This might be slightly off topic, but it relates to older machines, I own several older cars that still use point-style ignition systems. Unfortunately, the analog dwell meter I've relied on for years has finally given out. I've tried replacing it with a modern digital version, but they just don't seem to perform as accurately or reliably as the old analog style. If anyone knows where I can find a vintage or analog-style dwell meter that's still available for purchase, I'd really appreciate the help. Thanks in advance!
Not Kubota Related Dwell Meter
- Thread starter sardillim
- Start date
Old Machinist
Well-known member
Equipment
Kubota LX3310 cab, JD 4310, NH 575E cab backhoe, JD F725, Swisher 60", etc.
Not sure but I think I still have my original old Matco analyzer sitting in the basement. I bought it back in the late 60s when I went into the apprenticeship at with Cadillac in Downtown Chicago. If I still have it I can put a photo up
Old Machinist
Well-known member
Equipment
Kubota LX3310 cab, JD 4310, NH 575E cab backhoe, JD F725, Swisher 60", etc.
I still have my old points days tools but I'm not parting with them. The meter is MAC but the decal came off.
North Idaho Wolfman
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Lifetime Member
Equipment
L3450DT-GST, Woods FEL, B7100 HSD, FEL, 60" SB, 743 Bobcat with V2203, and more
I still have the one I bought in a pawn shop in 1980 for $10… combo dwell, tach, voltage, etc.
I last used it on my ‘84 Volvo sterndrive.
Easy substitute: adjust the points with a feeler gauge and be done with it.
I last used it on my ‘84 Volvo sterndrive.
Easy substitute: adjust the points with a feeler gauge and be done with it.
I cannot for the life of me recollect the procedure my ex boss would use for a situation like this.
We both had older model fluke 88's. Still have mine. Awesome meter.
I know that you'd have to set the meter to duty cycle frequency.
Then there would be a little math involved to accurately translate the readings.
I vaguely remember finding dwell angle by multiplying by 360 degrees for an 8 cylinder engine. Or maybe it was dividing by 8 cylinders. Heck I can't remember now LOL.
Best listen to our good hands on here who sho nuff know.
We both had older model fluke 88's. Still have mine. Awesome meter.
I know that you'd have to set the meter to duty cycle frequency.
Then there would be a little math involved to accurately translate the readings.
I vaguely remember finding dwell angle by multiplying by 360 degrees for an 8 cylinder engine. Or maybe it was dividing by 8 cylinders. Heck I can't remember now LOL.
Best listen to our good hands on here who sho nuff know.
After dad passed, I bet I threw away a dozen of them in different brands. Several craftsman, among others. Had them in a yard sale along with a bunch of other stuff, dirt cheap. Nobody wanted them. Put em on marketplace. Nope. A year later I finally just tossed em.
Nobody knows what they are nowadays.
Nobody knows what they are nowadays.
I've got a few tools on a shelf that haven't been moved for years. Needed them to tune corroborators on an XKE. That was fun, getting all three singing the same song!
Old Machinist
Well-known member
Equipment
Kubota LX3310 cab, JD 4310, NH 575E cab backhoe, JD F725, Swisher 60", etc.
My meter and timing light were bought in the early 70s and still work.I still have the one I bought in a pawn shop in 1980 for $10… combo dwell, tach, voltage, etc.
I last used it on my ‘84 Volvo sterndrive.
Easy substitute: adjust the points with a feeler gauge and be done with it.
When I was young and coming up on the farm we would clean the points with one of granny's emery boards and set the gap with a matchbook cover. Rarely moved the distributor for timing and if we did we set it by how the engine sounded. Those methods were all we needed on a Farmall Super A and a 49 Dodge truck.
Yep. I know what you mean.
I had a (now gone West) friend and aircraft mechanic who used to have an Olds 455 V8 jet-drive boat. He had been tuning it up one week..and next weekend I saw him at Lake Somerville …bobbing around the lake with a big-chested girl who looked bored…
When Willie saw me picnicking on the shore he flagged me down and shouted “Hey, Horn! You got any spark plugs in that truck toolbox of yours?? This thing won’t RUN!”
I shouted back ”Yeah ….but thry’re not for that Oldsmobile engine! What’s wrong?”
”I don’t care WHAT they’re for!“, he replied, “Listen to THIS!”
He hit the throttle and the engine burped, then acted like it was going to accelerate….but then about mid-throttle is “sagged” back down and backfired, almost shutting down.
”Willie!,“, I shouted, “THATS not spark plugs! THATS BAD TIMING! Give that distributor a Little TWIST counter-clockwise!”
He did so and then hit the throttle….and a ROOSTER-TAIL shot out the back…and Willie and Boobies DISAPPEARED DOWN THE LAKE….never to be seen again that day!
Moral: All an Old-Tmer points-and-condenser Geezer needs is a keen ear and you can get VERY Close to correct ignition-timing!