Spark

[dcarey]

My 1978 124 has not run in ten years. I pulled the engine, cleaned it up, replaced some components and reinstalled it. I tried to start it but is is not getting spark. I left the ignition in the "on" position and traced the wiring to see where I had power. I found power at on of the low voltage terminals at the coil but also found that the coil was very hot. Does anyone know if this mean that the coil is defective, that I have it wired backwards, that the points are bad, etc?

[majicwrench]

Hot coil means that current is running thru coil. Which means points are closed or shorted to ground.
One side of coil should have power coming from key.Other side shouild pulse when cranking. If the "pulse" side doesn't pulse, something wrong on points side of things.
Normal for coil to be hot if ignition on and points are closed.