Hitchcocks Forum

Hi, I have a 64 crusader continental and have noticed that as soon as I turn on the ignition the ammeter shows a discharge. It shows a discharge until the engine has started. I thought the ammeter would show a zero discharge when the points open. Does anyone have any idea if this is correct? If I left the ignition on the battery would soon be flat..

What you describe is normal - leave the ignition on with the points open and the coil will get hot and the battery will go flat, just switch off when you are done!

BW. I thought the coil was connected to battery power only when the points were closed, but as soon as the points open, the coil loses power and the field collapses driving the spark (which apparently then oscillates through the condensor giving multiple sparks). That’s why just before TDC, when the points open, the ammeter shows no power loss.
Cheers, ChrisD

You may well be right, Chris, although I think the ammeter needle deflects when the points are open. One thing's for certain, I had a flat battery on a T100C a couple of weeks ago after leaving the ignition switched on and one of the coils was pretty hot! Regards, Paul.

The ignition switch on this bike should only switch the power to the coil on and the circuit is only complete when the points are closed, if the condenser is failing then it can cause current to be drawn all the time, try disconnecting it to see if the current drain stops with the points open, if so replace it before using the bike.

Thanks lads, the ammeter shows a hefty discharge and doesn't change even when the points are open. I'll try the condenser Dennis. Thanks. I'm slowly working my way through the bike and finding lots of faults, so nothing surprises me!!