[rrago]

Arcing points is a sign of a bad condenser, replace it.

 

[rrago]

Back years ago, when I used to smoke, and rode bikes with points, I would use the strip on a book of matches to clean points. I don't see anything wrong with using really fine sandpaper on them, but only pull it through once, then flip it over and pull it through again. Besides a bad condenser, one of the big causes of points failure was poor contact between the 2 sides. I have seen points sanded or filed so much that only one tiny spot was actually making contact. I had to "dress" the points on my '66 Triumph Bonneville every thousand miles of so.

I also was taught the matchbook trick by my GM Mechanic Dad, carried some in the glove box of every vehicle we had! BTW, the paper matchbook is also just the right thickness for the initial gap setting too! Fine tuning the gap, though is meter territory. But if you need to get rolling on a dark and stormy night a matchbook can be a lifesaver. Thanks for jogging that memory!