A Low Cost High
Tension Lead Tester
By Thomas K. Eismin, Professor
Aviation Technology
Purdue University
West Lafayette, IN 47907
Have you priced a Bendix ignition
harness high tension lead tester lately?
If you have, you know why I was de-
termined to produce a low cost substi-
tute. The theory of operation of any igni-
tion lead tester is simple. The tester
must produce a high voltage low cur-
rent, DC signal, send that signal to the
ignition lead positive conductor and de-
tect any current leakage from the lead
positive conductor to the lead ground or
shielding.
My initial thought was to study the
Bendix lead tester and build a similar
"black box". This sounds simple; how-
ever, the Bendix tester utilizes two
specially made transformers which I
found virtually impossible to purchase.
I knew there had to be a better solution,
and there was. A solution so simple the
entire lead tester can be built for under
$30.
My lead tester was built using a typi-
cal automotive ignition coil to generate
a 6000 volt output. The output of a typ-
ical production model high tension lead
tester was determined to be between
5500 and 6000 volts. Therefore, the au-
tomotive coil was perfect.
The ignition coil can be powered di-
rectly from a self-contained battery, the
onboard aircraft battery, or from a 120
volt AC source. I chose the 120 volt AC
source for two major reasons: (1) the
self-contained batteries (8-D cells), al-
though simplest, required replacement
much too often, and (2) the use of the
aircraft battery was eliminated because
aircraft are often 24 volt, and often
leads are tested after the battery has
been removed from the aircraft. Thus,
the solution is a 120 volt AC power
source.
Similar to production models, my de-
sign uses a 7mm electrode gap to allow
a maximum voltage of approximately
5600 volts available for lead testing.
The high voltage generated in the tester
has a choice of two current paths: (1)
across the electrode gap, or (2) through
the ignition lead insulation. Since cur-
rent always takes the path of least resis-
tance, a spark will appear across the
electrode gap when testing good igni-
tion leads. No spark will appear when
42 JULY 1985
testing defective leads (i.e., the current
has traveled through the low resistance
of the lead's defective insulation).
Unit Construction
Mechanical: The electrode gap is
definitely the most critical part of the
lead tester. The electrodes I recom-
mend are constructed from two 1-1/2",
number 10 brass machine screws filed
to a point. The screws are then
mounted to a clear plastic housing and
adjusted to a 7mm gap (see Detail A).
The electrode assembly was then
placed in the tester case near a 1"
punched hole. This placement allows
the operator to view the electrode gap
during lead testing.
The tester case can be made of virtu-
ally any material, although plastic and
aluminum boxes are commercially
available. An 8" x 6" x 4-1/2" case will
allow sufficient room for easy assembly
of all components. If a metal case is
used, I recommend mounting all com-
Detail A
I I'M'LP"
TOP VIEW
#10 Brass 7 mm gap
nut, 4 ea.
4 I-eri'iiM-i.
•iii'in'i'fn>
#10 Brass
washer, 6 ea
FRONT VIEW
ponents to a 1/4" plywood base which
will later be placed inside the case. This
plywood mounting will help eliminate
the possibility of short circuits. For final
case assembly see Detail B.
Electrical: As indicated by the
schematic and parts lists in Detail C,
the unit's electrical system is quite sim-
ple, and all components are readily
available. The 120 volt AC power is di-
rected through a transformer and a full
wave rectifier to allow 12 volt DC power
to be used by the ignition coil. A master
switch is used to control the AC current
to the lead tester.
A second normally open switch, the
lead test switch, controls the current to
the ignition coil primary winding. This
switch is manually operated during lead
testing. The secondary circuit of the ig-
nition coil is directly connected to the
7mm electrode gap in parallel with the
test lead alligator clips. It should be
noted that high voltage wire must be
used in the secondary circuit to prevent
unwanted arcing.
1V 2 "#10
/~ brass machine
>' screw, 2 ea.
\_ electrical
crimp connectors,
2ea.
I — — 3/ie" or
thicker plexiglass
 Unit Operation: The basic operation
DetaMB of this lead tester is similar to that of
production models. To test the insula-
A.C. power cord grommet tion of high tension leads:
(1) Attach one test lead alligator
clip to the aircraft ignition lead ferrule
(i.e. the outer wire of the ignition lead).
f.-\ (2) Attach the other test lead al-

-f I —
ligator clip to the ignition lead positive
T, - Step down —— wire (i.e., the inner wire of the ignition
transformer I J coil lead).
W (3) Connect the test instrument as
Primary & secondary a 120 volt AC source and turn on the
R, - Rectifier
v S~ negative connection unit's master switch.

w **y
assembly -»//Tb t ———— t- __ / Primary positive (4) Depress the spring loaded lead
(4 diodes & / connection test switch and release rapidly. This will
1 capacitor) ^—~^« ^ofnnHiri/ rvi*^iti\/P
activate the high voltage source and
connection test the ignition lead.
Electrode
assembly
^ —— C2 - Capacitor (5) While releasing the lead test
switch, view the electrode gap through
*] the case viewing window. If a spark oc-
curs across the gap, the lead insulation
S, - Master — si *. , ^ 1\—— S2 - Test is airworthy. If no spark is viewed
switch Test lead grommets switch across the electrode gap, the ignition
TOP VIEW lead should be rejected.
(6) Repeat steps one through five
for each ignition lead to be tested.
Other Operation Notes:
(1) Always check your lead tester
prior to operation. This can be done by
separating the alligator clips approxi-
viewing ^\
/ window \v
mately one inch, then depress and
Negative r master test N rapidly release the lead test switch. For
Test Lead ^ Positive a correctly operating tester, a spark
Test Lead should appear across the electrode
gap. Next, connect the alligator clips to-
gether and repeat the test. No spark
FRONT VIEW should appear across the electrode
gap. If this sequence does not occur,
retest and identify any problems prior to
ignition lead testing.
(2) When testing leads which are
Detail C installed on the engine, be sure to keep
the tester alligator clips and test leads
well Jear of any grounded metal parts
of the aircraft. If the test leads and al-
ligator clips come in physical contact
with grounded metal parts, the tester
may falsely reject good leads.
(3) On some engines, leakage may
C»2 occur through the magneto distributor
to the magneto coil. Therefore, before
rejecting any leads which are tested
Parts List while connected to the magneto, turn
P, - A.C. power plug, 3A the engine (magneto) slightly and re-
S, - SPST 120 V.A.C., 5A switch peat the test.
T, - 120 V.A.C. input, 3 AMP 12 volt output, (4) Remember, insulation leakage
transformer is not the only cause of defective leads.
R, - Rectifier Assembly — Each lead should also be tested for con-
4 Diodes, 3 AMP 50 volt; tinuity of the positive conductor. A typi-
Diodes are mounted to an Experi- cal ohmmeter or continuity light may be
menter Gird Board 2%" x 3%"
C, - Capacitor 35V, 1000 uF used for this test.
S2 - Normally open SPST 5A D.C. switch This high tension lead tester will offer
C2 - Typical automotive ignition capacitor 12 many years of faithful service to any
V.D.C., 1000 uF technician. But keep in mind, the quality
T2 - Typical automotive 12 volt ignition coil of any tool is only as good as the work-
W, & W2 - 35 KV, 18 gage stranded wire manship used during construction.
(all other wires are stranded 20 Please take your time and assemble
gage wire) your lead tester carefully and accu-
G, - 7mm electrode gap rately. If you have any questions con-
A, & A2 - Alligator dip
cerning this item, please feel free to
contact me.
SPORT AVIATION 43