I have a carburated Ford 302 and need a new distributor. Am leaning toward an electronic distributor, single wire, vacuum advance. Anyone have a specific make/model they like?
I have used several Mallory unilites over the years and only had one module go out. It has 3 wires though.
i use a pertronix flamethrower in my 55 and a msd in my ranger i prefer no vac advance, less variables to dick with. in retrospect i kind of like the pertronix better, its a little more compact and looks a little cleaner if ya care about that Tyson
It does not look traditional, but the one wire HEI I got is simple and reliable. I think proform makes it. Price was ok too.
302..was made way after the cutoff for tradition..at the point of putting one in...we throw tradition out the door and opt for meat and tators... hei works well on the 302's as we both agree on. and cheap..or did you say cheap?
i haved used the hei ones before and there ok but freakin huge and can sometimes interfere with the inlet manifold and be a pita to dial in time because of it Tyson
Mallory is good , the HEI are single wire but HUGE . Get an older points dizzy and put a Pertronix in it ! Small single wire , problem solved !
HEI on a Ford? Get the best and most reliable (also cheapest) setup. The Ford Duraspark distributor, box and wiring from any mid 70's to 80's Ford 302. You can use the small diameter cap like a points type if it needs to look vintage.
DUI dizzy call them up they will ask you what your running what you looking to do some engine specs and will custom tailor it to your app. My dad is runnig 2 of them both in 302's and a friend of mine is running 1 on a 289 niether had had any probs over the last 10 years.
It's easy to foo foo on the HEI... they aren't that reliable in the vehicles they are meant for. The Duraspark is a superior unit... so much so that the MSD distributor (for Chevy and everything else) uses Duraspark guts. I could add a 300 lb stripper missing teeth , back acne and overly hirsuite!
I agree with this 100%. If you have a newer roller cam 302 be sure to ask for an '85 Mustang GT, with manual trans., distributor. You can get a rebuilt Duraspark distributor with a steel gear for that application, at a good price. Of course, if you have a flat tappet cam, just ask for an older model (steel gear). According to www.rockauto.com , the steel gear (roller cam) part number is: 302831. The cast iron gear part number is: 302899. I see both of those are manual trans. only part numbers. If you decide to use a Duraspark, do a little more research first. The Rock Auto website has been a very valuable tool for myself.... Malcolm
HEI's have so many inherent flaws that I can't imagine why anyone would intentionally but one. If you 've got a Chevy and it's already there, they do work OK, but to actually go out and buy one, no way. Not to mention when you put one in a Ford it can easily foul the manifold and aircleaner options. I run this one in both of my small block fords, as well as a few customer cars. Very clean looking, reliable, great advance curve and the price is decent. PerTronix Plug N Play
I built a 289 and got a Dual Point Mallory for pretty cheap...threw a new gear and reset the points. I personally prefer dual point. My friend is running a Mallory Unilite on his 289 with no problems. Neither run vac advance.
we have a winner...(except for the 300 lb stripper) Early , 1974 cap & rotor, extend the wires & mount the module under the dash. Bouns points if you use a TFI coil. Hardly tradirional, but bulletproof. If you get the correct vacuum advance unit, they are adjustable for fine tuning
I run a duraspark dist.with the large cap and an 4-pin HEI module mounted up under the dash. Keeps it away from all the hi-voltage stuff insite the dist.
I use any points distributor to trigger an MSD or any C.D. ignition box. You will get a far better spark than any Pertronix, HEI or Duraspark can deliver. The points will have very little voltage traveling through them, so they will now literally last forever. In the event that the MSD box ever fails, you can re-route a couple of wires and get home on points alone.
Although a CD box CAN deliver a bit more spark energy than other inductive ignition systems, using point to trigger in this day and age is foolish. Points still wear, both on the contacts and the rubbing block, and they are still susceptible to bounce and float along with other problems with spark timing instability. If you need more energy than a PerTronix or Duraspark affords, you can always trigger a CD box with it and have the best of both worlds. The PerTronix II with the adaptive dwell in particular is so far advanced over using points it's not even funny.
Wow, I guess I am foolish. For your information the point gap does not even really matter where it is set as long as it opens and closes. The points are acting as a switch to trigger the box to fire. I have had a set of points on my '63 ranchero for 7 years now with 50,000 miles on them and there are no signs of wear. I also have a points triggered set up on my dirt modified that sees 7500 RPM's with no bounce.
The D.U.I. set up is by far the best plug and play unit out there. You can get any number of cap colors to dress up your engine. A set of their big plug wires will always make you faster. If you should change your cam I think it was $20 for them to retune it. An H.E.I. is a true one wire hook up. You have an easy to wire tach. Really you cannot go wrong. Best of all if someone asks about it tell them its a SBC intake flipped around backwards to make the H.E.I. work.
I run unilites and they run really well in everything i have had. i have also had one module go out but they make a inline surge protector that is supposed to keep a voltage spike from killing them. that said unless you are running some really crazy setup i would go duraspark. because it is using all factory componets, it is alot easier to get your parts if the module takes a dump or something. any parts store will carry duraspark parts...good luck finding parts for most mallorys or msd ignitions when you are stranded along side the road on a saturday or something.
As stated above the Ford duraspark and my favorite is the MSD 3 wire. Either one will serve you well.
I have a 1971 Ford Sport Custom 302, the distributor was changed from the original to a 80s model mustang distributor, please help me figure out what is the best distributor to get next
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