replacing points with electronic ignition

Richard Catrambone opined in news:cl6uhs$eca$ snipped-for-privacy@news-int.gatech.edu:

Arrggghhh!! Here we go again

Aftermarket ignitions will gain you nothing in performance, WILL cause you headaches sometimes in reliability.

ever here of google?

it searches groups including this one,

search mallory, pertronix, duraspark.

Duraspark II off a 76 Ford with the 250 engine (eg Grenada) will work fine and it's easy to hook up, and MORE important reliable. Even better, if something fails, you can get parts at any junkyard or larger auto part store.

Not sure as to the veracity of the reply to your post. I've swapped the points ignition for Pertronix in my 1964.5 and in the 1966 the wife had. Both cars ran noticeably smoother after the swap. Never bothered to check gas mileage as that wasn't a concern with either car. I wanted a car that would fire up right away and run smoother at an idle and I was pleased with the results both times.

bill Car: '64.5 Mustang: 260 V8, 3 sp, factory a/c, SVO cam, Performer intake, Holley 390 cfm carb, Pertronix, Hi-Po exhaust manifolds, 1.5" front & 1" rear drop, Jacobs wires, Torq Thrust D's

Guns: Colt AR15, Sig P220, Moss. 590A1, Marlin 70P

Entering into the unknown, V'ger seeks information used to maintain his Vintage Burgundy 1965 Ford Mustang 2+2 w/289 ci 4v oem A Code V8, C4 Trans,

16x8" Vintage 40 wheels, with BF Goodrich gForce T/A 225/50ZR16 tires, American Racing "Mustang" Centercaps, and a whole lot of other stuff; )

True.

If you're thinking of installing a high powered box and aftermarket fancy distributor, don't. You'll spend a lot of time and hundreds of dollars to make it work correctly. And then you won't notice much of a change at all. Certainly not worth it for a daily driver.

However, if you're thinking of a Pertronix kit or a Duraspark swap, it's well worth the time and money. Electronic is better than points in the long run.

I installed a Pertronix kit in mine a couple of years ago. Still looks stock, but starts and runs better than points.

Pertronix is the way to go - installs in minutes, looks stock, is a hell of a lot more reliable than the stock points-condenser and doesn't need the dwell and gap to be adjusted every few thousand miles.

snipped-for-privacy@access4less.net (boB) wrote in :

I had a '65 Mustang w/289 from 1971 to 1978. One of the best mods I ever did to it was to replace the points & condenser with an electronic system (made by Hayes, I believe -- surely no longer available). The installation was relatively simple and straightforward, and from then on, I no longer had to be concerned with frequent tune-ups. Reliability was never a problem, even with that early system.

And it did make the car run better overall, because there was none of the deterioration in performance and gas mileage you get as points wear and go out of adjustment.

-- Jim

snip

the wife had.

bill Car: '64.5 Mustang: 260 V8, 3 sp, factory a/c, SVO cam, Performer intake, Holley 390 cfm carb, Pertronix, Hi-Po exhaust manifolds, 1.5" front & 1" rear drop, Jacobs wires, Torq Thrust D's

Guns: Colt AR15, Sig P220, Moss. 590A1, Marlin 70P

Thanks for the responses. My thought was just to replace the points and condenser with a kit (like Pertronix) and not do anything beyond that.

The Pertronix web page shows the "Ignitor" and "Ignitor II" systems and I've checked a web site or two and it looks like the first is around $65 and the second is around $100. Is that consistent with what others have paid?

Thanks,

Richard

One of the local Mustang stores here in San Antonio sells them for $70 and $100.

Entering into the unknown, V'ger seeks information used to maintain his Vintage Burgundy 1965 Ford Mustang 2+2 w/289 ci 4v oem A Code V8, C4 Trans,

16x8" Vintage 40 wheels, with BF Goodrich gForce T/A 225/50ZR16 tires, American Racing "Mustang" Centercaps, and a whole lot of other stuff; )

Thanks again for the info.

Richard

I didn't see the thread that led to this one.. but if no one suggested it to you check out Pertronix

4 years ago I bought their module for my Jeep. Works great and was easy to install. If you were to have any problems, all you need is a screwdriver and set of points to "undo" conversion. Module fits under distributor cap where points now mount. Has bakealite (spell-check) ring that fits over distributor cam. At the same time I installed hotter coil and resistor to coil wire as shown in instructions from pertronix. $55 at that time.. and no regrets... I MUST pull coil wire to "bump" the starter (to chalk timing mark) otherwise the engine will start! Chuck

Entering into the unknown, V'ger seeks information used to maintain his Vintage Burgundy 1965 Ford Mustang 2+2 w/289 ci 4v oem A Code V8, C4 Trans,

16x8" Vintage 40 wheels, with BF Goodrich gForce T/A 225/50ZR16 tires, American Racing "Mustang" Centercaps, and a whole lot of other stuff; )

I second that. Points are something I will never deal with again. Also, newer points are crap, made from cheaper metal, and do not hold up as well as older ones. A points-and-condenser setup can never give you the clean spark an electronic setup wil.

My Petr>>Richard Catrambone opined in news:cl6uhs$eca$ snipped-for-privacy@news-int.gatech.edu:

Ah. I see, I must have just gotten "lucky" by getting a Petronix and not going that route, which I did consider. Good to know what to avoid.

If he wants to "bump" it, to turn over the engine without starting it (for example, as he said, to line up timing marks), he needs to pull the coil wire. Otherwise, it'll start too quickly with the Pertronix installed.

My dad put one in our boat this spring (powered by a Ch*vy 305), and we noticed an instant improvement. I'd recommend it to anyone who currently has points.

Dad did buy a second Pertronix as a backup spare, but only because in the past we've (read: my brother or I, as young children) fried one or two point ignitions by leaving the ignition on with the engine off. :}

That brings up a good point. Do electronic ignitions suffer from this as well? My younger brother won't leave a vehicle ingition in the "run" position if it's not running for ANY length of time. I do it fairly often because in most vehicles that's the only way to power windows and other stuff.

bill Car: '64.5 Mustang: 260 V8, 3 sp, factory a/c, SVO cam, Performer intake, Holley 390 cfm carb, Pertronix, Hi-Po exhaust manifolds, 1.5" front & 1" rear drop, Jacobs wires, Torq Thrust D's

Guns: Colt AR15, Sig P220, Moss. 590A1, Marlin 70P

Entering into the unknown, V'ger seeks information used to maintain his Vintage Burgundy 1965 Ford Mustang 2+2 w/289 ci 4v oem A Code V8, C4 Trans,

16x8" Vintage 40 wheels, with BF Goodrich gForce T/A 225/50ZR16 tires, American Racing "Mustang" Centercaps, and a whole lot of other stuff; )