Thanks for responding, guys. I really appreciate it.
Stuart: I turned the engine until the contact was wide open, then used the eccentric to adjust the gap to .019" (shop manual says to use .019" for new points, .016" for old.) THe pig tail and the spring-end of the points are held in place by the pass-through insulator.
Bill: Yes! I have a meter. That is some good advice. I have a question: You are telling me to check the continuity from the lug on the side of the starter to the coil + terminal TWICE, right? As I understand it, I should disconnect the + side of the battery, then check for continuity between the starter and the coil, then reconnect the battery and check again but this time with the key in the ON position. I should get the same results. If not, then I probably have a switch problem because the starter turns when stomped.
4ontheFloor: While I have the meter out, I'll check for continuity between the coil and the INSIDE of the pass through insulator. Shouldn't this verify that I'm not grounded? I can also check for continuity from the outside of the terminal to the top of the rotor when the contact is closed- that would further prove that the insulator/contact circuit is good, right? It wasn't significant that the contact point on the underside of the distributor, where the rotor touches, was crusty black? Maybe I should also check for continuity between the underside of the cap and the end of the coil wire. The new distributor cap that I get today will eliminate this potential source.
Can a FLAPS check a coil for output? What if I learn that I have contnuity, but the coil is failing, giving me a few gigawatts instead of the required 1.21? (That was a joke, sort of. See "Back To The Future" if you don't get it.)
Thanks again, gentlemen. I wasn't expecting to have such a response from the gurus so early on the weekend. I'll report back what I learn.
Bill
