last time I checked porcelain wasn't a conductor to electricity. Being pourous and soaking up oil doesn't affect the metal INSIDE the porcelain from conducting electricity.

 

haha ha ^^^^

 

I am one who cleans plugs.
When a b8evx cost like $7 i will sandbalst them good the wash it out really well to get the bead out.
They work just as good as new, the porcelain is white again, I have never had a problem
I wont waste my time with B8es. Just buy new.
V-rated plugs do work better if you got your carb jetted right.
Split-fires dont work any better than Ngk!

 

last time I checked you seem to not understand how a plug works;

if the insulator nose at the firing tip becomes coated with a foreign substance such as fuel, oil or carbon, this coating makes it easier for the voltage to follow along the insulator nose, leach back down into the metal shell and ground out rather than bridging the gap and firing normally.

understand now?

 

I find it hard to believe a foreign substance such as half burnt oil has better conductivity than a metal used in a spark plug conductor. Electricity does take the path of least resistance, correct?

 

http://www.ngksparkplugs.net/techinf...s/overview.asp

I think this is a good read for anyone with spark plug questions.

 

You are absolutely correct in metal is a better conductor of electricity. However, you are missing the point of how a plug fouls. Electricity does take the path of least resistance. Therefore the current will flow to ground through the "unburned oil" coating the insulator rather than jump the air gap between the electrodes where there is more resistance.

 

Dan: so what you're saying, is by cleaning the oil off the outside of the insulator, you eliminator the problem? the ground on a plug is the outside of the plug, which is also grounded to the engine, so you remove the buildup from inside the plug, problem solved.

 

That is true, when oil is burnt, carbon is formed. What is carbon? that black dusty stuff around the electrode. Carbon it on of the best conductors of electricty, air is a good insulator, therefore when the carbon builds up enough, the spark will travel to gound through it and not make the jump to the ground tab.

 

Exactly, to a point. I am not sure of the porosity of the ceramic, but I suppose that it could, at some point, become saturated enough that cleaning the surface would no longer help. Being realistic though, if your motor is tuned correctly and running well, even a two stroke shouldn't foul plugs that often. I have a plug cleaner but I don't use it much. The cost of a new plug and the infrequency they are needed just doesn't justify it. I do, however, carry a couple of cleaned ones just to get me home should one foul.