36 ignition

[SuperDave]

Does anyone make an electronic replacement for these old distributors? My customer has converted to 12 volts. The replacement points and condenser from Mac's have proven to be substandard and don't last very long.. This is the early dual point set. And yes he is using a the proper external coil and resistor. Going to a modern electronic ignition would make him happy.

[alanwoodieman]

do you know what year the engine is? they do make an electronic distributer for 42 to 48 flatheads and 49-53. It is possible to add one to the earlier engine but it requires some adapter to link the new dizzy to the old mount plate, this has to do with making the cam turn the dizzy.

[deuce lover]

Mallory Unilite from Speedway.Part number 9108353,$249.95.I have used them in several of my cars with no problems.I just bought another for my 33 with orig flathead.Get the coil that they recommend also.

[supereal]

We are seeing lots of substandard ignition parts now, as apparently no one in the US is making them now. A customer sent us his distributor to be rebuilt, together with three new sets of points. Of these, only one set was usable. Good points have a brass liner in the pivot, a durable cam rider, and springs that meet tension standards. These problems have send many looking for an electronic replacement, when a properly set up stock distributor is sufficient for years of use. Electronic units seem to be prone to problems with poorly regulated voltage in old cars, and heat sensitivity.

[Lawrie]

Buy nos ford ones on ebay,they come up often
Lawrie

[BUBBAS IGNITION]

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Originally Posted by SuperDave

Does anyone make an electronic replacement for these old distributors? My customer has converted to 12 volts. The replacement points and condenser from Mac's have proven to be substandard and don't last very long.. This is the early dual point set. And yes he is using a the proper external coil and resistor. Going to a modern electronic ignition would make him happy.

Dave ,
To help you we would need to know exactly what distributor he is running. Assuming it is a 1936 Helmet i would suggest switching it to the 11A small cam and good quality NAPA contact points. You say he is running a remote ignition coil ( that would require an adapter for the coil) we would need to know what the primary resistance is and the condensor capacity. Both would be a problem in some cases as the coil adapters come with a terrible off shore condensor. This would cause the points to quickly burn up.....
Does it still have a generator ???????
No problem setting up a long life unit but need to know where to start......

[mrtexas]

Originally Posted by SuperDave

Does anyone make an electronic replacement for these old distributors? My customer has converted to 12 volts. The replacement points and condenser from Mac's have proven to be substandard and don't last very long.. This is the early dual point set. And yes he is using a the proper external coil and resistor. Going to a modern electronic ignition would make him happy.

Install a pertronix module.

[SuperDave]

Thanks for all the responses. Until the owner makes a decision, I have burnished the points and replaced the suspect condenser. A condenser that was in a functioning ignition system and is probably over 40 years old. It starts and runs great..for now. The coil adaptor came from Mac's along with the coil and resistor. The original ignition resistor was eliminated at the 12 conversion step. As for the modern electronic system, I know heat is a concern due to the distributors location. They also fail quickly when used with copper core plug wires.. been there!
later model Ford owners don't know how lucky they are to have top mounted front distributors!

[JM 35 Sedan]

If you rebuild a helmet distributor with quality points, condenser, inner caps, rotor, etc., make sure advance system is working well, have good bearings, an original type coil rewound with modern insulated components, and get timing and advance set correctly, that distributor will work very well for a long time. I set my '35 helmet up like this in 2013 and it's still working great after 20-25k miles. I see no need for an electronic conversion.

[G.M.]

Originally Posted by SuperDave

Thanks for all the responses. Until the owner makes a decision, I have burnished the points and replaced the suspect condenser. A condenser that was in a functioning ignition system and is probably over 40 years old. It starts and runs great..for now. The coil adaptor came from Mac's along with the coil and resistor. The original ignition resistor was eliminated at the 12 conversion step. As for the modern electronic system, I know heat is a concern due to the distributors location. They also fail quickly when used with copper core plug wires.. been there!
later model Ford owners don't know how lucky they are to have top mounted front distributors!

If you have over 4.3 volts to the coil when the points are closed it will burn points. G.M.