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454 Crusader coil resistor

lenoah

New member
1987 454's. Anyone know th

1987 454's. Anyone know the purpose of the coil ballast resistor. I've blown one on each engine now. Engine will start and run as long as key is held in start position. Release key -- engine stalls. In an emergency will it do damage to wire around the resistor?
 
"it will fry the points, but g

"it will fry the points, but get you home. the ballast lowers the voltage at the coil. it is bypassed while cranking. main reason it is there is to preserve the points. keeps them from arcing. the higher voltage will also make the coil run hot, and shorten its life."
 
"Thanks for the reply and info

"Thanks for the reply and info. Oddly enough the ignition sys had been changed to electronic ignition in 1999, before I owned the boat. My mechanic said that elec ign usually eliminates the coil resistor. I blew the stbd one about 6 miles out of Newport Beach on my way to Catalina Island. Fortunately it had happened to the port engine a few years earlier and I had bought a spare. Just curious how far I could run with a bypass before damage."
 
"Scott is right on! Buy a cou

"Scott is right on! Buy a couple of TWELVE VOLT coils and toss the ballast resistors in the can. Just jumper right across the in and out connections.

Ballast resistor circuits was a dumb, '60s idea that should have been toissed out from the beginning.

Jeff"
 
Thanks for the great replys gu

Thanks for the great replys guys. If I hadn't already blown a resistor on the other engine I would still be scratching my head. BTW Catalina was awesome. 8 perfect days.

How do I know which coils to use??
 
Usually Ballast coils are mark

Usually Ballast coils are marked use with external Resistor and non ballast coils are not marked ar say has internal resistor.
Hope that answers your queston
 
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