heat breakdown in the windings causing HOT shorting and failure but starts cold well and will start to misfire/fail when hot after running a while. Caused by insulation material burning off inside and wires touching and thus less coil windings for good spark and you MAY still get a weak spark but it wont fire the mixture. or a little bit only. Very messy to diagnose as it seems engine runs well for 20 mins then vapour lock? with fuel starvation or a bad coil cutting out then.
Good communication mate
Thankyou
My meter shows me 9.3k on all checks so is that too high and no good?
Briggs mower 148 cc
Yeah too high
Not bad Mick.... But your knowledge of Multimeters was clearly basic...as you admitted. (BTW: That's not a bad meter for the price!)
The Black lead ALWAYS goes to the COM (Common) socket. It is the red lead that gets switched around for different functions.
When making simple resistance tests on the coils as you did....it is not really an issue..... Red wire, black wire....electricity is colour blind!
However... if you were testing a battery and you put your two probes across the battery.... In your case, the red onto the +ve terminal and the black onto the -ve terminal... The display would read "-12v" (A car battery, say.) because you have reversed the connections to the meter.
If you reconnect the meter leads as I say, Black to COM...the meter will read simply "12v"...as is the accepted display (NOT +12v...as one might expect.)
It also gets a bit complicated when testing Diodes (Of which there are two in some 2 cylinder Ride-on Mowers for instance)
This is because the meter supplies a voltage to check the flow direction... (A DC voltage obviously, from its own internal battery...just as it does to measure resistance...as you demonstrated.) So it is important to know which lead is actually +VE & which is -VE.....
(Mind you: Most diode failures are either Open Circuit in both directions or shorted in both directions: Either result is a failure, of course.)
Within these more modern coil packs, there is a couple of transistors arranged in a "Darlington-Pair" these eliminate the need for points as they switch current in the primary winding... causing the "Collapsing Magnetic field" which in turn causes the huge Step-up voltage in the secondary.....
....which of course, becomes the "Spark" we are always looking for at the spark plug..... (Phew.... Got there!)
But, you are of course right.... basic resistance checks of the two windings will tell you if a pack is a duff one. Immediately.
...we need to remember: We are only checking two windings....not the trigger circuit electronics.
And another factor I have found over the years..... A cold coil pack can work fine.... then goes bad as it warms up on the machine: Windings expand & short out.
Due to heat or vibration....windings...or electronics? Who can say with such sealed units? It's the way of the world Folks!
Wow took me some time to find a good video on testing coils!! Question for you, can it happen that the coils are good but the dead man connector isn’t? I seem to have an issue with my engine not shutting off when a good ground switch is applied.
Yeah.. it could be the shut off switch mate
Or the wire from the coil.
I tried to test my coil but don’t get any readings on multimeter. I get a reading only on the deadman connector. I also checked for continuity and I have a short with meter leads (one in plug and the other on the deadman. Is that normal?
I checked the switch and it’s working perfectly.
My engine starts and runs properly I just can’t shut it off even if the kill switch is working properly.
Thanks allot for sharing this with us appreciations 👍🙏🇩🇰
Your welcome
Now that's a helpful vid, superb cheers mick
Welcome mate
If it has continuity to one mounting hole, how would you think it could ever not be good to the other? And when the meter is showing a 1 on the left, that isn’t reading one. It is reading overflow, or open.
Mick, you are saying the red lead goes into the Comms socket. All the other videos I have watched on TH-cam use the black lead in the comms socked...would you please explain?
Great video! Very helpful!! Thank you!!!
Your welcome mate
I thought my coil was bad and bought a new one. Both coils test good per the video. Tried 3 spark plugs, re-gapped the coil several times and not getting a spark. Deadman wire tested good, but it is not connected.
Any suggestions?
What about the wire from the dead mans switch to the coil.. it may be damaged
@@themowerman Thanks for the reply. It was actually disconnected to remove it as a problem. I did figure it out. I cleaned the mounting areas between the engine cylinder and the coil and this improved the grounding of the coil. Now I have a strong spark. Aluminum does get a corrosion film on it and so does the steel.
@@edhyde1741 good job