1973 No Spark Need Instructions And Pep Talk

  • Thread starter Thread starter a.
  • Start date Start date
> Sir, what usually happens with points is they don't like sitting. Take the cap off and bump starter till points are closed. Key off, fold up a
> dollar bill and put between the points and file back and forth to clean. Turn key on and open points by hand and see if it sparks. If it sparks it
> should fire. Repeat if not. If you still don't get spark bump starter till points are open key on use screwdriver to short across the point arm
> and base if spark replace points. Make sure you have voltage to the coil and the wire going to distributor and they are tight.
All I had was a fiver. I was pleasantly surprised that it cleaned the points well enough to get spark.

I drove a few miles out, switched drivers, and Peer drove it back. Nice to have it rolling again.

Thank you all very much! The aggregate experience left Peer with a gut feeling this is not the one for him. You gotta go with your gut. No pressure to
get it all done by Tuesday morning anymore. Less stress, but some disappointment for both of us.

I feel bad because I know that my entertainment value for a few days is not worth round trip airfare from Germany.

The Sequoia is back on the market. Offers please.
--
73 23' Sequoia 4 Sale
73 23' CanyonLands Parts Unit 4 Sale
Upper Alabama
"When I grow up I am going to be a curmudgeon."
 
Believe it or not, I was in a local Bumper to Bumper auto parts store yesterday and hanging on the wall behind the counter was a card of points files.
He most of the time people buying them are working on chain saw and other small engines.

Cleaning points is common on engines that sit unused for a long time.
--
Ken Burton - N9KB
76 Palm Beach
Hebron, Indiana
 
I'm guessing our mean ownership age must be around 70 so most people here must have 20 plus years experience with points /condenser. I would get it
running with points before converting to Pertronix. Conversion is best done on the bench so bevel gear can be removed and varnished grease cleaned
off shafts then reassembled with fresh grease on all moving advance parts. Also easier to get new lead wire grommet installed. Only about an hour
total. Put points and cond in a baggie and keep in coach in case Pertronix fails you can get moving in short order. Since you set the dwell when they
were in your distributor, it should be correct if you home them again when reinstalling. .
--
John Lebetski
Woodstock, IL
77 Eleganza II
 
> I'm guessing our mean ownership age must be around 70 so most people here must have 20 plus years experience with points /condenser. ...
I have changed and gapped my share of points sets.

What knocked me off balance was the cover on the points and condenser. I didn't have my glasses, and the light wasn't good, so I didn't see that cover
was a two-piece affair. Never took a distributor cap off that didn't reveal the points and condenser immediately below the rotor. And the mechanical
advance weight with the rotor screwed to it on top is a flakey design too. Between the mechanical advance assembly that looked pressed on, and an
apparent one-piece cover, I was afraid I was going to have to pull the distributor to do what needed to be done. I wasn't about to pull the
distributor and have to retime the %^$# thing. I was in panic mode.

Once I got that cover figured out, we were home free.
--
73 23' Sequoia 4 Sale
73 23' CanyonLands Parts Unit 4 Sale
Upper Alabama
"When I grow up I am going to be a curmudgeon."
 
That shielding was a pain compared to earlier units. It's odd it was still there. It usually got tossed.
--
John Lebetski
Woodstock, IL
77 Eleganza II
 
> That shielding was a pain compared to earlier units. It's odd it was still there. It usually got tossed.
I thought about doing that when we were putting it back together. But I figured it must be there for a reason.
--
73 23' Sequoia 4 Sale
73 23' CanyonLands Parts Unit 4 Sale
Upper Alabama
"When I grow up I am going to be a curmudgeon."
 
So far, the only thing I've seen that the Pertronix will do over the HEI is cost more. My fave is leave the points in, dump the capacitor, and use an
early 70s Mopar system with a hot coil.

--johnny
--
76 26' Eleganza(?) with beaucoup mods and add - ons.
Braselton, Ga.
"I forgive them all, save those who hurt the dogs. They must answer to me in hell" - ol Andy, paraphrased
 
> So far, the only thing I've seen that the Pertronix will do over the HEI is cost more. My fave is leave the points in, dump the capacitor, and
> use an early 70s Mopar system with a hot coil.
>
> --johnny
MM says "Replace distributor points every 12 months or 12,000 miles and replace cam lubricator every 24 months or 24,000 miles."

If the Pertronix saves you from having to muck with the distributor a dozen times or so over the life of the engine, it is worthwhile.
--
73 23' Sequoia 4 Sale
73 23' CanyonLands Parts Unit 4 Sale
Upper Alabama
"When I grow up I am going to be a curmudgeon."
 
> So far, the only thing I've seen that the Pertronix will do over the HEI is cost more. My fave is leave the points in, dump the capacitor, and
> use an early 70s Mopar system with a hot coil.
>
> --johnny

Johnny,

First, Your cost remark, an HEI Olds distributor can be purchased in a junk yard for 60$ and with no history. New offshore builds are 80~100$ on
Ebay. And you still have to do a severe hammer job (I have done) to get the clearance with the existing air filter housing. And it gets you nothing
more.

Second, If you drop in a Pertronix 1181 either LS or not, that is all you have to do. Put the old points in a jar as a security blanket, but there is
no need to carry a spare module. The coil will still fire the plugs at 0.040 just like it always has.

If you are going to change to the 6X~7X Mopar, (a system I liked a lot) you really do need to change the distributor to a pick-up and reluctor as it
will be unstable with mechanical points. You will in fact have the same problem we had when putting a CDI on a points engine. The rubbing block
wears and the points don't. This means that timing resets are still required regularly.

Me, in out '73, I run Pertronix into a Delta MarkXb (circa 1972) and huge plug wires to hold in the pulse that the 0.055 plugs like. A bigger gap
does not get you anything but few misfires at high manifold (aka charge) pressures. In 60K miles, I have changed plugs once - just on GP. And the
only failure was the MSD CDI that I though would be better than the antique CDI I had on the shelf. So, I pulled out the MSD in a parking lot in
Elkhart and came home on the Pertronix without even closing the plug gaps. (Only about 100 miles.)

Matt
--
Matt & Mary Colie - '73 Glacier 23 - Members GMCMI, GMCGL, GMCES
Still Loving OE Rear Drum Brakes with Applied Control Arms
SE Michigan - Twixt A2 and Detroit
 
Points (pun intended) well taken. The HEI in the ratrod was 29.95. and the replacement was under 50 if memory serves, I don't see the GM version
being much more - Chinese of course. If you can find a Delco, it's a bit more.

--johnny

--
76 26' Eleganza(?) with beaucoup mods and add - ons.
Braselton, Ga.
"I forgive them all, save those who hurt the dogs. They must answer to me in hell" - ol Andy, paraphrased
 
Last edited by a moderator:
> Points (pun intended) well taken. The HEI in the ratrod was 29.95. and the replacement was under 50 if memory serves, I don't see the GM version
> being much more Chinese of course. If you can find a Delco, it's a bit more.
>
> --johnny

Johnny,
I - like you - am always thinking about the "what am I going to do went it breaks".
But, that is how you get to be old and paranoid both.
You and I are rarely a whole page apart.....
Matt
--
Matt & Mary Colie - '73 Glacier 23 - Members GMCMI, GMCGL, GMCES
Still Loving OE Rear Drum Brakes with Applied Control Arms
SE Michigan - Twixt A2 and Detroit
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Looks sort of like a Johnny sandwitch to me. :lol:
Hal
--
1977 Royale 101348,

1977 Royale 101586, Diesel powered,

1974 Eagle Bus 45',w/slideout
 
Lemme point out, the replacement was for the top of the ratrod hei which was new (three months, maybe 1000 miles) which I pulled off to get a GMC
going in Middle GA when it quit. He got me a replacement, which travels in the coach should I need it.

--johnny
--
76 26' Eleganza(?) with beaucoup mods and add - ons.
Braselton, Ga.
"I forgive them all, save those who hurt the dogs. They must answer to me in hell" - ol Andy, paraphrased
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
GMCMI Fall 2026 Rally
Applied GMC

Share this page

Share this page
Top Bottom
Back