Ignition Ballast hot!! and i mean hot!

-
70DUSTER/74SCAMP

70DUSTER/74SCAMP

Sold the scamp ....still got the duster tho
Joined
Jul 30, 2020
Messages
59
Reaction score
16
Location
West Central Indiana
Hello all and well i have a 74 scamp with a 318...... 600 Edelbrock cfm.........it originally would idle fine until it hit 190 . which is normal operation for my car does not get any hotter.....well it would always die around there when it hit 190 would stumble and fall and die.....timing seems good...so tonite i relocated the coil to the inner fender area bc it was getting way way hot...i also noticed the igniton ballast resistor was super super hot. i let it run for 30 mins did good but the coil still was pretty warm and the ballast resistor ( 4 prong dual) is very hot . just worried that or the coil will break down some how and want to die....any help is appreciated thank u all folks

zach
 
the ballast resister and the coil WILL get really hot, use a thermal temp gauge and measure.

is all of your wiring stock?
has the ballast resister been changed at some time?

reason I'm asking is the resistance of the 2 resisters in the ballast resister are different resistance, maybe the wires got reversed?
 
pardon my ignorance but how hot is to hot and what readings to i need to be looking at? i just am worried that something isnt wired right...after the changes i made tonite it ran good at idle..it usually died after ten minutes at 190 but ran for half an hour no hiccups....just noticed the coil and ballast reistor was getting warm
 
That's why the ballast is ceramic so it can take the heat, it is a wire wound resister that is a very low resistance. It will burn you.
 
Hot for the resistor but not the coil.

See post #2 and respond!
 
The ballast has 12V or more going in and about 8 coming out. It ain't gonna be cold.
 
What is the system running voltage? I E running engine to simulate "low to medium cruise" RPM battery should run 14 nominal. Coil may be going bad. You may be misjudging the temp. Older OEM oil filled coils, you can not normally put your hand on one on a hot day especially
 
Have you tied the electronic choke to it?
 
i had a msd blaster two coil...currently running a little high at 14.58 ish .....so i removed the blaster put the new stock coil on...relocated to inner fender to get away from engine heat...stock wiring ...i had a brand new ballast resistor on but put the old one on to see if any difference..but still got hot . and ur right its hot.. but idled good...better than ever so far ...didnt die.......just switched carbs and so far so good...main concern is if the resistor being hot hot like damn that is hot or the stock coil being warm warm is a concern or not... new volatage regulator and alternator but its pushing 15 V on the high end but wont go over..
 
15 is pretty much the high end. What is causing this is almost always voltage drop in the harness supplying the VR. One way to fix this is to break the dark blue (or other color) "ignition run" IGN2 coming out of the bulkhead into the engine bay. Use the firewall end to trigger a relay, feed the contacts power through a fuse/ breaker off the start relay "big stud" and connect the switched contact to the engine bay end of the cut wire
 
67DART273 thank u for the info....i get what ur saying but can u dumb it down for me a bit lol......i know enuff to get myself in trouble but if u can break it down id be greatly appreciative about it ....ur on the right track it makes scense .
 
@67Dart273 is one of our wiring EXPERTS. I consider myself to be pretty good with wiring, but sometimes I don't understand him. This forum is lucky to have him.
 
Is the new coil a replacement for use with Chrys elec ign?
Coils that require a ballast resistor must be matched with the correct ballast res.
 
70DUSTER/74SCAMP said:
Hello all and well i have a 74 scamp with a 318...... 600 Edelbrock cfm.........it originally would idle fine until it hit 190 . which is normal operation for my car does not get any hotter.....well it would always die around there when it hit 190 would stumble and fall and die.....timing seems good...so tonite i relocated the coil to the inner fender area bc it was getting way way hot...i also noticed the igniton ballast resistor was super super hot. i let it run for 30 mins did good but the coil still was pretty warm and the ballast resistor ( 4 prong dual) is very hot . just worried that or the coil will break down some how and want to die....any help is appreciated thank u all folks

zach
Click to expand...
Can be the ECU is also drawing to much amperage should be 4-5 amps at idle, can also explain why it stumbles worth a fast check with a ammeter.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
-

Back
Top