im like a moth flying round a light at the moment! to recap - i bought a remanufactured 1975 hei distributor , cap coil and wires, threw out the old distributor and coil ( ou: :spank: ) thinking i wouldnt need them anymore then two weeks later come to read on here how difficult it can be to get the correct timing with an hei :blast: ou: So....... what now? im probably a month away from being able to fire up the beast again what shall i do? junk what ive got and get points distributor with like an msd 6al or what ? i have to admit ignition is not my favorite part of a build up! or to put it another way - if you had a clean slate what would you put in??? putting in mind im thinking of the future when i will build probably 500 - 550 hp into the motor thanks in advance
I put a late model HEI in my 70 'Lark and have not had a problem. Then again, I'm not building up a monster engine. I'd stick with what you have and see how it works out. I doubt it will hurt anything, and you can buy a better unit if you have timing problems. Now, if I had a clean slate, and price was not an issue, I'd probably go with one of the after-market electronic ignitions.
Shouldn't be any more trouble to set up the proper advance curves on a HEI than it would be on a point distributor. The initial is easy, just a timing light job but that'll depend on the timing needs of your cam and the total centrifical built into the distributor. And the centrifical needs to be all in by about 2000/2500 RPMs, then there's the vaccum to consider so you don't have to much advance at cruise speed. Do you see where I'm going with this. There is info on all this on this site on how to do all this but it could involve a lot of trial and error. Might be better to contact someone who knows whats involved to do it for you. With a modified engine your point dist would have needed as much tweaking as the HEI will. Dave Berry :3gears:
Depends on what you want. For the stock look with top performance HEI or MSD, http://www.davessmallbodyheis.com/
Well, Since you've burned your bridges, by throwing out the points distributor(what were you thinking?), you might as well install the HEI. Take a look at my timing post in the FAQ. It explains how to set up your total advance, and that's what you need to do. I would purchase the Crane adjustable vacuum advance kit for the HEI (part #'s in my post) When you have the engine running with the HEI, install the lightest springs (yellow) Save the stock springs. Power time the engine with the yellow springs. Set the total to what you want to run. Then re-install the stock springs, and see where your initial timing is. If you are happy with that, install the springs that bring in your advance before 2500 RPM (usually the 2 silver) Then limit the Crane cannister to 10*. Run the vacuum advance off of ported or manifold vacuum, your preference. Manifold vacuum will give you more advance at idle. This would be helpful if your initial timing turns out to be low. You can also purchase an MSD 6AL. You can connect it to the HEI easily. Then you can get another points distributor (swap meet or this BB) and send it to Dave, whenever. Hope that helps.
does an msd 6al make much difference? thanks for the advice guys - larry ive read your posts many times and i got worried when you were saying how difficult it can be to set the point where all the advance come in. if the best route is to get a points distributor then i will just get one from autozone then send it off. is it better to do this rather than buy say a msd ?
It's not difficult to set your total advance, as long as you have the Crane kit. The springs that come with the cannister are easy to work with. The only problem you may have with the HEI is that it may have alot of mechanical advance in it, or maybe it doesn't. The only way your going to know is if you try it. Next time you go to a car show, take a look at what ignition most guys run. It's MSD. The MSD 6 series ignition gives you multiple sparks for each cylinder firing. The sparks are hotter, and will fire across bigger gaps. The nice thing about MSD is that the boxes can be triggered by points, or magnetic trigger. Or you can fire the box with the HEI, by bypassing the module. I think you should be able to find a Buick points distributor somewhere. Then send it to Dave, and have him convert it to MSD magnetic trigger. Then you can plug it right into a 6AL box.
Those old points Dis are worth something. Never through away old parts. yikes.... Someone will buy them.
If you get Dave to do the conversion, here is a pic of the distributor he prefers. It's the one on the right with half of the underside raised up. He also said to carefully check the metal housing and make sure that it hasn't been beadblasted 3-4 times. Edges should be crisp and not rounded over/smooth. This insures that the bushings are still good and not ready to fall out because it's been rebuilt a number of times. He like the remans from A1Cardone. I believe that AutoZone does carry these and also NAPA.
Maybe I'm missing something here but aren't points just a headache to begin with? My father was always complaining about the points in my buick when he drove it, saying that it was such a pain to have to set them so frequently. It's the reason why I'm looking for a HEI right now, so I can get rid of my points system!
Maybe you are missing something :laugh: Points are easy to change, and will almost never leave you stranded. When I had points, I changed them once a year when I tuned the engine. Adjusting them is easy, the only problem being the distributors proximity to the spinning fan. The GM HEI is a good distributor, but it doesn't look stock with the big cap, and there may be clearance issues (aircleaner, intake manifold) Want the best ignition system? Look here: www.davessmallbodyheis.com Get the full HEI system, or have Dave convert your points distributor to MSD magnetic trigger, and use an MSD 6A(L)
I've been going back and forth over this as well (points vs. HEI). What's the biggest benefit of an HEI? Can you achieve more hp/tq?
Yes, more spark energy can jump a bigger gap, and has a greater chance to light the mixture off, especially under high performance conditions (high cylinder pressures) I've said this in the past, and I'll say it again, the GM HEI is a good distributor, BUT, you can't simply get one from the boneyard, or parts store, install it in the engine, run whatever initial timing you like, and expect the engine to run at it's best. Most GM HEI's, have too much mechanical advance built into them. If you have them recurved, and use a separate oil filled coil, they can work great.
:laugh: :laugh: :laugh: I've been running my pertronix now for 10 years!!!! :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: Leave me alone you guys!!! :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
o No: o No: separate coil? damn i wish i knew more about ignition! would this be an msd? what sort of cap will i need? part numbers? o No: o No: o No: ou:
http://www.jegs.com/cgi-bin/ncommerce3/ProductDisplay?prrfnbr=15546&prmenbr=361 http://www.jegs.com/cgi-bin/ncommerce3/ProductDisplay?prrfnbr=10033&prmenbr=361
Unless you have a high performance engine with a cam that likes to be above 4500 RPM, I highly recommend staying with points. There is NO reason to be skerd of them! My 68 Rivi came to me with GM HEI and it runs fine, but I WANT to change it back to stock points. BTW, the person who converted it put nice 8MM wires on it and it has a full 12VDC to it, but didn't even change the plug gap! :error: ou: Anyone have a decent distributor they don't need? Thanks Frank
