4bangercraig

I'm running GM style ignition, with an HEI style 4-terminal igniter. I have both an Accel supercoil and an in-spec stocker.

Original setup had the Accel coil. Then one night I parked the truck, went to bed, and woke up to a no-spark condition. Tested with an inline tester both at #1 plug and dizzy cap. Secondary resistance on the Accel measured at about 14k.

Popped my stocker back in using the same igniter and she fired up. Then about the a week later the same thing happened. Woke up to a suddenly non-functioning ignition system.

Inline tester shows nada at dizzy cap. I got 12v at both igniter terminals that attach to coil. 12 at both coil terminals.
Coil measures 9.6k ohms secondary. Primary in spec.
Replaced pickup coil, quadruple checked air gap.
Replaced cap, rotor, plug wires.
Rewired the whole ignition twice.
Cleaned all my main engine grounds.
Tried a different igniter.

When I attach a test light to the negative coil terminal and crank the motor, it does not blink as it should.

When I put the test light on either igniter terminal which leads back to the dizzy and crank, it does not blink as it should.

So the coil is not getting the message to fire and the problem has got to be somewhere distributor to igniter. But it just aint. I've replaced every part as well as wiring. ECU's crossed my mind, but I don't think the ECU on a 22r is complicated enough to cause no spark. From what I can tell it's entirely emissions related.

I don't believe that either coil's bad. I think that something about the built in resistance caused the Accel to stop firing first, then the stocker. Unfortunately my grasp of electrical engineering is insufficient to interpret this information.

I've got these hokey homemade hood vents and it's been pretty wet out. I've suspected that something got wet and fried. But WHAT?

Based on the fact that it worked and then failed, I don't believe this to be a configuration issue. However, I will note that I combined the pink and yellow wires from the green plug and routed them both to the positive igniter terminal. This may be causing the igniter to ground through there instead of through its metal backing (bolted to bare spot on inside of fenderwell) or the wire I routed from igniter bolthole to chassis. Gonna fool around with igniter grounding configuration tomorrow, but I'm not optimistic. Does this make sense as a potential culprit to anyone?

Any wisdom very much welcome!

4bangercraig

Update: If I take the dizzy out and leave the high tension lead from the coil next to the valve cover and turn the dizzy by hand, I get signal from the coil. (blinking test light, sparks) Ground the coil securely to the block and no signal. Put the cap on the dizzy and turn it with the starter, no signal. What is going onnnn!?