Quote:
Originally posted by hudlow
Well, I got to talking to a mechanic buddy of mine about points and an older system like mine.
An old beater like I got will keep on running for many miles with the points out of adjustment or when they need cleaning but with an electronic ignition when it goes bad going down the road - you're down. There's just too many things that can go wrong.
I can keep everything I need - about $50 worth of stuff: points condensor, coil and a rotor button in the toolbox and practically rebuild and adjust my ignition system on the side of the road with a thumb wrench and a rusty ol' flathead screwdriver. I remember hearing tales of cleaning the points by rubbing the contacts with a dollar bill or setting them using a dime for a gauge in a pinch and getting home.
I know the old ignition system is outdated but it's something I can work on and I'm too old to start learning about the newer electronics.
In fact I went by my mechanic today to set up a time for him to tune up my Tacoma. It's starting to skip a little starting off from a dead stop.
I'm not saying I'll never switch it out but it's too early to be thinking about that - I gotta get my money's worth out of all this new (old timey) stuff I just put on the truck!
Thanks,
hudlow
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A GM style HEI is not that complicated and its far easier to fiddle with and will run much better while needing far less maintenance.
Basically, you only need 1 wire to run it (12v hot key on and run). About the only thing that goes wrong with them is that the module can go bad so I keep a spare in the glove box for my truck (86 Suburban)..... its a 10 minute fix to pop the distributor cap, unplug the old module and replace it.
Davis Unified Ignition (DUI) or Pertronix kits are essentially GM HEI copies for other engines.
Besides.....if you need a dime to gap points....I think you might have other issues
