In <34987DB2.62B4DE4A@empirenet.com>, Gregory Kirk wrote:
>Actually, as I understand it (please correct me if I'm wrong) the coil
>is in essence a large capacitor, whose fucntion is to hold a charge
>until such time as there is a path to ground.
You would be wrong. A coil is an inductor. It stores energy in a
magnetic field, not in an electric field. As soon as the points open,
that magnetic field collapses, no matter whether there is a path to
ground or not.
>So the charge would in
>fact sit ( in the capacitor, not the rotor though) until the rotor came
>around and made contact with cap, wich provides the charge in the
>capacitor (ignition coil) with a path to ground ( via the spark plug).
>
The capacitor is not in the secondary circuit. Its role is in
charging the primary of the coil.
A. B. Bonds
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