Is NOTHING made well anymore?

$92 bucks. Yup, NINETY-TWO hard earned dollars. YT got that from me for a complete Magneto rebuild kit for an IH H4 mag. Only problem is, I'm a bit disappointed with what I got. The mag tower gasket would not line up w/ the holes, the new mag tower had the copper strip screwed in cockeyed, as it would not fit. HOW could whomever put that together NOT have seen that? Obviously, they simply didn't care. (I had to unscrew the strip, trim it, and reinstall it. Not a big deal, but I SHOULDN'T HAVE HAD TO DO THAT AT ALL!) worst of all, the condensor will NOT work. Its too long. You can put it in, and it will actually "FUNCTION", but you can't put the hold down clamp in, as the screw will not clear the base of the condensor.
I'm just aggravated. Its not like there weren't any H4 mags in the world they could have use to CHECK and see if their product would work!
The packaging is the typical red label on a white box that I've seen on so many import parts sold by TISCO, and the like. I should have known.
The official stance is, "no return on electrical parts."
Of course. Why should anyone stand behind their product? Who'd stand behind the foreign junk anyway? I sure wouldn't, but then I wouldn't sell it in the first place.
I could rant for hrs on how the US has sold its soul to cheap foreign labor. I suppose its my fault too, for trying to save a buck, but crimeny, this is "Yesterday's Tractors", not "Yesterday's Rickshaws!"
Well, now that its out of my system, I still need a hand. After replacing the coil, points, rotor, rotor gear, mag tower, condensor (sort of), thoroughly disassembling and cleaning, and repacking the bearings, insuring the impulse works well, and checking the spark at the tower, it is still thready and weak. The ONLY thing I can think of now, is to have the magnet recharged. It will attract a screwdriver tip, but its not what I'd call a "strong" attraction.
Is there anyone out there that can recharge my magnet? ONLY thing I ask is that you be in the UNITED STATES, a US CITIZEN, and take pride in your work.......
Incidently, the original condensor is on the left. Note the shoulder below the thread on the YT condensor on the right.....

NebraskaKirk could get that recharged for you. I"ll bet he posts real soon. If not I can get a hold of him for you. He meets all of your demands.

Hey, "Bull": Like somebody said on this forum a few months ago: "Made in China" means "ALMOST made right". mike

Here is my made in China story, brother in-law was installing galvanized roofing on the weekend so he asked for my help. Last fall I had purchased a new nut driver for roofing screws but had never used it. Started installing screws in the roof and on the third screw the nut driver just spun...I thought a dud screw..try another same thing..look inside the socket and it is completely stripped. Removed the nut driver from the screwdriver and on the shank is "Made in China". $$$ gone into the garbage.

JimB

About the coil cover gasket, did you try installing it in different positions to see it the holes lined up better? The gasket is not perfectly square, it is slightly rectangular, if the holes don"t line up, try rotating the gasket a quarter turn and see if it is any better. You say the spark is thready and weak, how big of a gap will the spark jump? The spark should jump a quarter of an inch or more. I assume you timed the two gears properly?

While I do have a magnet charger, it is not powerful enough to recharge the permant magnet of the H4 magneto. But since the H4 has a PERMANT magnet, it really does not have to be recharged. The magnetos prior to the H4 with a non-permant "horseshoe" magnet are the ones that should be recharged.

I had my H mag rebuilt at my local USA electric shop for $78 and it works fine. And I got to stop at a local USA restaurant for homemade apple pie and coffee.

In todays world I always try to have original starters and gen/alt rebuilt for the reasons you stated.

For a few more bucks you could have the mag rebuilt by the Magman who does a great job and gets it back ASAP. Also there are probably local places tat do that work. Henry

should of used magman. would of been a few dollars more but well worth it.

I've bought a few parts from YT with no problems at all, very good parts and fast shipping. Are you sure you order the correct parts for your tractor? YT is not the only place that does not accept returns on electrical parts, OEM says the same thing and every other tractor parts place I see says no returns on electrical system parts.

yes, I'm sure I ordered the correct parts... its an IH H-4 Mag rebuild kit. All of the rest of the parts are for the mag, and it came in a sealed white bag. Whether they SENT the right condensor is unknown.

Yes, I tried the gasket several different ways, rotating and flipping. I've noticed they are not "square."
The Gear is oriented correctly, but since I'm testing from the tower, I'd think that wouldn't make a difference.
The gap it will spark is a mere .109" (little less than 3/16")
If the magnet is "permanent" and can't be recharged, where else might I look?

got an address or phone # for magman?

here ya go
the magman

The Gear is oriented correctly, but since I'm testing from the tower, I'd think that wouldn't make a difference.

Click to expand...

Yes it matters. The gear has to be engaged properly for the opening of the points to be in time with the rotation of the armature (magnet). Any misengagement will result in a weaker spark. It will also result in improper orientatin of the rotor and incorrect timing when running, although you are not at a stage where those matter.

You can get a spark out of the coil tower with the gears off. The point cam turns with the armature and doesn't need timing. After you have a good spark , you need the gears timed right to bring it out of the cap correctly.

thanks much... sent him an email... Anything can be fixed, its just how much $ you wanna throw at it...! (Its becoming a matter of principle now!)

I've recharged many wico and f-m magneto magnets with a coil of wire and a 12v power supply. An actual magnet charger is best, but the coil of wire and a power supply will do the job.
No returns on electrical parts is pretty much the standard for the mechanical trade. They should replace the condenser since you say it won't fit your application.

That is why I avoid doing business with Wal-Mart, China:s largest trade partner.Cheaply made junk from a company that treats their employee;s like yesterdays newspaper.

I bought a bunch of Chinese made postholes, danged things wouldn't hold dirt. Hadda throw 'em all away...

(quoted from post at 09:52:14 08/06/08 ) You can get a spark out of the coil tower with the gears off. The point cam turns with the armature and doesn't need timing.

Click to expand...

Teddy,
You are right, the cam is on the armature shaft. I was thinking it was on the rotor shaft. It has been too long since I have been into one and I should have checked the diagram.

I am not saying it can"t be recharged, just that it does not have to be recharged.

Dellbertt, good for you. I like making my "trips" include good food also. My late dad had a real "thing" for pie and I inherited that "thing". I avoid the chain outfits and go mom and pop operations. Thus I don"t contribute to the Chinese building empire any more than necessary and stay away from that mart place-proud to say I haven"t been in their parking lot for nearly two years. I try to get the post holes that keep the dirt out - no, I"m not giving out my source for them either.