Anytime I lean on my t it gives me a Lil electric sensation. Problem with ground?
Part of the enjoyment of owning a T?
Sorry, couldn't help myself.
I think that you have carbon tracks in your coil box. Time for the plastic upgrade offered by or beloved parts suppliers.
Wes,
Welcome to the forum, I see this is your 5th posting. Glad to have you aboard.
If it is anytime you lean on the car -- then it probably is something other than carbon tracks in the coil box. You didn't mention what year T that may help. You didn't mention if it has a battery, starter, and generator or is magneto power only. You didn't mention if it only occurs when the switch is on (which would be my guess -- but if you would clarify that -- it would be helpful). You didn't mention how much a "Lil electric sensation" it was. I know when I washed our 1918 years ago (they didn't have the rain gutter on the dash until 1919) and turned the coil box switch to battery I was initially ok. But as I pulled the hand crank up and the buzz coil started to buzz I had that "I'm holding a spark plug wire" feeling. Some folks would say that was a "Lil electric sensation" while I would say it was a "Big electric sensation." Or is yours more like licking a 9 volt transistor radio battery (smoke detector battery for the younger crowd)? Have you thought about using a volt meter etc. to see what it registers? And do you have the original 4 coils in a wood lined box or a distributor-- etc.?
A little more information will probably narrow down the suggestions to the area most likely to be causing you the problem.
Respectfully submitted,
Hap l9l5 cut off
LOL Layden "That's just what these do, you didn't know?" that's hilarious. I don't know what's wrong Wes but the forum will help you get it fixed. That's definitely not normal or ok.
I'm seeing sparks jump from my choke rod and other things as I hit the ignition. This car has been upgraded to 12 volt and it has a distributor. While working on it I fried a wire and a ignition switch. . thinking I might have another wire exposed and touching something.
If you are above the equator your car will stay on the ground, but if you are below as in Australia you must use mirrors, wires, and scotch tape to keep from falling off.
Sorry I just like to initiate new posters to this fun site. This is a good web site ! Fast Frank
How else do you light gas headlights?? Just askin'
Garnet
Just talk with a stern voice and say "You are grounded until you can behave yourself"
Sorry
Thanks guys.this is all so helpful
Sounds as if the ground is bad in your car.
Disconnect the + side of the battery. Clean both ends of the ground cable from the battery to the frame ensuring that you have good metal to metal contact with the frame.
I am a fan of Dielectric Grease for electrical connections as it does not inhibit the current flow and it prevents corrosion at the connection.
And when you car starts to behave you can "un-ground" it! ;)
I don't know what kind of upholstery you have, but some types will generate a static charge when you slide on it especially in dry weather. That is why they say it is not good to sit inside the car while you are pumping gas. When you get out and touch the car a spark jumps, and if that touch happens to be near the gas filler or on the pump nozzle, it could lead to a sudden fire.
Now I don't know if that is the reason for your shock. It could be that the secondary from one or more of your spark coils is coming in contact with something grounded to the chassis. That would not necessarily ground to the ground because of the rubber tires. So, try running the car in the dark with the hood up and see if you can see any sparks. If so, that might be the source of your shock.
Norm
With a distributor, you could have a spark jumping from the center pole of the ignition coil, or distributor cap. The low voltage side of the coil should not make a spark big enough for you to feel. If you are getting a spark at the choke rod, you have a problem. It could cause a fuel fire, especially if you should flood the engine. I would suggest one thing to do even if you don't find the source of the spark, would be to ground the body to the chassis and the engine to the chassis. That way all will be same polarity. Something tells me the engine and body are not same polarity. If your ignition coil is mounted on the body, and a spark is jumping to the body from the coil, the most direct path to the engine would be through the choke rod.
Norm
If it is a ground problem,When checking and cleaning your ground strap to frame try this to eliminate a problem there
Find 2-3 good star washers, the heavier the better. clean a spot on your frame and put one star washer between the ground strap and the frame, another between the bolt head and the ground strap and if you want,one below the nut on the bolt but a regular lock washer can be used there. It is not original factory but I have cured a lot of poor ground problems on equipment this way.
You may want to run a ground strap from the frame to the engine also.
If you fried a wire and a switch it sounds more like a direct short in a wire . Any wires pinched that you can see of?
You might consider putting a fuse in your ignition wire.
Check the battery connections as mentioned but I believe your problem stems from leakage concerning the distributor system. That is high tension voltage jumping to ground some where in the system. Possibly the coil is shorting to metal or perhaps the spark is jumping from a plug wire that's lost it's integrity. Run the car in the dark and look for where the spark is jumping from. I'll bet you'll see something that way.
An old anti-theft trick was to hook a battery (almost any voltage will do) up to a Model T coil and ground it metal on the car. Works on all but fiberglass T buckets. Check to see if a previous owner didn't do this, as a joke or anti-theft deterrent.
Let it down off the jack stands. (I couldn't resist.)
most of this is very helpful and the ribbing is good aswell. thanks a bunch guys. I will put up photos when I can
Running a dizzy, I'm with John, check connections and add a ground from engine to frame. KGB
Wes, You can ground your distributor with a jumper wire from the cap's spring clip to the coil mounting bracket as shown in the attached picture.
The distributor body revolves as you a advance and retard the spark. Blow-by gasses force oil up in the mount resulting in a bad ground so you must install a jumper wire.
I would look for a hot wire with bare insulation touching the frame or a hot wire shorted out across one of the switches, lights, horn, etc.
You may have to do this by process of elimination. Disconnect one electrical system at a time and see if it stops. Does your battery drain down?
Bad ground. Had the same thing happen on one I was working on.
Sparks and carburetors don't mix!!
That goes for 1914 and 2014.
Ah. St Elmo's fire.
How is the routing of the high tension lead from the coil to distributor. Some place there is a leak from a high voltage source.