my advice would be to change points first (usually cost a couple of bucks, or in your case a couple of pounds) just to confirm this is the cause of the prob. Always a good idea to have the car running well before making any mods (such as electronic ignition), that way you cna be sure wether the mod is working properly. otherwise it may be that you've stuffed up the modification.
Very thin pipe (like pencil thinckness) runs from the vacuum advance retard unit on the side of the dizzy to a orifice on the inlet manifold. The vacuum generated in the inlet manifold under acceleration / deceleration adjusts the unit on the side of the dizzy which alters the timing so it runs better under acceleration / deceleration as appropriate.
I've had a Lumenition electronic kit on mine for about 3 years. It packed up
2 days after fitting due to a rubbish connector supplied as part of the kit to connect the optical sensor to the ignition module - I think Lumenition have changed the spec of them now. After changing the connector for something better it has run perfectly ever since - holiday in Wales this year, Norfolk last year, work and back every day, greenlaning occasionally. It got a thorough soaking when I went wading last year in the floods and forgot about a bloody big hole down a local track. It's funny how flat everything looks on the surface of a flooded track, and what surprise you get when you are reminded that the track underneath goes up and down!
However, I agree with Samuel. For a few pounds it is better to get everything working on points first. Fitting electronic ignition just introduces another unknown into the equation.
Can you still get those electronic units that retain and are triggered by the points? The coil current no longer passes through the points and they then lasted for 'ever' with me (I was eating them like you appear to be). There is a further advantage in that all the original coil components are retained and you can resurrect the standard setup if the electronic box goes on the blink.
I also agree that you should get the 'normal' system working correctly first.
I figured that, trouble is its a packet of money i could probably do without spending just at the moment. Part of me thinks, get the points then do the rest later on. The other part says why waste money on a set of points if they are going in the bin later on. Tough one. Its made worse by the fact that as i said the GS wasn't due to get the kit for a while. Methinks this rad bod might be off the road til next season to give me a chance to save for the massive list of things it needs.
Sound advice from you both I think. Brothers GS is on points, so if nothing else he might gain a spare set in the end if I do follow them with elec ign.
Thanks very much. Thats a lot clearer, dunno is the answer to the original question, but will have a look. So what are the pipes of a similar diameter off the carbs? Are they a drain off or something. Excuse my ignorance, this is something of a learning curve.
If you hear of a good second hand one i'd be interested, making do with a 'brova' for the time being. Not as efficient, requires constant re-fueling and similarly to the 'othahalf' develops an irritating whining after prolonged use. However, unlike 'othahalf' given sufficient liquid re-fueling it runs trouble free for atleast another couple of hours. However, it does have a habit of packing up altogether at the most inopportune moments and generally costs a lot in running costs ;o)
I've not seen them for a while, probably because they don't last for 'ever'! The heel wears on the cam in the distributor and the timing drifts. I always carry a set of points and condenser with the bit of wire to go to the coil so if the Lumenition fails I can change back in an emergency.
Points are cheap, and it's unlikely they'll go in the bin - as they take so little space they'll go in the toolbox and may help someone else in the future...
I reckon get the radbod painted then wait until you have the GS running well enough to forget about it while you focus on the radbod.
Although a bit tricky, there's nothing too challenging with a V8 101 - like any other 30 odd year old vehicle, it needs a good going over every now and then, but once you have it sorted, it'll carry on for another 30 odd years with minimal major attention.
On or around Wed, 31 Aug 2005 09:00:25 +0100, Mother enlightened us thusly:
'tis also a fact that once you get 'em working right (check condition of condenser and that you have a good, correct coil) they should work OK with not much attention. I've run a V8 on a points sistributor and they do work.
If it has a ballast resistor, make sure it has the correct coil. If it
*doesn't* have a ballast resistor, make sure it has the correct (12V) coil. Ballasted coils are usually either 9V or 6V, and the resistor gets bypassed during starting to boost the output voltage.
The other way of going "electronic" is to hunt a 35DLM8 distributor from a later vehicle. If your engine is a very old V8, then it might need the drive at the bottom of the dizzy adapting, ISTR. Early ones have a blade on the distributor and a slot in the oilpump drive, while later ones are tother way around. however, there's a way of making it work - not sure, TBH, what i did with it; it was something reltively simple. The other option is a different oil pump / front cover, I think.
you'll want the amp unit (either on the distributor body or separate, mounted near the coil) with it and again, the correct electronic-type coil.
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