Technical Undo a Petronix Ignition??

So I know there are some that swear by this Petronix stuff….but how hard is it to undo it and go back to points??? I haven't researched it yet but can you just pull out the stuff and go back to putting points and a condenser on the distributor plate or does the plate change as well in the conversion? (409 Chevy)

I know there will be the ”mine works great”…type comments but I've never dealt with these things before and this one came with an engine that supposedly worked great but it's not too good imo.

It will start and run but put a timing light on it (6 degrees initial) and turn the distributor to advance it and well…..nothing happens.

Like I say this Petronix thing was in the distributor when I got the engine and I just hope a perfectly good 409 distributor can be salvaged. That is unless you hi-tech wizards can tell me why it won’t advance the timing.

 

Yep, Gimpy has it right. While I'm not a fan of Pertronix (I prefer MSD boxes), they're simply a points replacement and have no effect on what your timing is doing. You have other issues....

 

Gotta attach timing light to #1 plug, not the coil. 8^) Jack E/NJ

 

Ooops, deleted the post:

All the Pertronix unit does is trigger spark. It does nothing else.

If you are getting spark, it is working fine.

If you are rotating your distributor, and it is not changing the timing, you likely have another issue. Reverting to points will not fix that.

Are you disconnecting and plugging the vacuum advance line when you are setting initial timing?

I have very literally installed a few hundred of these, with no issues.

Spark advance is done by a few means. Initial timing is set by rotating the distributor body. Primary advance is done by centrifugal weights altering the relationship between the distributor shaft and the rotor. Secondary advance is done by the vacuum advance canister moving the point plate.

You will notice that none of those things are the Pertronix module.

 

That too!

 

Like gimpy said, if you turn the distributor and see no change in timing there is something else at fault. And in virtually all pertronix installations, the module mounts to the existing points plate, so converting back to points is fairly straightforward.

And even if you attach the timing light to the coil, you should see a change in timing when the distributor is rotated. You'll just be seeing the damper illuminated in four different locations 90 degrees apart rather than just one.

 

I can't think of anything that would prevent the timing from changing when you rotate the distributor, it has to change as you are mechanically changing the relationship of the distributor cam to the crank when you rotate the distributor. It literally in every way has to change. If you're not seeing a change with your timing light, something is effed up and it's not the Pertronix system.

 

My Pertronix worked great until it left me stranded in a busy intersection, when/if it quits there is no limping home like if you have points.

I have gone back to points because I drive my cars out of state,not just to and from work or a cruise in. HRP

 

The main reason I like MSD boxes....

 

Gimpy wrote -
""All the Pertronix unit does is trigger spark. It does nothing else.""

In the o.p.'s situation yes, possibly, BUT, the newer models have multiple spark, have revlimiters, much the same as some of the MSD box's.

Mike

 

For the record I like Pertronix, but I Accidentally hooked it up backwards once and let out all the smoke. It took me 5min staring at the dizzy before I remembered how to put the points/condensor in, but they went in with no problems and I never did replace the pertronix. This was in a Studebaker 289 in my Model A.

 

Thanks Guys - all great information. It's the damnedest thing and yeah, with the vacuum line unhooked and plugged I've never had an engine not respond to a simple timing adjustment. I'll dig deeper.

 

You can revert back to points & condenser but keep in mind it's common to remove or bypass the primary wire ballast (resistor) when using the solid state modules. The points will tend to burn up fairly quickly with full battery voltage to the primary circuit due to excessive current. Distributor itself needs to be in good shape, the electronic modules are not so affected by slop.

 

Got no complaints with pertronix. One of my cars has had the same unit in it for about 20 years. I do carry a replacement unit just like most carry spare points. Kits come with different springs for mechanical advance and different stops for total advance also. You could just carry a set of points, condenser and a coil with a built in resister like a 67 VW coil.

 

I had an older pertronix unit in my 32 wife left key on and it burned it out Put a new one in and was told the new one's have been improved and will not do that other than that I'm happy with it

 

I carry a points distributor as a spare. Points are gapped and ready to go. It can be installed quickly.