Distributor woes
 

Rebuilt a unknown distributor and installed. I used a VOM while rebuilding and everything checked out. Upon start up I noticed a slight amp meter discharge and of course a no start. Found a voltage drop at the points with points open. Removed distributor and found six volts at the ignition cable wire. Found internal resistance in distributor. Disassembled and found no discrepancies. Reinstalled and back to square one. Removed distributor and once again found nothing. Suspect the cable when screwed in could exert enough pressure to force the bracket dimple to short against the housing. Installed a insulator between the dimple and housing and now I am up and running. I am not convinced I have found the problem.

I would like some input before I find myself walking home in this Minnesota weather.

Re: Distributor woes
 

If you screw the cable in to far it will create a short.

Re: Distributor woes
 

first advice never go out without hat and gloves in your coat pocket. I replaced my dizzy wire with a modern wire and rubber grommet. It was causing an intermittent problem and I only noticed when I had the car running and I bumped the dizzy wire a foot from the dizzy and the car died. started it up gave the wire a shake and it died again. But because the parts are cheap I replaced most of the components and put the old ones under the front seat in case the new stuff fails. Another piece of advice is that a scarf would help too if you decide to tackle a repair out side in a parking lot in this weather.

Dont be afraid to use your pliers to bend a tab to get a little more clearance or the use of an extra insulator if that fixes it up.

Re: Distributor woes
 

I had some problems with my distributor that were the reason of an over zealous paint job. Remember the top plate has to be ground thru the distributor base and too much paint in the groove where the plate sits can cause problems.

Re: Distributor woes
 

I'm with sofield. Also be sure the wire terminal is bent properly and there is no play in the upper plate.

Re: Distributor woes
 

Thanks everyone.

Re: Distributor woes
 

Good job. That is a tricky one to find.