Thanks for the kind words Paul, much appreciated.
Skippy , a couple of observations about this.
Any of the Unilites were good distributors. However, let’s discuss a couple of things you might be interested in.
They were not a true high energy type distributor. By that I mean they were more of an electronic version of a points eliminator. They used the points type voltage supply, not the battery voltage supply of a true high energy design. On the e other hand the points weren’t either so it’s a wash on the voltage supply there. One is mechanical and the other is electrical .
In my opinion they were loads better and more durable than a current Pertronix. That said, a few more things. They absolutely without question, did/do not like voltage spikes/transients. In other words they didn’t care much for untrained battery boosting procedures, and for sure welding on the car without disconnecting if the battery beforehand. This was a big one. And took out lots of unilite modules in the day. So much so they started selling an add on power filter to help out matters.
The little unilite for its time was in fact a very accurate distributor. They flat did a good job of accurately firing the spark at the right moment, and would do it for a long long time if the module didn’t get smoked.
They weren’t real good in the 1986-1988 time frame for arriving with the total mechanical curve being where the little tag in the box said it was set at at the factory. I would check that to be sure for peace of mind.
To recurve it, will require at the least their stepped plastic key to set the total mechanical advance.its not a 100% got to have, but it sure helps so you don’t have to do the adjust and check and repeat song and dance. Their springs are also somewhat special also. A Mallory curve kit would make life 20x easier here for sure.
The vacuum advance units used to be adjustable for a small workable range. Or at least the ones I had messed with years and years ago were.
I would have no issue running one today. However, when stuff starts falling off of it, one might be advised to have some spare parts on hand. I’m sure a replacement vac adv canister would keep you busy for a day or two trying to locate. Not that they are prone to fail, but you cannot call the speed shop or jegs and summit that I’m aware of.
Ultimately as was said earlier, for my money a good old fashioned points distributor tuned up and a cd box is rather damn hard to improve upon.
With the same curve in either, it’s not gonna be a noticeable advantage either way, street or strip, until stuff starts falling off. And then at that point, replacement service items is when or may be when the fight starts…
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