Red OMC coils

[51seahorsetn27]

Your on the right path witb trying to cut the ac down/out for sure, my idea is to still use a point set as a coil trigger. But the novas would allow for a less mechanical advatage and drag on the crank, but how is the balanced weight of the rotating assembly affected by not having a points cam installed? As far as coil windings go, I’m sure that if I was to take my sweet old time and build them Made In Merica style theyd be a force to be reconed with, 🙂 high voltage :p

[joesnuffy]

The nova2s won’t hold up currently when fitted to an outboard a lot of folks here have tried them and they have failed. I have had success adding a diode to them and I am hoping that will keep them alive for folks that don’t want to or can’t build their own Red Atoms. And a lot of folks will continue to keep using points and condensers theirs nothing wrong with that method either.

The Red Atoms are a version of an electronic module that came out in like the 1970s and they do hold up. They came in several different colors which allowed you to know which motors to put them on to replace the points and condensers with the module. A guy here named Debe took the time and expense to purchase several different colors and take them apart and show his work so folks here could build their own. I have built several and am working on a How-To guide with pictures that shows how I build mine and where I get my parts along with the part list and prices of what I am using.

The way I am doing my modules I leave the points cam in place along with all the screws and half a set of points that way anyone can put points back in the future if they desire. If I were building race modules I might be inclined to have 2 to 3 modules per cylinder with like a 2 or 3 way switch that I could switch on the fly. What I do like about the modules is the engine fires 180 degrees apart every time which is not so when using points if they aren’t set correctly or the crank has slop in it allowing he points cam to move right-to-left.

I hope that helps,
Joe

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[Buccaneer]

Joe, Keep up the good work! It sounds like a fun project to try
to convert an old outboard over to modules some day.
Looking forward to seeing your "how to and parts list".
Thanks for sharing!

Prepare to be boarded!

[joesnuffy]

Thanks Buccaneer, I hoped to be finished soon if it would ever stop raining. Every time I think I am getting close I figure something else out and then that needs to be tested on a real running motor. That is one reason I now have a test power head for just putting different modules, different coils, etc in to see if they fire and fire at the right time before placing them in a running outboard.

Joe

[51seahorsetn27]

I may have missed this, but am I correct in thinking the flywheel magnet is triggering the module, like the old reluctor wheel and pertronix kit/ or is the points cam triggering a momentary breaker swtich similar to the points? I’m like you though in a way, once I get my TN back together the original way, I want to buy a mag plate and retrofit it with modules and a charging ring all home built, what has come to my mind with a modular setup also is to build a multispark system similar to a msd box. I understand that the componetry quality affects the longevity here too. I also realize that these modules must or may be designed for external magnet flywheels? If your using three mods per cylinder then the signal must either be short lived or not strong enough to keep the coil dwell long enough either as so many degrees of rotation passes the module? I think I should move to the other forum board, O dont want to hijack this thread. Those coils sure have me interested too.

[joesnuffy]

Sorry if I confused you. I only use 1 module per cylinder so for a 2 cylinder engine that would be 2 modules. When I said use 3 modules per cylinder I meant if a person wanted to be able to switch between the 3 while the engine is running so only 1 module would be used for cylinder at a time but each of the 3 would have different timing properties.

Right now I am just trying to build a reliable module cheaply which I have done I just need to put some hours on the ones I built today. I do think the modules I am building with their current build would be good to like 10,000 rpms. I don’t know much about racing engines so I am not really the guy to help on that. You are correct the magnets do trigger the modules I am building when to fire.

The way I am building mine they mount to the exsisting magneto plate and use the oem coils which are plenty hot enough to fire the engine so I don’t think that a person would need any special coils. OEM replacement coils made in Germany would be my route if I were racing combined with the modules I am building possibly tweaked a bit to get more BTDC firing. If you wan’t a charging system you could put that on the outer part of the flywheel as you mentioned.

I hope that helps,
Joe

[51seahorsetn27]

Thanks for the tips, i am thinking on a compact unit made in a single ring with multiple layers one as a charging ring, one as a module ring and possibly a coil ring, the modules sandwiched between the coil and charger, heat and clearence being the problem. I wouldnt try to spin my TN past 5k anyway, thats a 1000 rpm over its advertised rpm and with just bronze braised bushings its to easy to solder the crank to the block and rods even running heavy fuel at 16:1. If I was to use the modules with an external coil I could make only two ring layers and raise clearence and vent heat better. But I like the idea of winding my own coils to the specs I like though. If you could get solidly reliable modules built to last I might be up for a hand full of them to build my project on, I would love to have my old outboard engine on my boat and be able to run battery powered stuff especially at night: running lights, and the like, as well as have the ignition use a module type spark it would be a hell of a retrofit but it sue sounds cool.

Going back thru these posts, it would be interesting to see which way the coils are wrapped that spark clockwise, give your statements about that I wonder how many coils were returned thinking they were faulty when the wires just could have been reversed. Seems as if quality control must have lost track of the windings at some point and miscoded the wire colors.

[joesnuffy]

I don’t think it matters which way the coils are wrapped using points and condensers since North and South poles are spinning by the coils that would be AC current in my humble opinion. I think some how it does matter when using the modules just not sure.

I hope that helps,
Joe

[rudderless]

With points the spark..if wired wrong..can jump from the ground to the center electrode…

My ’76 13.2 omc has n-s and then s-n and uses a driver coil to the spark coils on each end of the driver coil. My Atoms were both wired the same..did not need to reverse leads on one atom. ..something about the right hand rule in mag flux and current direction. If one coil wound one way needs n then s. Wind coil opposite and it needs to be s then n to maintain same current direction.

I think…as the Atom sees the voltage raise there is continuity to ground. At some point the mags move on and the voltage starts to drop. When the Atom sees this it quickly opens..causing spark at the plug.

[joesnuffy]

Rudderless,
Interesting thanks for sharing.

Joe

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