Big mystery finally solved...and who deserves the prize?

[Tom Wesenberg]

If it's truely cranking faster and a better horn, then that's a good sign. I'm not a fan of bare metal, like sanding the crossmember where the ground strap is mounted, but a star washer between the cable and frame should give a very good ground connection.

Once running, the coil can get voltage from the battery and/or the generator, and that's another reason I'm not sold on the poor ground solution.