> I have a few lying around and
> wondering if I can test them somehow ??
How antique is your antique? Is it Kettering style or does it use a
vibrator coil ala Model T ? Or a magneto coil ? Etc...
Assuming it is Kettering style, by far the best test, IMO, is to put it on a
car and see how well it runs under load (take a test drive). But there are
some simple bench tests that give perhaps 75% confidence that the coil is
good. Used to be a nice blow-by-blow sequence on Mossmotors.com but I can't
find it at the moment.
Basically you start by checking the resistance between the two side
terminals (which for an antique should be around 3 ohms although 1.5 ohms
started being common in the 1960's), and the resistance between the between
either side terminal and the center terminal (which should be around
10,000-15,000 ohms). Also check the resistance between any terminal and the
case (which should be at least 20 megohms if you keep your fingers away).
Then set up a spark gap of some sort (eg old spark plug) between the center
terminal and either side terminal, and connect a 12v source across the side
terminals. When you pull a wire off, you should see a spark.
> Can I simply put a lead of an electrical tester
> on each cable and read the meter ??
Depends a lot on the charger as to what you will read (if anything). Most
'dumb' chargers are going to look like 18 volts or even higher; some
combinations of charger & digital meter will give readings that jump all
over the place (the chargers output actually varies between 18+ volts and
zero). Many 'smart' chargers won't put out anything at all until they see a
battery connected. Again the easiest/best test IMO is to hook them to a
battery and see if they charge it (which you can judge by measuring current
and voltage).
-- Randall
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