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Most lodging is reserved a year in advance but there is plenty on the southwest side of Kansas City that is a reasonable commute.  Nice show, nice venue always enjoy it.

Wayne, I opened my profile and didn't see any entries in the various blanks for avatars.  I did check the delete images box and hit save.  The thread page seems to be loading almost immediately so perhaps it was retaining a link, I'm slightly less computer savvy than I am car savvy so I'm really not properly equipped to discuss the problem.  Hopefully it'll stay fixed.
Now to get back to the errant spark problem and see if I can find a ''remove errant spark'' box to check. MH

Wayne I noticed that the page was loading super slow I just thought it was because of the number of images.  I noticed earlier that my avatar wasn't being displayed and just remembered that the server, Cox.net, where the image was stored has been taken down several months ago.  On my profile I don't see any mention of the cox.net...woodie.jpg image you referred to.  As it is no longer a valid URL I would remove it but don't see where to remove it from.  Do I need to contact one of the admins and ask if they can remove it from my profile.  If I didn't say it before, your assistance is greatly appreciated. Mike H. -- 41woodie

Heck if Harbor Freight VOMs are good enough for Super Wayne, it's certainly good enough for me, thanks for the link.  Where did you get the piercing leads, I've never seen a set of those.
I laughed out loud about the using your VOM under the dash, when I did my rewire on the Woodie I could read the meter better upside down than right side up. I desperately need a set of upside down bifocals for underdash work.

Wayne when I posted my question I had two hopes, one was that you would respond with one of your usual insightful and detailed responses and second that I would be smart enough to understand your response.

I probably need to fill in a few details, I'm running a large style, coil in cap HEI distributor.  I'm pretty obsessive about plug wire routing and I'm using Made for You separators, in fact I'm using two sets of them to make sure the wires don't cross or touch.

The timing light is an induction type and it's possible I'm getting my phantom spark from it's being too close to another wire.  I'll recheck the timing, making sure that the pickup is well away from other wires.  I'll check out the cap and internals for signs of tracking or damage.

I'm in the process of buying a Simpson 260 VOM so I can do accurate testing of the circuit.  If I don't find any visible defects or eliminate the problem by isolating the pickup I'll do the tests that you recommend and see what that tells me.

One thing I'm unsure about is your suggestion of checking the timing of number 6, I'm assuming that number 6 will also show the timing mark at 0 but be 360 degrees from number one. Or am I all wet.  Many thanks MH

yes... you are seeing a second wire flashing usually..

you may want to verify that you have enough space between the wires so the corona/magnetic field that is created by the high voltage spark going down the wire from INDUCING a ghost spark in another wire...

try timing it off the #6 spark plug wire..

thats the second turn of the crank...

1843
6572

please remove the tie wraps that hold the wires together in a bundle..  not saying that they are there...  i have seen many cars and trucks with the wires bound together..

this really effects the last 2 cylinders in the left side as they fire 90 degrees of crank rotation apart..   the #5 spark will induce a spark in the number 7 wire and cause the partially compressed fuel mixture to ignite burn some of it off and cause the cylinder to run very lean... put some load on the engine and that piston will MELT and tear up the cylinder wall...

look at what ford did with its small block spark plug wires...







there are several more places this could be an issue...

if your inductive clamp is too close to another spark plug wire.. it can create a out of phase flash...

if your reluctor is cracked... or the pick up coil magnet is cracked...








if one has a Small cap HEI on a TBI motor.. look carefully for cracks...  find reman usually from cardone.. with a reluctor like this...






if you have a digital volt meter.. that has a 200K Ohm setting..  not just 200 which is the lowest setting on many..

200K OHMs... 200,000 ohms..

measure your spark plug wires from the terminal inside the boot at the spark plug end... to the inside terminal of the distributer cap...

max resistance is 1,000 ohms per inch...  

on the volt meter at this 200K setting.. a 24" spark plug wire will read between 9 and 15.. on the display...  if it reads more than 24.. its bad.. if it reads close to 24 its bad..

an 18 inch wire will read less than 18... 7 to 15 on the display...

could be the terminal at the cap is not pushed down.. could be the terminal is pulled off at the spark plug wire end.. this happens a log..

please examine the exterior of the coil for signs of high voltage leaks....






this is what happens when the folded metal ground strap is left out of the big cap HEI distributers... or the screw that holds the condenser down is left loose...



makes a noise like shot gun going off under the hood..

sorry for the long post....

I use a dial-in timing light to set the timing on the SBC in the Woodie.  I crank in the initial timing number and adjust the distributor until the mark hits 0.  My question is that there is a random flash of the timing light that appears approximately 10 degrees from 0.  I seem to remember seeing it on several different engines over the years.
The distributor is a good quality HEI purchased new, I'm using Jacobs silicon wires, the engine runs like a champ.  No apparent miss, great throttle response etc. etc. The engine has about 1400 miles on it.
Am I seeing spark arcing in the distributor or what, any thoughts.

She is aware and reminding me daily, no air and I will be lonesome on the trip.

Thanks for the tip Rick.

Seriously how slow is the leak, I suppose you could top it off right before leaving and returning.  Since you're doing it yourself it wouldn't require finding a shop to do it. You said it leaked out while at the upholsterer, how long was it there.

I hope you haven't mentioned this to Cindy yet.

A couple of things, first here's a link to Tower Paint in Wisconsin.  http://www.apstowerpaint.com/  They will custom mix spray cans with good quality paint in any color you can furnish a code for.  Dupli-color is good for more common colors but doesn't have the more obscure or older colors.  
I've used Tower on several occasions and never had a problem with color match as long as you get the correct code.  It's really great for touch-up or shooting a small item.  The cans are a little pricey but it's a good alternative if you don't have a good gun (or the ability to use it).  Oh and they mail order and ship without problem.

The other thing is that I always put the spray can in a container of warm NOT hot water.  I let it sit in the water for 15-20 minutes then remove it and wipe all of the water off, so it doesn't drip on the surface being painted, don't ask how I learned that.
I may be full of beans but I think that the warm water raises the temp in the can increasing the pressure in the can a bit.  Seems like the paint atomizes better and improves the flow.
Of course putting the can in hot water could at worst be a danger to your health and at best could instantly change the color of the walls in the room your working in.  The key word is warm not hot.

I just dug these out to show some friends, I'm sure a lot of you remember this.  I was there with my sons in our Model A Sedan Delivery.  Unlike most of the folks we didn't go in the exhibitors building when the storm hit.  We were sitting in the Model A when I noticed an ice chest float by and decided we needed to move.  The boys and I got out and were helping push cars out of the water.  Unfortunately there were too many cars and many flooded before the push crew arrived.  Several of the cars that we pushed were in Park of course but there was enough water that they could be pushed sideways.  A lot of fine cars damaged that day.[/list]

I have made all connections according to the instructions supplied by Dakota Digital [Rostra basic unit]. If you take a look at their website you can view them. Once the relay was installed [per their instructions] the system works perfectly.

You read the instructions?!! That hardly seems fair.

I went to their website and read through the instructions. It explains why LED lights effect the circuit.  The wiring diagram is different than mine in several ways.  I'll get mine out tomorrow and compare the differences so I can at least discuss it intelligently.

Ok sissie #1, without the relay the brakelights stay on all the time, and the CC will not function. Maybe the termites have attacked the CC now that they are through with the wood.

I'm confused, on my setup the only connection to the brakelights is a connection to the "cold" side of the brake light switch and disengages the unit when the brakes are applied.  
Are you using the brake light circuit to provide power for the CC?  If you've connected your brake lights and CC to the hot side of the brake light switch the brake lights would stay on and the CC would not function.

I am installing a Dakota Digital [Rostra] unit on my 53 F100. Pretty well have it done except for brake light switch hook up. Instructions say to use a relay if brake lights are LED. I have LED and filiment [bed roll lights], wonder if the filiment lights are enough to power the cruise switch? Anyone have any knowledge of this? Thanks.

I have a Rostra unit on the woodie.  I added it when we lived in Tahlequah and it worked perfectly on the first try.  Now that the woodie is alive again I've tried using it and it seems to be really touchy.  If I go over a bump or a big expansion joint it wants to accelerate a bit. Not going to mess with it right now, it'll be something to diddle with over the winter.
As far as the LED and the off function I can't think of why it would matter, you connect the CC wire to the dead side of the switch and when you step on the brake the current passes through and should switch off the CC.  Can't think of any reason for it not to work.
I started to call you a sissy for having CC but then remembered I had it on the woodie first.

What was causing the squawking noise, sounded like the car was suffering.

Well most of Guthrie, Ok. dodged the bullet of the tornado that damaged Piedmont, Ok.  We had some damage on the north side of town, several homes severly damaged.  Also some severe damage to the a golf course and homes that border the course west of town.
I was watching the sky to the west as the tornado approached and when I noticed big pieces of sheet metal, cloth and other debris swirling around waaay up in the air above our place I decided that I was tired of looking out the door and headed for cover.
We passed through Joplin today on the way to Springfield NSRA.  There was some severe damage along I-44 but we didn't try to get off at an exit and rubberneck.  Those poor folks are having enough hell without every lookie-lou in the world wandering around the damaged area.
Bad tornado season this year, one of the worst I remember, since the F5 storm that hit Del City/Midwest City/Moore/Oklahoma City in 1999, that one still holds the record for the strongest recorded wind 301mph