ignition modules and pickup coils

[Rusty Nail]

Really dude.
Module is 45 bucks?
Distributor is 95?
For another 50 bucks you ALSO get a new cap, rotor, pickup coil, and complete housing?
Seems no brainer to me. Everybody knows pickup coil replacement is RARELY effective and too labor intensive to be cost efficient. Better to swap entire unit. Better all around decision.

Consider the time = money spent "diagnosing" the trouble. You are already WAY upside down trying to save a buck.
So far upside, you can't get back even for YEARS.
It's a Chevy truck dude. A gmt 400 requires no genius, money, time, special tools, or skill to repair. That's what is so terrific about them. You aren't going to solve any great mystery or discover a profound solution of some sort. My desire is not to appear negative, but it's already been done dude. A million times. Very common, slap a new loaded distributor in it for 10 minutes worth of work and a Ben then move on down the road.
How much is peace of mind worth to you?

 

[Moparmat2000]

Actually Dude,

If you read the last paragraph of my last post, i said, i will likely get an A1cardone remanned one.

As in complete distributor, including cap and rotor. Theirs has a redesign in the reluctor eliminating the cracking magnet. Yes Its a no brainer, and from rock auto shipped with 5% discount its $70 to my door.

I ohmed the coil only to check it just in case, plus the shaft had no slop , so if it was only a bad module and if the magnet was good (not cracked) yes i would have just put just a module in it. As it turns out the magnet has a crack, and probably contributes to the random miss this truck had at idle for a number of years. So yeah, the magnet being cracked is a deal breaker on just slapping a module in it.

I used the link to the HRM article Michael Hurd posted. Was well worth reading, and looking for a reman distributor with upgraded reluctor.Thanks Mike

As far as time goes, its not my daily driver, and i got nothing but time to fart with it. I dont need it to get me to work every day. I want to know everything about my truck, though i have owned it 21 years i have just scratched the surface on some things. So even though its all been there, done that millions of times before by other people particular problem has been worked on by me only 1 time. I tend to retain more in my memory by doing.

So had everything been all well and good, and perhaps all it needed was a module, why would i go through the trouble and expense of replacing the whole distributor.

But for those who care to know, a remanned A1cardone dist assembly has the upgraded reluctor dumping the ****** factory magnet design. I just ordered this part today, and hopefully besides getting my truck to run, it will eliminate the random miss at idle.

 

[df2x4]

Actually Dude,

If you read the last paragraph of my last post, i said, i will likely get an A1cardone remanned one.

As in complete distributor, including cap and rotor. Theirs has a redesign in the reluctor eliminating the cracking magnet. Yes Its a no brainer, and from rock auto shipped with 5% discount its $70 to my door.

I ohmed the coil only to check it just in case, plus the shaft had no slop , so if it was only a bad module and if the magnet was good (not cracked) yes i would have just put just a module in it. As it turns out the magnet has a crack, and probably contributes to the random miss this truck had at idle for a number of years. So yeah, the magnet being cracked is a deal breaker on just slapping a module in it.

I used the link to the HRM article Michael Hurd posted. Was well worth reading, and looking for a reman distributor with upgraded reluctor.Thanks Mike

As far as time goes, its not my daily driver, and i got nothing but time to fart with it. I dont need it to get me to work every day. I want to know everything about my truck, though i have owned it 21 years i have just scratched the surface on some things. So even though its all been there, done that millions of times before by other people particular problem has been worked on by me only 1 time. I tend to retain more in my memory by doing.

So had everything been all well and good, and perhaps all it needed was a module, why would i go through the trouble and expense of replacing the whole distributor.

But for those who care to know, a remanned A1cardone dist assembly has the upgraded reluctor dumping the ****** factory magnet design. I just ordered this part today, and hopefully besides getting my truck to run, it will eliminate the random miss at idle.

Just FYI, I have not heard good things about A1 Cardone. If I were you I'd be looking for an AC Delco reman distributor, or at the very least a Delphi.

EDIT - Just saw that you already ordered it. A little late now I suppose, sorry.

 

[SkyHighColorado]

Did not read everything, but foook buying a cheap ass dizzy. I have 332k on my oem. I had the same issue as you 2 months ago and I took the ICM to napa for testing, guess what? it failed high rpm. Went to the junk yard and grabbed 2 more oem ICM's and went to napa to test them. Both were good, only cost me $5. none oem sucks, unless its a proven high quality brand. So for our trucks that means every single part autozone sells that is not delco or delphie is dog poo. I learned the hard way. The only thing you might want to check on the dizzy is the gear on the end of the shaft for ware.

I had an old civic once that was absolute crap (I like Honda btw). Over time so many parts were replaced with autozone or whatever cheap crap and everything kept failing. I did not even consider it a Honda anymore it was more like a duralast civic. I now have a slightly newer civic 100% Honda oem parts down to the blue coolant and have 0 problems ever and its almost at 200K. only thing replaced so far is timing belt 3 times, random bulbs and tires. Obviously I have replaced all filters and fluids with all Honda oem. So if you get my point if you replace stuff on these trucks on the cheap, its not even a chevy anymore, its a duralast in a chevy shell.

 

[Moparmat2000]

Well i will wait n see what comes in the mail, then post pix, install it and report about it. I read the article michael hurd posted with a link to hotrod magazine. The magnet is cracked on the OEM dist i have. The HRM article shows pics of the updated aftermarket design that eliminates this problem.

If the ICM that comes with the distributor is junque, the dist was inexpensive enough that i will swap out the ICM with a delphi. Then i would have an upgraded reluctor timer assembly, and a delphi module, for still cheaper than a stock delco with magnet cracking issue. As far as me lucking onto a bunch of used ICMs in my boneyard. Good luck, i live out in ranch country, damn near all the boneyard GMT400s are stripped shells with rusty short blocks lying in em. All the good pieces have been cannibalized for running trucks. I'd have to drive 2.5 hours east to Dallas to hit up their boneyards. I'd spend more in gas and time than a $5 module is worth LOL

I have used A1cardone products before and not had problems. Also have a duralast gold starter and alternator on my truck both for about 50k so far no problems with either one. And if i do, i just take em back for a free replacement with the lifetime warranty.

Skyhighcolorado, i'm not sure you have used rockauto before, however they are essentially a warehouse setup eliminating the auto parts store. I priced the same remanned distributor i got for $70, retails for around $100, and of course theres all grades of parts at rock auto up to a brand new delco distributor. Problem with that is, if i go with a new or remanned delco i am right back into the same OEM designed reluctor assembly with crack prone magnets. I dont need to return mine for a core, so i will check the gears on both. I can always swap a gear before installation. Thanks for the heads up, notice the redesign in the pix.

OEM designed is good but sometimes not great. I own and restore vintage Chrysler products, ask me how i know LOL

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[Moparmat2000]

Heres what i mean by sometimes factory being not so good. Being a hot rodder by nature, i like to use what works. Heres just a few. The car is in the mockup stage. It will get taken apart for paint.

How about a rebuilt, and recurved mopar electronic dizzy fired by a 4 pin GM HEI on a custom made bracket. Stock mopar electronic boxes are junque.

Or a mini denso lightweight internally regulated 50A alt, on homemade 1/8" 7475 T6 aluminum brackets to replace a heavy and big stock OEM 50 year old mopar 20A externally regulated alternator.

My homemade 12V in to 5V out solid state voltage regulator to run the 5v feed to the factory gages in the 67 barracuda i am rebuilding. OEM is a vibrating point regulator that can stick open or closed causing gage needles to peg, or dive.

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[skylark]

I had an instructor in college who used a distributor for a 4 cyl ford pinto, modded it to used a late model duraspark ignition module and put it into his vw 1600.

 

[Moparmat2000]

Yep, that stuff is cool. Also saw a guy who had an 85 mustang SVO 2.3 turbo. Had so many problems with the electronics, he ended up modifying a mopar 2.2 turbo dizzy, throttle body, and rewired the engine with a mopar 2.2 turbo SMEC computer and all the sensors.

Also the ford duraspark though better than points in your instructors old VW 1600, still ran with a 6v resistor wire. The ford electronic dizzy triggering a 4 pin HEI module would have given it more pop.

GM HEI 4 pin setup on an older mopar dist is no problem. The pickup sends a squarewave signal, the module recognizes the signal and sparks the coil.

This eliminates the mopar ballast resistor, and allows a full 12 volts for a hot spark. Chryco electronic modules are hobbled with a 6 volt ballast. Leftovers from the old points days. You have to run a .3 ohm primary side ign coil to get the most out of the mopar/HEI hybrid. I use a pertronix ignitor lll since its .3 ohm.

Btw for guys putting an HEI in an older points GM, you have to change the feed wire going out from the ign switch. GM used a resistor wire for the same reason mopar used a ballast resistor. To drop voltage from 12v to 6v so you dont burn up the points. You need to remove the resistor wire, and run a regular copper wire to get 12 volts to the HEI and you will get a clean signal at high RPM

 

[Moparmat2000]

BTW an article i read about the cracking in the reluctor magnet in the distributor actually creates ghost signals to the controller causing misfires. Makes sense as once theres a crack it creates additional north and south poles and different lines of flux, as well as weakened signals.

 

[michael hurd]

Many moons ago, a brother of mine had a decently warmed over 360 in an 1981 D250 , and grew tired of the stock ignition that was weak. Enter one large cap HEI out of an inline 6, and into the lathe it went to machine the outer diameter down and make a collar to fit the LA 360.

There are a plethora of weights and springs available for the HEI, as well as several different vacuum advance canisters.

The firewall required a bit of massaging in order to fit the larger cap, but it ran like a top after spending a few evenings tuning the advance curve.

This was long before Davis Unified was building them.