not sure what to think of this

[RLT III]

checked my coils with a multi meter and they were all around 800 ohms but then when I took the meter (black lead)& grounded to the motor and touched each coil (with red lead) #3 coil registered on the meter and everything was unhooked and battery was disconnected
But neither of the other 2 coils registered any ideas why

 

[Silvertip]

Re: not sure what to think of this

There are two tests on a coil - not just one (primary winding which is the terminal the small wire is connected to -- and the secondary winding which is the one the spark plug wire connects to). Measure primary resistance between the primary terminal and the coil ground. Then measure the secondary resistance between the spark plug terminal and ground. The secondary resistance should be may times higher than the primary. Get the specs from your service manual. Ground on the coil may be a separate wire or it may get its ground through one of the mounting bolts. There is a third test to check for a primary to secondary short. Test between the primary and secondary terminals. Infinity = good. A primary to secondary short would show some value of low resistance = bad coil.

 

[Fl_Richard]

Re: not sure what to think of this

Oscilloscopes work great for testing coils. Just watch the output - the voltage and discharge curve are easily compared. The one that looks different is bad. (Engine needs to be running)

Ebay sells cheap ones that use USB to a laptop computer for the display. Some are under $100.00. Great for testing all the electronic components too.