Quote:
Originally Posted by HWYSTR455
I bet everyone on this thread has a daily driver with electronics in it.
The goal for the recommended box was for being able to program the curve, not to make up for any lack of carb tuning.
You grab a 50+ yo points dizzy from eGay, you're going to have to check everything. Shaft for wear and straightness, ensure the proper parts are being used and are all there, ensure the body & bushings aren't worn out, and you still have to dial it in with weights & springs.
Sure everybody at one point or another have found you can't just throw any 'ol weights & springs in there and expect it to run properly. Plate/weight mismatch, springs w poor tolerances, RPM creep/drift of timing, plate stops, vacuum can issues/adj/limits, and you still have to find a good set of points or HEI module.
If you want to trust 15+ yo used electronics over a new MSD unit, then more power to you. But to comment, that's a considerable higher risk for failure than a new MSD box.
I guess it would be 'ok' for a weekend cruiser with an occasional WOT blast w max 5500 RPM, but it's not going to cut it for something you want to drive a lot and long distances. And I'm not talking about that one summer event you want to cruise to 2 hours each way to, I mean potentially 1000s of miles within a week or two.
Try a Power Tour. That will shake out a car. I know it flushes out all the people that are still fine with driving on 10 yo tires.
Like I said, so many are reluctant. At least some are switching over the EFi...
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So the guy who knows more about distributors than anyone called a iron points distributor the "gold standard" for reliability and you come along and try and make it sound like a points distributor and a USA made CD box "might not make it" on a long drive ?
Rubbish.
The old USA made CD boxes from Crane, MSD and Mallory are BETTER than the new "Made in CHINA" stuff you can buy now.
I have had a MSD box from the 80s on my car and a distributor from 1962 and it has never gave me trouble.
(I did have a rotor screw loosen once, my fault)
All the guys at the track have had ignition trouble in my 35 years of racing while I just went up and down the track and the same set of points for most of it. I changed them a couple years ago, just because.
You can find nice iron points distributors if you look. I bought this one from Paul Carter for 125$ just to keep around. It is ready to go, looks and feels like a new.
This is the most reliable ignition system, period. And a electronic ignition will not get you one more horsepower with a CD box. I have spun my distributor all the way to the max on a Sun machine, never a hick up. With a good set of Accel/ Napa points, points bounce is a non issue.
You can even have a new condenser sitting under the cap unused just in case the CD box fails and you need to switch some wires around and drive home.
I would get a brass Mallory one. I have had the same Mallory condenser on my setup working the whole time since the 80s.
To the OP. If you do get a iron distributor they have a smaller pin for the gear. I drilled mine out to the size the aluminum units have.
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/maa-401