Ignition coil leakage-not a motorcycle..

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Non-motorcycle related (but could be).

An ignition coil question re a Briggs and Stratton, 8 HP generator engine (horizontal shaft).

I noticed yesterday my generator (stored outside, under cover) was locked
up solid. Seafoam is ALWAYS coated inside the cylinder so I knew the
combustion chamber wasn't an issue.

Did some digging and found the ignition coil, (which bolts directly above the flywheel),
had leaked down to the flywheel and locked the two together SOLID.

The innerds (once hard, then liquid, now hard again) of the coil hardened up and was a dark brown,
looked like thick varnish. After smacking off the "varnish", the engine cranked fine and had still had spark
(after cleaning the "low oil switch"). Ran the engine for about 20 minutes, no issues but the coil
will be replaced (don't trust it especially when you need portable power)

I've also had a similar issue, slightly different liquid, on a Marine, depth finder transducer. Both units
are probably 15 years old..

Why, (old age?) does the original fluid (that harden up) inside such electronic parts, leak, especially over time?

Both do NOT sit in the sun, so its not like the sun beats them up...

I suspect, this may be able to occur to the FZ coils as well as any other coil...

Credible opinions? Just curious..

 

[FinalImpact]

Can you toss a picture up?
It seems rather rare to have an oil filled coil on a single cylinder low duty cycle application. Even the FZ being waste spark and rotating at 14k, doesn't have an oil filled coil. Its just primary winding around an iron core w/secondary winding which is potted in some resin/epoxy material. So it has no cooling liquid.
Going back to the 60s and 1970s, most all auto engines of that era had oil filled ignition coils.

If the fluid did come from the coil, its loss could cuase the coil to overheat on long runs and fail. So I'd say it's a good idea to replace it.

It is my observation that most coils from mid 90's on up on autos and bike are potted w/out oil. Example is pretty much any Stick Coil or COP (coil over plug) application, or waste spark multi output coil. i.e. like some 4 and 6cyl autos will have single brick with multiple outputs.

FWIW; most oil filled coils are round and the tops rolled like the top of a soda can to seal in the oil. Is this coil round?

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Its NOT oil filled. It's likely epoxy but appears very dark.

It definitely seeped out of the coil, gravity caused it to leak onto the flywheel and it hardened back up
again. It was hard enough, the engine, turning the flywheel by hand, would not move without
a strike to the "epoxy"

Coil replaced with OEM, back and running!

 

[FinalImpact]

Looks a little rough there. So are thinking the potting material liquefied?

I forget this was an inductive pickup style coil. Strange it dissolved like that or whatever it did.

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Looks a little rough there. So are thinking the potting material liquefied?

I forget this was an inductive pickup style coil. Strange it dissolved like that or whatever it did.

I'd never seen one leak, then harden up and literally freeze up and engine(it was that hard). That engines probably 20-25 years old.

The new coil is on its way. I can't afford to have a generator I don't trust, cheap enough too, $32,00..


New Genuine Briggs and Stratton Ignition Coil 398811 023899097791 | eBay

Yep, they did away with points/condensers years ago. Strictly a flywheel with magnets and a coil has been standard I'd guess two decades easily on most (if not all) air cooled, small yard engines... Set the gap between the coil and flywheel with a "business card" in-between and your good to go!