Check to make with Wells point set

[rodneybeauchamp]

Don't know much about Wells as a brand of ignition parts however a set of their DR1075MV points gave me some grief for a while. The distributor is out so should have been an easy peasy install. However when adjusting them to around 15 thou for an initial setting found that the sliding section that contains the stationary contact kept cocking up at an angle to one side and the adjusting screw became difficult to turn before it got  anywhere close. You can see this in several of the photos the sliding section at an angle to the base.

 

After several tries, some muttered words and checking against the originals discovered that the rivet that holds the sliding section to the fixed contact was binding part way through the adjustment , preventing the contact arm from closing. 

 

So so after a bit of persuasion with a screwdriver was able to get the full amount of travel which allowed proper adjustment. Reinstalling them after this was able to get correct initial adjustment with the points remaining flat, as they should be, seen in the last few photos.

 

 Don't know whether it was just this set, but may pay to check. If the distributor was installed, This may not have been discovered at all!

 

Has anyone else had similar issues?

[60FlatTop]

I have had problems with ignition parts that used to be reliable brand names; Standard and BW come to mind. I even got a flatbed ride home a couple days after a tune-up.

 

Echlin points from NAPA are all I buy now. And I won't replace a condenser unless it has obviously failed, then I only use and old stock one.

 

It kind of looks like "price shoppers" drive the market.

Bernie

[telriv]

Unfortunately Bernie is right. The ONLY ignition parts I use, & have been for at least 50 yrs. is NAPA. I DON'T use their UNISET  set-up as I've had problems with those in the past. ONLY the separate points & condensers. NOT the cheap stuff that they have been selling. You NEED to ask for the quality parts. Unfortunately Standard/Blue Streak have been lacking quality, which ALSO goes for A/C Delco & many others out there. Not even NAPA sells a quality BLACK rotor any longer. I get those from the Corvette suppliers.

 Up until recently I had a NAPA High Performance ignition kit that was installed in 1967 when I returned from Vietnam. It consisted of golden colored points, condenser, high density cap & rotor & ignition coil. I removed the points once a yr. & cleaned & re-lubed the rubbing block. The points were NEVER pitted, only a little blackish from the current. This means the condenser was PERFECTLY matched to my ignition & electrical systems. Unfortunately the condenser went bad after 42/43 yrs. I replaced the condenser once a month. No MATTER what brand condenser I used they ALL went bad. Got disgusted & installed the one wire electronic conversion that I install in most ALL my "Nail" distributor rebuild/re curves & haven't had a problem with mine or ANY I have installed. There are alot of pluses for this conversion. Not really cheap, but worth the money in my mind.

Again, just my thoughts on the subject.

 

 

Tom T.

[Seafoam65]

              While you have the distributor out, convert it to a Pertronix electronic ignition setup. Your spark will be twice as hot

with the same coil, dwell will never vary and no servicing to do ever......an absolute no brainer. Back in the 70's, a brand new Wells points and condenser set one week old left me stranded out in the middle of nowhere in my 69 GTO. I had to spend the night in my car and hike five miles to get to a phone for a tow. I still own the GTO and bought a Pertronix for it when they first came out about thirty

years ago.....the same setup is still in the distributor and I've never touched it and haven't been stranded since.

[1965rivgs]

57 minutes ago, Seafoam65 said:

              While you have the distributor out, convert it to a Pertronix electronic ignition setup. Your spark will be twice as hot

with the same coil, dwell will never vary and no servicing to do ever......an absolute no brainer. Back in the 70's, a brand new Wells points and condenser set one week old left me stranded out in the middle of nowhere in my 69 GTO. I had to spend the night in my car and hike five miles to get to a phone for a tow. I still own the GTO and bought a Pertronix for it when they first came out about thirty

years ago.....the same setup is still in the distributor and I've never touched it and haven't been stranded since.

Hi Winston,

  I`m not sure I understand "twice as hot with the same coil"? Do you mean twice the voltage output with the original GM coil? Just curious...

  Tom

[Seafoam65]

                Yes.......with a stock coil  a 60's GM distributor with Pertronix installed will put put out a spark similar to HEI.

If you pull the coil wire out of the cap and hold it near a ground and turn the engine over  it will jump two inches to a ground. The difference is amazing. I have Pertronix in all my old cars...a no brainer.

Edited July 2, 2016 by Seafoam65 (see edit history)

[60FlatTop]

Ohms law always works. The ignition coil will put out exactly the voltage required to overcome the total resistance of the secondary circuit. Most cars I have tested with an inductive high voltage pickup run from 4,000 to 5,500 volts, depending on the plug gap and the air/fuel ratio. That's a good way to find a sneaky vacuum leak. But it also shows the 30,000 or 60,000 volt super Batmobile coil isn't necessary. To increase the voltage you need to increase the plug gap.

 

There is one time the coil will generate very high voltages. That is when someone cranks the engine with the coil wire off, like doing a compression check. The huge air gap of a disconnected wire will really tax the coil. If I want to crank without starting I always clip the coil wire to a ground. That eliminates the resistance, won't overtax my coil, and add another problem to whatever I am fixing.

Bernie

[Lapham3]

Yup-good old laws of science are good in our otherwise crazy world.. Points-optical-magnet are all just switches on the primary side. I was thinking about the super duper "Judson Electronic Magneto" of the late 60's with a bunch of neat cooling fins all over and a phoney diode stuck to the outside.-people thought their cars ran much better.

[Guest Jilla 66 rivi GS]

I bought a duralast points and condenser set from autozone, screwed right in. Lifetime Warranty. $12 spent. For that price, I'll take two! Haven't  had a problem yet

Edited July 12, 2016 by Jilla 66 rivi GS (see edit history)