Ok, third try on this response, I don’t know what’s happening…
There are several instruments out there that can measure capacitance. But that’s not the whole story for condensers in a magneto circuit. What has been the most accurate predictor of how a condenser will function in a mag for me, is a measure of leakage current at the operating voltage of the condenser. The Merc-o-tronic instruments are great at this, and I think some of them measure capacitance, too. The old Stevens testers with the neon light are good, but don’t measure capacitance.
I’ve rebuilt a couple of the old Heathkit C-2 capacitor testers, and they work really well. Even the homemade condenser testers with the neon lights are pretty good. If you have a good standard, you can measure the flash rate and use it to predict capacitance. The Heathkit IT-11 and IT-28 units are really nice, but pretty pricey.
Good Luck with this…
Tom
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