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I broke the terminal off of my ignition coil. Can I fix it?
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StickerBus
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 21, 2015 3:08 pm    Post subject: I broke the terminal off of my ignition coil. Can I fix it? Reply with quote

Hello Samba!
After having been a lurker on this amazing forum for the past year I have finally joined and am hoping that you can help me along as I am doing my first rebuild. I bought the "Baja Princess" a few months ago. She has been plastered with stickers by the PO and was neglected for about 4 years before I purchased her.

Here she is on the day I picked her up:
Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.


Now I am doing major rust repairs and am about halfway through my engine rebuild...we'll see how much longer until I will get to hit the road!

On to my question/problem, today I was cleaning some of the engine parts and took the terminals off the ignition coil to clean some of the oil and gunk off. When I went to fasten the nut on the + terminal however, the thread broke!!! Please see image below:
Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.


I am on a tight tight budget and as this build has already cost me a lot more than expected and will continue to do so, I would love to not have to buy a new coil! Especially as this is an original Made in Germany blue Bosch coil.

Is there anyway of repairing this terminal? Could I solder or even weld the 3 male terminal connector piece to the broken off bolt? Has anyone experienced this before?

Thank you for reading my post. I hope someone can help me out Smile

Victor
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Tom Powell
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 21, 2015 3:38 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Repairs would be suspect and that is a critical connection.

Used, working coil $20 shipped
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/detail.php?id=1815234

Aloha
tp
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kreemoweet
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 21, 2015 4:17 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Jeebus, guys who are into ghetto hacks usually just DO it, they don't ask the Internet for advice about it ...
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alman72
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 21, 2015 4:25 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I wonder how deep the broken post goes. maybe you could drill down into it a quarter/half inch, then use a self tapping bolt? just putting my macgruber out there. then when that dosent work, order the 20$ one
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StickerBus
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 21, 2015 4:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for the link, Tom. As I'll be ordering a few parts this week anyways I suppose I'll just throw in a $30 coil.

However I will also attempt to repair the broken bolt while I wait for parts. Even if it just becomes my backup coil.

Cheers!
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busdaddy
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 21, 2015 4:50 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

The studs are cast into the cap when it's made, they are hollow and the wire from the windings goes into it and it's soldered, there's not a whole lot you could do to repair that reliably unless you soldered on a wire that led to a remotely mounted insulated junction block.

You're a brave one taking on that project, it had more than enough terminal rust when I saw it last 10 years ago, the stickers were kind of structural as I recall.
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 21, 2015 4:53 pm    Post subject: Re: I broke the terminal off of my ignition coil. Can I fix Reply with quote

StickerBus wrote:
...Is there anyway of repairing this terminal? Could I solder or even weld the 3 male terminal connector piece to the broken off bolt?...


No. Don't waste your time. You're asking for intermittent ignition problems, overheating and burning up the coil, points, and/or condensor. I know it sucks to toss the coil, but seriously, don't waste your time.
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StickerBus
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 21, 2015 8:07 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for your help guys. Definitely getting another coil. I imagine I could just solder the wire from inside of the bolt directly to the little 3-terminal plate and somehow secure it all, but it seems like a waste of my time.

Quote:
You're a brave one taking on that project, it had more than enough terminal rust when I saw it last 10 years ago, the stickers were kind of structural as I recall.


Hahaha, yeah it has been a lot of rust work. Do you know the PO personally or when did you come across this bus?
I already removed the floor and have to replace/repair much of the metal framework underneath. The stickers are most certainly structural along with the inch of bondo I discovered! This is a good first bus though as I can only make it 'better' and don't really have to worry about anything not being done proper/original/stock. [/quote]
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Wildthings
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PostPosted: Mon Sep 21, 2015 9:07 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

If you had a Hot Spot soldering machine available then you could probably solder it without doing much harm, but if you could afford such a machine you would likely not consider wasting your time trying to repair an old likely worn out coil.
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Steve22
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PostPosted: Tue Sep 22, 2015 6:54 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

do a search in the early bug section, I saw where a guy had fixed a similar broken coil there.
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busdaddy
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PostPosted: Tue Sep 22, 2015 7:22 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

StickerBus wrote:
Do you know the PO personally or when did you come across this bus?

Sorry, no afilliation with the PO, I saw it parked infront of a skateboard shop just south of SE Marine drive, 1/2 block east of the Knight street bridge about 10 years ago, had to stop and check it out. Surprised
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PostPosted: Tue Sep 22, 2015 7:42 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Is this the same bus??

Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.


The prodigal son returns!

Good luck with the coil. I hate throwing away good German parts.
Robbie
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Bala
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PostPosted: Tue Sep 22, 2015 7:54 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

asiab3 wrote:
Is this the same bus??


Rear vents. I wonder how many "sticker buses" there are out there (please no one start a new thread Razz )? I've seen a few splits too.

Any work in progress pictures? I bet every one of those stickers just peeled right off leaving only beautiful OG paint behind. Laughing
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rusty busty
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PostPosted: Tue Sep 22, 2015 7:58 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

asiab3 wrote:
Is this the same bus??

Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.


The prodigal son returns!

Good luck with the coil. I hate throwing away good German parts.
Robbie


Hey I saw that bus at a music festival this summer. Not the same bus though. OP's bus is an earlier tin top. This one is a 72 pop top.
Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.

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busdaddy
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PostPosted: Tue Sep 22, 2015 7:59 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Interesting, that one's a 72 camper, the one on the trailer is a 71. Apparently there's more than one Shocked
There's some pics of one in my gallery that I jacked from a Craigslist ad a few years ago (the dazed looking dood rings a bell). There was a tintop Westy parked in the weeds near the skate shop, maybe the PO went through a few of them?, I got the impression the one I saw up close got ridden hard and put away wet, the road where it parked was rather umm....oily and it didn't look like maintenance was high on thier priority list.
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rusty busty
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PostPosted: Tue Sep 22, 2015 8:09 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

rusty busty wrote:

Hey I saw that bus at a music festival this summer. Not the same bus though. OP's bus is an earlier tin top. This one is a 72 pop top.
Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.


I didn't even notice that there was a bus on a bus at the festival. I just saw it in the pic after I posted it!
Image may have been reduced in size. Click image to view fullscreen.

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PostPosted: Tue Sep 22, 2015 8:13 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Ahhh I didn't catch the differences on my phone. Hopefully the OPs bus is in better shape!
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Dana Champion
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PostPosted: Tue Sep 22, 2015 9:05 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

" Prodigal son returns "..... classic.😲 I about fell over!

Not to mention that "that" bus has a poptop Shocked

So we've seen a '71, '72, and '73. Anybody got a sticker ed '74 ?

I thought the " son" was Bart Simpson incarnate.......


Very Happy

Good luck with your coil
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mikedjames
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PostPosted: Tue Sep 22, 2015 1:35 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

The screw thread on the connection has snapped but the wire is soldered on still. If you are short of cash, wrap another piece of wire round the broken stud and solder it on, or lay one of the tags down on top of the coil and solder that to the stud - then you will have a spade connection.

Will not be the best fix, there will always be questions and worries, but if the bus runs then its cash available for fixing something else in the meantime.
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StickerBus
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PostPosted: Tue Sep 22, 2015 3:39 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:

The screw thread on the connection has snapped but the wire is soldered on still. If you are short of cash, wrap another piece of wire round the broken stud and solder it on, or lay one of the tags down on top of the coil and solder that to the stud - then you will have a spade connection.


That's exactly what I had planned. Don't know why it wouldn't work as long as engine vibration doesn't cause the spade connector to come loose from the coil...thanks for being supportive of my "ghetto" approach Smile
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