X-Virus-Scanned: clean according to Sophos on Logan.com Return-Path: Received: from wa-out-1112.google.com ([209.85.146.178] verified) by logan.com (CommuniGate Pro SMTP 5.1.11) with ESMTP id 2246639 for flyrotary@lancaironline.net; Mon, 06 Aug 2007 20:25:54 -0400 Received-SPF: pass receiver=logan.com; client-ip=209.85.146.178; envelope-from=wdleonard@gmail.com Received: by wa-out-1112.google.com with SMTP id j4so2119646wah for ; Mon, 06 Aug 2007 17:25:17 -0700 (PDT) DKIM-Signature: a=rsa-sha1; c=relaxed/relaxed; d=gmail.com; s=beta; h=domainkey-signature:received:received:message-id:date:from:to:subject:in-reply-to:mime-version:content-type:references; b=IqmOoQkGxUevneuH9aP63z6XduA/ML5kHfewMfb/h/+b0wyDr6f0nUszxeyoUnqCagsTHrXpLR0ND/z8wnL4FJmLY9MkG8eRyDhSXw9ibsjoC49i9M/xIs1kf4EEDpIIZicmxaD76Fj+h+80OmkAU2UsfF1/Ip+iINow0MHzO0Y= DomainKey-Signature: a=rsa-sha1; c=nofws; d=gmail.com; s=beta; h=received:message-id:date:from:to:subject:in-reply-to:mime-version:content-type:references; b=cPz4sOCWwCy6iAyJ8ixFq+eU8Tdnf/Fkp1aYZTrUTUYwjspA3eUqreCMfW8cJmwT9Drt+SiYQ7NrbdT3A0rkIJ1j/C4aYENy7pIBKMRHGuJt2dNDrJBFnduy5WA8zxRfp/l6CFpMbqWSvYIcK7Jry0QTOYIZO9KPsWRz93hSNtA= Received: by 10.114.144.1 with SMTP id r1mr6178632wad.1186446317205; Mon, 06 Aug 2007 17:25:17 -0700 (PDT) Received: by 10.115.54.9 with HTTP; Mon, 6 Aug 2007 17:25:17 -0700 (PDT) Message-ID: <1c23473f0708061725j2d052617g3444daf46f54744@mail.gmail.com> Date: Mon, 6 Aug 2007 17:25:17 -0700 From: "David Leonard" To: "Rotary motors in aircraft" Subject: Re: [FlyRotary] Re: Alternator drawing current at rest. In-Reply-To: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary="----=_Part_115376_6993859.1186446317160" References: ------=_Part_115376_6993859.1186446317160 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Disposition: inline I did unplug the field wires, if that's what you mean, and the current draw went away and the alternator cooled down. Dave Leonard On 8/6/07, Tracy Crook wrote: > > Definitely not. Unplug the regulator plug and see if drain goes away. > Might be a bad regulator or wiring error. > > Tracy > > > On 8/5/07, David Leonard wrote: > > > > That current draw for the coils did seem high, so I checked further into > > it. Turns out it is the alternator drawing the 3 amps, not the coils. It > > gets warm to the touch. Is that normal? > > > > Dave Leonard > > > > > > On 8/5/07, Tracy Crook wrote: > > > > > > Yep, you found the answer before I hit 'reply'. Firing an open coil > > > can do damage but not necessarily every time. > > > > > > For a quick & dirty coil/igniter test, clean off the nose of the plug > > > wire socket and test with a plug wire installed and see if you can get a > > > spark an inch long from the other end to the engine block but *don't *get > > > any pink body parts in the way. Sometimes a weak or damaged coil can fire > > > a spark plug gap but still have a weak output. An inch long spark is more > > > or less a passing grade. > > > > > > I never measured the resting current (no spark triggers) of a set of > > > igniters but 3 amps sounds very high. > > > > > > Tracy (finding more errors in my -8 installation) > > > > > > > > > On 8/5/07, David Leonard wrote: > > > > > > > > Well, after doing research, I find that I should never fire the > > > > coils without being connected to a grounded spark plug... because the spark > > > > has to go somewhere.... Doh! Hope I didn't hurt anything!!! > > > > > > > > > > > > Dave Leonard > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > -- > > David Leonard > > > > Turbo Rotary RV-6 N4VY > > http://N4VY.RotaryRoster.net > > http://RotaryRoster.net > > > -- David Leonard Turbo Rotary RV-6 N4VY http://N4VY.RotaryRoster.net http://RotaryRoster.net ------=_Part_115376_6993859.1186446317160 Content-Type: text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Disposition: inline
I did unplug the field wires, if that's what you mean, and the current draw went away and the alternator cooled down.
 
Dave Leonard

 
On 8/6/07, Tracy Crook <tracy@rotaryaviation.com> wrote:
Definitely not.  Unplug the regulator plug and see if drain goes away.  Might be a bad regulator or wiring error.
 
Tracy

 
On 8/5/07, David Leonard <wdleonard@gmail.com > wrote:
That current draw for the coils did seem high, so I checked further into it.  Turns out it is the alternator drawing the 3 amps, not the coils.  It gets warm to the touch.  Is that normal?
 
Dave Leonard

 
On 8/5/07, Tracy Crook <tracy@rotaryaviation.com > wrote:
Yep, you found the answer before I hit 'reply'.   Firing an open coil can do damage but not necessarily every time. 
 
For a quick & dirty coil/igniter test, clean off the nose of the plug wire socket and test with a plug wire installed and see if you can get a spark an inch long from the other end to the engine block but don't get any pink body parts in the way.   Sometimes a weak or damaged coil can fire a spark plug gap but still have a weak output.  An inch long spark is more or less a passing grade.
 
I never measured the resting current (no spark triggers) of a set of igniters but 3 amps sounds very high.
 
Tracy (finding more errors in my -8 installation)

 
On 8/5/07, David Leonard <wdleonard@gmail.com > wrote:
Well, after doing research, I find that I should never fire the coils without being connected to a grounded spark plug...  because the spark has to go somewhere....  Doh!  Hope I didn't hurt anything!!!
 
 
Dave Leonard

 



--
David Leonard

Turbo Rotary RV-6 N4VY
http://N4VY.RotaryRoster.net
http://RotaryRoster.net




--
David Leonard

Turbo Rotary RV-6 N4VY
http://N4VY.RotaryRoster.net
http://RotaryRoster.net ------=_Part_115376_6993859.1186446317160--