electronic ignition

[Tony Wheeler]

Originally Posted by Tony Smith

Hurrah! They have finally released a unit for the Ford Crab distributor that operates on 6v. The part No. is 1285LSP6.

Yes I'm planning to fit one of these myself Tony, but only because the dizzy is so inaccessible. Points gap needs adjustment after a while because the rubbing block wears down, and I won't always feel like removing the grille and radiator to do it!

However I won't leave home without a spare conventional dizzy. When it comes to electronics there's no such thing as roadside repairs! When these pick ups blow you're stranded unless you have a spare unit. It's happened to me three times - once on my old V12 Jag, and twice on my much newer 302 Ford.

[Richard Farrant]

Originally Posted by Tony Wheeler

However I won't leave home without a spare conventional dizzy. When it comes to electronics there's no such thing as roadside repairs! When these pick ups blow you're stranded unless you have a spare unit. It's happened to me three times - once on my old V12 Jag, and twice on my much newer 302 Ford.

Hi Tony,
My experience of electronic conversions are not failures of the unit or module, but the higher voltage HT destroying the rotor arms or centre carbon area of the distributor cap. Maybe this was the one particular type, do Pertronix kits increase the HT voltage above the normal 15,000 or so volts?

[cletrac (RIP)]

With Petronix you keep your regular coil so voltage is the same. The conversion just replaces the points with a magnetic unit

[Richard Farrant]

Originally Posted by cletrac

With Petronix you keep your regular coil so voltage is the same. The conversion just replaces the points with a magnetic unit

Thanks, sounds like that is the one to go for then.

[Tony Wheeler]

Originally Posted by Richard Farrant

My experience of electronic conversions are not failures of the unit or module, but the higher voltage HT destroying the rotor arms or centre carbon area of the distributor cap.

Yes that's true Richard, it's uncommon for the pick up module to fail, and extreme longevity can be expected from genuine parts. My Jag was '78 model and failed circa 2006, and the auto elec told me it was the original part (optical pick up module). My Ford is '91 model and the original part failed in 2010 (magnetic pick up module). As is typical these days you can't buy the module alone, you have to replace the entire distributor! At $600 for a genuine Ford distributor I opted for the aftermarket job at $300, and a year or so later the module blew again! I chanced my arm again with the aftermarket job and so far so good, but I live in constant fear of it dying on me - which will no doubt happen on a country backroad somewhere interstate with a fully loaded tandem trailer in tow! The ramifications for a blitz breakdown are even worse, so I'd be crazy not to carry a spare dizzy. It's worth it for peace of mind alone.

As you say Richard it's high voltage that does the most damage. Personally I've never understood the obsession with 40,000 volt coils and big fat sparks if the motor is already starting easily and firing on all cylinders. Does a flamethrower light your BBQ any better than a match? Same goes for any air/fuel charge - it either lights or it doesn't, there's no in-between range. As far as I can make out these high voltage systems are all just marketing hype for rev heads, with no basis in combustion theory and no empirical evidence of improved performance. Call me a skeptic but until it can be demonstrated otherwise I'll stick with the 6V system that got these vehicles through WWII in all sorts of climates on all sorts of crappy fuel!

[Bob Carriere]

I installed mine on my cab 11 on a rebuilt 261.

Not a lot of mileage but the engine runs very well.

Using the 40k coil really gives a very hot spark...... does it need to be that hot a spark ?? probably not.

With the high voltage you can check very easily if the cables/sparkplugs are firing...... with the original skinny hard wire spark plug cables if you have wet hands and hold a wire while rest the other hand on the crossmember you get jump started. I now have modern larger size sparkplug wires.

Also had to increase the gap to 40thou on the plugs.....engine ran considerably smoother. Got the tip on the web from experienced user of Pertronix.

Knowing how fickled a CMP can be, I would not leave on a long jaunt with out a spare fully set up dizzy ready to drop in the engine block stored in an emergency waterproof ammo can..... mind you on a cab 11 that may take some doing to even access the dizzt side without a half hour of undoing engine cover screws.


Maybe that explains why most cab 11 and 12 we have acquired never had the full engine "doghouse" in place..

The electronic system did away with the points, condenser, ballast. It is hardly noticeable and I can't burn the points by leaving the power on.

Bob C.

[Tony Wheeler]

Originally Posted by Bob Carriere

The electronic system did away with the points, condenser, ballast. It is hardly noticeable and I can't burn the points by leaving the power on.

Yes I agree Bob, and you'll never have to re-set the timing. It really is a no brainer, esp. with the distributor so inaccessible.

I remain skeptical about high voltage systems making engines run smoother, that just tells me the system replaced was faulty in some way. However there's certainly no harm in them, provided the whole of the HT system is upgraded, not just the coil as is often the case. Sounds like you've done all that Bob.

Perhaps it's another confidence thing, I must admit it's pleasing to see and hear a big fat spark!

[motto]

My experience is not with CMPs but with a 6x6 Dodge Weapons Carrier. I installed a Pertronix 6volt unit in the vehicle twelve months ago and I am completely satisfied with the performance.

If the Dodge had had a 12volt system I would have gone for the Hotspark brand ignition unit as it is cheaper and comes with a mounting plate that replaces the original points mounting plate. I had to strip everything off the original points mounting plate and re-use it for the Pertronix installation. Unfortunately Hotspark did not supply 6volt units.

David