MG Car Repair: No spark, point gap, coil wire

Question
Hi
I have a 1978 MGB and when I went to start it it went but with hesitation then when I went to start it again it would not. I checked the fuel and it was pumping from the fuel pump and when I checked the distrubutor I found that it was sparking at the points but none at the spark plug.

Answer
Hi Jim,
When you test for spark you first need to test the coil by removing the coil wire from the cap and place a spark plug on the coil wire and lay it on a metal part of the engine and spin the engine over. If you do not have a spark you need to check point gap and clean the contact points and try again. If you have spark at the plug take the spark plug off of the wire and with the cap off have someone spin the engine over while you hold the coil wire about 1/8th of an inch from the center of the rotor. If a spark jumps to the rotor, the rotor is bad. If the spark will not jump to the rotor than take a strong light and look closely at the inside and outside of the cap. You are looking for "carbon tracking" (looks like jagged black lines) This is carbon tracking and the cap needs to be replaced. If all looks well up to that point you need to test the wires with an ohm meter. I think it is 25K ohms per foot.
Howard