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cheapo HEI distributor

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by Smilin Jack, Jan 18, 2013.

  1. Smilin Jack
    Joined: Nov 8, 2010
    Posts: 465

    Smilin Jack
    Member

    I bought one of the 50.00 shipping included small base Chevy HEI distributors on Ebay. Uses an external coil. Got it installed it sputtered the engine and then nothing else. Put an old points distributor in and fired it up. anybody ever use one of these? Fair looking unit but if it don't run? Has a red and black wire. their tech says red to pos on coil and black to neg. Did that plus the hot wire to pos. side. Is it just junk? Won't fire a spark.
     
  2. JeffB2
    Joined: Dec 18, 2006
    Posts: 9,503

    JeffB2
    Member
    from Phoenix,AZ

    First thing to check is voltage to the HEI,it must be 12 Volts + or it won't run so check it with a volt meter.GM's with points used a resistor wire off the starter which sends lower voltage to the points.You need to have your feed wire to the HEI from a wire that turns on and off through the key switch for a full 12 volts.The HEI's that use an external coil have to have a coil with matching resistance or you will have that same problem,did they sell you the correct coil to match?
     
  3. My neighbor bought one of those. Good looking piece. Put it in.. Hit the key and it purred like a happy cat... Until it hit 2500 rpm's. That was all it would pull. I screwed around with it a bit. He had the coil and positive for the distributor on the same wire. The coil required a resistor. I split them and hooked 12 volts to the distributor and left the resistor wire on the coil. Runs fine for the last 6 months.
     
  4. LOW LID DUDE
    Joined: Aug 16, 2007
    Posts: 1,223

    LOW LID DUDE
    Member
    from Colorado

    I bought one of those cheep $55 dis for my 327.When you install it the distributor moves around from side to side at the base.Yea sure the clamp will hold it in place but I don't like the fact that it is sloppy and could move later. I replaced it with a stock distributor and it is nice and tight. You get what you paid for, sure is purdy but worthless if it doesn't perform.
     

  5. 54sled
    Joined: Feb 11, 2012
    Posts: 251

    54sled
    Member

    Got the same one,never a problem!
     
  6. 29moonshine
    Joined: Dec 30, 2006
    Posts: 1,341

    29moonshine
    Member

    i put one in my 327 could not get it to idle below 1200 rpms sent it back . they sent me another one. it runs just fine
     
  7. okiedokie
    Joined: Jul 5, 2005
    Posts: 4,785

    okiedokie
    Member
    from Ok

    Using two of them for quite awhile, no problems.
     
  8. lawman
    Joined: Sep 19, 2006
    Posts: 2,665

    lawman
    Member

    Spend a little more green and not worry about "Hit and Miss".
     
  9. models916
    Joined: Apr 19, 2012
    Posts: 379

    models916
    Member

    Guys, they are all made in China (Crane MSD Mallory Accel etc). I have used plenty of those $50.00 ones in the years gone by. I always buy 2 and keep one in the trunk. They need 12v and the correct ohm coil to opperate correctly. You can not just use the old distributor wire. You have to run a new one from 12v keyed power without a resistor.
     
  10. captmullette
    Joined: Oct 15, 2009
    Posts: 1,929

    captmullette
    Member

    got one on mine for 3 years works fine, it needs good voltage or it will quit....
     
  11. Smilin Jack
    Joined: Nov 8, 2010
    Posts: 465

    Smilin Jack
    Member

    I bought two new resistors yesterday and both have 13 volts going in and coming out. It's hard to hook up a resistor wrong. LOL Did I get two bad ones or am I stupid?
     
  12. Smilin Jack
    Joined: Nov 8, 2010
    Posts: 465

    Smilin Jack
    Member

    BTW, I'm the kind of person that if anything can go wrong, it will. LOL
     
  13. Jack,your luck ain't that bad but you obviously you do get what you pay for. :rolleyes: HRP
     
  14. Depends how you are checking it. If the circuit isn't being turned on when you check it you will indeed get the same voltage in both sides of the resistor. Only when the circuit is on should you see a voltage drop.



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  15. Smilin Jack
    Joined: Nov 8, 2010
    Posts: 465

    Smilin Jack
    Member

    How ya doing HRP? I carried the first bad resistor back to my parts man yestereday and got another one. Kinda feel bad about a second one. LOL maybe today goes better.
     
  16. Smilin Jack
    Joined: Nov 8, 2010
    Posts: 465

    Smilin Jack
    Member

    Shawn, thanks! Maybe I am stupid. LOL I'll go check that. Now i do feel like the village idiot.
     
  17. Smilin Jack
    Joined: Nov 8, 2010
    Posts: 465

    Smilin Jack
    Member

    Not exactly a HAMB engine but this is what I'm trying to run on a stand. It's a 454 with a 310 dur. Lunati cam and two 650 Holleys that I want to trade for two Edelbrocks.
    [​IMG]
     
  18. Gman0046
    Joined: Jul 24, 2005
    Posts: 6,256

    Gman0046
    Member

    I still can't understand how someone can put thousands of dollars into their cars and then go buy a $50 Chinese distributor made by small children.
     
  19. Smilin Jack
    Joined: Nov 8, 2010
    Posts: 465

    Smilin Jack
    Member

    It's because I put my thousands of dollars into the engine and didn't have money for a good distributor. LOL It still doesn't work so I'm putting new wires on my trusty old points distributor.
     
  20. Drive Em
    Joined: Aug 25, 2006
    Posts: 1,748

    Drive Em
    Member

    MSD is made in the USA, right down the street from me.
     
  21. Dick Dake
    Joined: Sep 14, 2006
    Posts: 788

    Dick Dake
    Member

    I bought one for $100 a few years ago from Jeg's. It looked to be a reman Accel unit. Nice piece for $100.
     
  22. JeffB2
    Joined: Dec 18, 2006
    Posts: 9,503

    JeffB2
    Member
    from Phoenix,AZ

    Not everything is USA made :( http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&...14.0.les;cpsugrpq1high..0.0...1.1.dYOL37jf4xI After seeing a video from MSD showing the plant in operation it appears that the workers probably can walk to work from the Mexico side of the border,does that mean "Made in the USA" by imported workers with a green card?? Guess Sheriff Joe needs to investigate :D:D
     
    Last edited: Jan 19, 2013
  23. So made in the US isn't good enough, now it has to be made by the "right" kind of people??
     
  24. Drive Em
    Joined: Aug 25, 2006
    Posts: 1,748

    Drive Em
    Member

    They probably could walk to work from Mexico, but it is at least 3-4 miles. I know a good majority of the people who work there and I can assure you that they live in the U.S.
     
  25. JeffB2
    Joined: Dec 18, 2006
    Posts: 9,503

    JeffB2
    Member
    from Phoenix,AZ

    The comment I made was not intended to be racist but to point out that they may be using budget friendly practices that really do not benefit American workers who actually live here,but the real point lies here:http://www.complaintsboard.com/comp...msdignitioncom-jackson-california-c97337.html
     
  26. chase knight
    Joined: Jul 2, 2007
    Posts: 155

    chase knight
    Member

    Crane only recently began offering an HEI distributor, primarily for spec oval track use. It's certainly not in the $50.00 range, and it's manufactured and assembled in the U.S.A. Regards, Chase
     
  27. Smilin Jack
    Joined: Nov 8, 2010
    Posts: 465

    Smilin Jack
    Member

    Never got the cheapo distributor to fire. Put my points distributor in and it ran. Not good but ran. The back Holley seems to be just a big vacuum leak. It's getting fuel but it just won't run at idle at all. Stuff rags in the back carb and it idles . Runs like crap but idles. Time to back up and regroup a while.
     
  28. Smilin Jack
    Joined: Nov 8, 2010
    Posts: 465

    Smilin Jack
    Member

    Anybody see why that back carb is acting like a big vacuum leak? LOL I don't have a clue. Yet!

    [​IMG]
     
  29. Hugh in NC
    Joined: Jan 14, 2012
    Posts: 12

    Hugh in NC
    Member

    I tried 1. Ran okay for about 3 months, then the vacuum advance went out.

    Hugh
     
  30. Maybe the back carb is protesting not being installed in a hot rod. Carb have feelings too, no?


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