Tr o u b le s h o o t in g

Outb o ard M o to r
M a g n e t o Ig n it io n s
A p p lic a t io n N o t e

Coil
SER IES II MULTIMETER
23

kΩ

Introduction Flyw heel

10

OFF
20

V
30 40

Secondary
V

Your outboard motor w on’t start.

Primary
300mV

Yes, its been in storage for aw hile

but it w as running w ell w hen you
left it. Should it go to the repair A A
RANGE
PRESS

shop? The shop w ill do a good job

AUTORANGE 1 SEC
TOUCH HOLD

10A V

but they’re alw ays busy and the 300

! 100V

repair w ill probably take tw o

750V COM
mA

FUSED

w eeks —remember your out of tow n

guests w ant to go fishing tomorrow.
Isn’t it time you learned how to Breaker
fix it yourself? You suspect the igni- Points
tion since that’s w hat w ent bad last
time. Will you need the special test
equipment called out in the repair Condenser
manual? NO! This application note
w ill show you, in a few simple Engine Block
steps, how to pinpoint magneto
ignition troubles quickly. All you
w ill need is a few mechanics’ tools
and a good quality digital multimeter. Won’t start scenario Troubleshooting procedure
You can justify the multimeter
Now let’s get dow n to cases w ith We w ill assume you have already
because it w ill do double duty for
the dead engine. In order to start, tried the normal starting procedure,
your other electrical troubleshooting
the engine needs three critical i.e., turned the engine over a num-
tasks, including the battery and
items: a) proper amount of fuel/air ber of times, first w ith choke closed
charging system, trailer lights,
mixture, b) properly timed spark and then open.
corrosion protection system, and
and c) some compression. If it w on’t
other electrical systems in either Spark plug check
start, chances are that one or more
your house or boat.
of these is missing. The trouble- Remove the cow ling (if necessary)
The ignition troubleshooting
shooting logic is straightforw ard:
procedure that follow s can be used to gain access to the spark plugs.
find out w hich critical items are For a tw in cylinder engine, label
for any small one or tw o cylinder
missing and w hy. the spark plug w ires so that they
gasoline engine that employs a
Before getting into the actual
breakerpoint magneto ignition; for can be replaced in the correct
procedure, verify that the fuel tank order. Pop the w ires off and
example your law n mow er,
has sufficient quantity of fresh fuel unscrew the spark plug(s). Keep
chainsaw , generator, pressure
mixture and if your engine has an
w asher etc. track of w hich plug came out of
electric starter, use the dc volts each cylinder.
function on your multimeter to Now , examine each plug care-
check the battery voltage and the
fully. This is like palm reading; the
ohms function to check the cables condition of the plug tip can tell a
for loose or corroded connections. story about w hat is going on in
With reference to the ignition
each cylinder. If the plugs are w et
system, here is a list of the critical
w ith gasoline, fuel is undoubtedly
components listed in the order of reaching the cylinders.
their likelihood of failing:
If the plugs are dry, the opposite
Spark Plug, Breaker Points, Coil, HV
is true. Look for a blockage in the
Wire, Condenser and fuel system or a bad fuel pump in a
Flyw heel Magnet
remote tank configuration.
 If the plug(s) are fouled w ith and coil to the engine block. This Coil
carbon and/or oil, several things can be checked w ithout taking 23 SERIES II MULTIMETER

could be w rong: The spark to the apart the magneto as follow s: Set kΩ

Flyw heel
10 20 30 40

plug(s) is w eak or nonexistent, the the multimeter into the ohms (Ω) OFF V

Secondary
V

spark plug heat range is too cold, function. Use the range button to

Primary
300mV

or the engine has been run for long manually select the 40 kΩ range.
periods of time at low speeds (Auto ranging may not w ork here A A
RANGE
AUTORANGE
PRESS

1 SEC

possibly w ith an incorrect fuel or due the inductance of the coil).

TOUCH HOLD

10A V

fuel/oil mixture. In the case of Now , touch one probe tip to the 300
mA

FUSED
! 100V
750V COM

multi- cylinder engines, if only one engine block and the other to the
plug show s difficulties, the problem metal connector inside the plug
Breaker
is likely to be a w eak spark from w ire cap. The meter should read Points
the ignition system. the resistance of the coil and HV
In any event, the next step is to w ire in series. Good readings w ill
Condenser
check actual spark plug operation. range from 3 kΩ to 15 kΩ. Higher
If new plugs are available, use readings mean a poor connection, Engine Block
them for the next test. If not, clean w hich typically occurs either w here
Fi gure 1: HV w ire resistance/continuity test
the old ones as follow s: using a the HV w ire connects to the coil or
sharp object such as the point of a at the other end w here the HV wire
safety pin or a straightened fish connects to the spark plug clip Coil
23 SERIES II MUL TIMETER

hook, scrape off the deposits on the inside the cap. A reading of OL kΩ

insulator that surrounds the center means an open circuit or break in

10 20 30 40

OFF

Secondary
V

electrode. Dig dow n betw een the the electrical path. If a bad reading

Primary
300mV

insulation and sidew all and remove is indicated, double check to make
as much carbon as possible. Now , sure you are making a good con- A A
RANGE
AUTORANGE
PRESS

1 SEC

w ash out any remaining oil or nection with both test leads.
TOUCH HO LD

10A V

carbon particles w ith a nonconduc- 300

mA

FUSED
! 100V
750V C OM

tive solvent such as paint thinner or Coil and HV w ire continuity

unmixed gasoline. Allow the plug to test for tw o-cylinder engines
air dry; blow on it if necessary.
If you are testing a 2-Cylinder,
Next, gap each plug by tapping
2- Cycle engine (mixed fuel) then
or bending the outer electrode. If
perform the test as above for each
you don’t know w hat the recom-
cylinder individually. Look for a
mended gap is, use 0.025" (a bank
correlation betw een a bad reading
credit card is typically .030"). Test Fi gure 2: Resistance/ continuity test for 2-cylinder,
(OL) and a fouled spark plug on the 4-cycle engines
each plug and HV w ire combination
same cylinder.
by connecting the w ire to the plug
If the engine is a 4- Cycle model
and laying the plug on the engine Coil
(unmixed fuel) such as a Honda or
block w here the gap can be seen.
Onan, the test is performed slightly
The plug outer body needs to make
differently as shown in Figure 2.
electrical contact to the engine
Here w e will be looking for conti-
Secondary

block as it does w hen it is screw ed

nuity from one spark plug clip to
Primary

in place.
the other since there is only one
Now , turn the engine over at
secondary coil w hich is not
normal cranking speed and w atch
connected to the engine block. An
for a spark. If you are in bright sun,
open spark path w ill kill the spark
you may have to shade the plug to
to both cylinders.
see the spark. If this test show s no
spark or a w eak spark, troubles
w ith the breaker points or coil
HV circuit repairs
inside the magneto are likely. A break in the HV circuit can occur
in several places as shown in
Coil and HV w ire Figure 3.
resistance/ continuity test If the poor connection or open Fi gure 3: Possible locations of breaks in
for one-cylinder engines circuit occurs at the spark plug clip, secondary HV circuit
you may be able to repair it without
The next test checks for a continu- taking anything else apart. If the
ous path for the spark through the problem is located inside the mag-
HV w ire and the ignition coil. Refer neto, it w ill probably be necessary
to the electrical diagram in Figure 1. to remove the flyw heel.
Note that for a one cylinder engine
there is a direct electrical path from
the plug cap through the HV w ire,

2 Fluke Corporation Troubleshooting Outboard Motor Magneto Ignitions

 Coil
The preferred cleaning method
23 SERIES II MULTIMETER
is to scrape the contact surfaces
w ith a sharp carpet- layer’s knife,
Flyw heel
10 20 30 40

follow ed by a w iping w ith solvent

Secondary
OFF V

on a clean cloth. Filing w ill some-

Primary
300mV

times w ork but there is a risk of

A A
RANGE
AUTORANGE
PRESS
damaging the underlying metal
w hich w ill shorten the life of the
1 SEC
TOUCHHOLD

10A V

300
mA

FUSED
! 100V
750V COM contacts. In any event do not use
sandpaper. The grit w ill imbed
itself in the contact metal, render-
Breaker
Points ing the points useless.
If you w ant a quick fix to get the
engine running, try the “old- timers
Condenser
Engine point cleaning trick” as follow s:
Block With the crank shaft positioned so
that the points are closed, pry the
Figure 4: Breaker point contact resistance test
breaker arm open and insert a
clean business card betw een the
Breaker point test Measure the contact resistance contact surfaces. Release the
as follow s: place the multimeter in breaker arm so that the points grip
The breaker points on a magneto
the Ω function and hold the probe the end of the card and then drag
ignition are often located under the
tips tightly together to obtain a the card through its w idth, wiping
flyw heel. Remove any parts that
reference reading w ith the tips the contacts in the process. The
might interfere w ith the flyw heel
shorted. The reading should show card has tw o properties w hich
removal. Hold the flyw heel in a
betw een 0.0 and 0.3 ohms, note make it w ork. It is absorbent
stationary position w ith a strap
the value. This is the reference enough to remove oil and gently
w rench and remove the large nut
reading. abrasive enough to remove surface
that holds the flyw heel to the
Now place the probe tips on contamination.
crankshaft.
opposite sides of the point contacts When you think the cleaning is
Use a puller to loosen the fly-
w hen the points are in the closed complete, verify the results by
w heel and lift it off the crankshaft.
position. The meter should now repeating the electrical resistance
Locate the breaker points and test. Before leaving the points,
examine the contact surfaces. read no more the 0.1Ω greater than
the reference reading. Higher read- make a visual inspection of the gap
(Caution here: w hen rotating the in the open position. A typical
crankshaft, turn it in the forw ard ings indicate contamination on the
contact surfaces. If the contact specification w ould be 0.020 inches.
direction only to prevent damage to
the w ater pump impeller). surfaces are pitted, the best choice
w ould be to replace the points. If Condenser test
For proper operation the breaker
point contact surfaces should be you can’t install new ones, then Next check the condenser as
clean and shining. Make an electri- carefully clean the ones you’ve got. follow s: Disconnect the condenser
cal resistance test w ith your digital The object here is to remove all lead, then place the multimeter in
multimeter before attempting to contamination w ithout damaging the capacitance function and hold
clean the contact surfaces. This w ill the underlying metal. one test lead to the capacitor case
allow a before and after indication. and the other to the terminal. (See
Refer to the diagram in Figure 4. Figure 5).
Note that the points are in parallel
w ith the primary coil. When the
points are open the resistance
SERIES II MUL TIME TE R
23

across the coil and points in paral- 10 20 30 40

lel w ill be about 1.0Ω (the coil ’s

OFF V

w ire resistance). When the points 300mV

(w ith clean contacts) are closed the

resistance w ill fall to a value of 0.1 A A
RANGE
AUTORANGE
TOUCH HOLD
PRESS

1 SEC

to 0.2Ω. Any oil or corrosion on the 10A

! 100V
V

point contact surfaces w ill raise the

300 750V COM
mA

FUSED

resistance and reduce the primary

coil current, w hich subsequently
w eakens or kills the spark.

Figure 5: Check ing condenser leak age

Check for leaking condensers w ith the Ohms function.
As the condenser charges up, the resistance should
increase to infinity. Any other reading indicates that
you should replace the condenser.

Troubleshooting Outboard Motor Magneto Ignitions Fluke Corporation 3

 Do not touch both leads simulta- fingers. Watch the meter reading as Reassembly and final check
neously w ith your fingers because the capacitor charges up. A reading
Once you’ve checked out and
the resistance through your body of OL in the ohms function means
repaired the ignition system, reas-
w ill cause reading errors. A typical the capacitor is not leaking or
semble the engine and repeat the
range of good readings w ould be shorted, i.e., it’s probably good.
spark plug test. If the spark looks
.015 µF to .030 µF. A reading of OL Now reverse the test leads and
good, install the plug(s) and try
(overload) in the capacitance func- repeat the test. The results should
again to start the engine. If troubles
tion means the capacitor is shorted. be the same.
persist, look to the fuel system.
A very low capacitance reading
Carburetor cleaning may be
probably means the capacitor is Flyw heel magnet test required. Remember that most
open. Capacitors are not normally
Flyw heel magnet failures are rare engine manufacturers recommend
repairable so a bad reading w ill but sometimes do occur. You can the addition of fuel stabilizer for
likely mean a trip to the parts store.
verify the strength of the magnet long periods of storage.
If your multimeter does not have
w ith a simple test. Locate the inside
the capacitance function, use ohms surface of the flyw heel that travels
instead. This test is best performed
near the pole pieces of the coil. You
w ith the capacitor removed from
w ill find some magnetic material
the engine. Start by shorting the (typically laminated steel) in tw o
capacitor by touching the lead to
places separated by a gap of non-
the case. Now , touch one probe to
magnetic material (typically alumi-
the lead and one to the case w ith- num). Lay a hacksaw blade on the
out touching the probe tips or
laminations near the gap. If the
exposed capacitor parts w ith your
magnet is good it w ill exhibit a
strong pull on the hacksaw blade.

Fluke Multimeters for Marine Applications

The follow ing Fluke Digital Multimeters are
recommended for use in marine applications.

26 TRUE RMS MULTIMETER

73 MULTIMETER
27 MULTIMETER

VAC
MIN

k
30
0 10 20 30
0 10 20 30
OFF V
RANGE HOLD CAT 600V
600A
V 40 CAL
1000A

V mV RANGE REL MIN/MAX H OLD H

300mV MAX
Hz 20kHz Hz
V 1kHz RESET
40 MIN MAX
200A
V OFF 600A
V V 1000A
200

OFF A mV mV 200V

600V

A A PRESS mA/A mA/A OFF

MANUAL RANGE A ZERO DC / AC

AUTORANGE
TOUCH HOLD
A A

3 6 CLAMP METER
10A V OFF
!
40 A V
mA V 10A MAX DC
600V CAT
!
600V CAT 1000V MAX
300 FUSED COM 1000V CAT TRUE RMS
mA mA !
10A FUSED COM A 320 mA MAX COM 600V
COM V

Fluke 12B Fluke 73 Series III Fluke 26 Series I II Fluke 27 Fluke 36

Put basic tests • Touch Hold ® Same features as • Fully sealed, ClampMeter
on automatic captures stable Fluk e 73 Series III, w aterproof case F lu k e . Keeping your world
readings pl us: • True-rms up and running.
• VCheck™ auto- • Touch Hold ® responding
matically
sw itches from
• Auto and manual
ranging
• Rugged,
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overmolded captures stable
readings • AC current to 600A
measuring ohms/
• Holster w ith Flex- • Tough, electrical test • Volts, ohms, amps, • DC current to 1000A Fluk e Corporation
continuity to ac
or dc volts Stand™ included lead set w ith continuity, diode • AC and DC voltage PO Box 9090, Everett, WA USA 98206
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• Capacitance, to • Volts ac and dc
and alligator clip • Max Hold
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• True- rms ac voltage from 320 µA to 10A • Continuity beeper Eindhoven, The Netherlands
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capture locates
• Diode test/
continuity beeper • AC/ DC current w ith
ranges from 4.0 mA For more information call:
intermittent
opens and shorts • AC/ DC current w ith
ranges from 32 mA
to 10A U.S.A. (800) 443-5853 or
Fax (425) 356-5116
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time stamp Canada (905) 890- 7600 or
Fax (905) 890-6866
Other countries (425) 356- 5500 or
Fax (425) 356-5116
Other marine application notes available from Fluke: Web access: http:/ /w w w.fluke.com
• Troubleshooting Marine Engine Electrical Systems
© 1998 Fluke Corporation. All rights reserved.
• Testing Corrosion Protection Systems Printed in U.S.A. 11/ 98 B0271UEN Rev B
Printed on recycled paper.