Distributor Problems

[El Jay]

Here's the background: When I bought my '69 it had an Accel distributor. I don't remember what the problem with the distributor was, but I swapped it out for a complete MSD system; spark box, distributor, Blaster coil, plug wires; firing Accel shorty plugs.

My problem is, about every 4 months, or so, the carbon button in the distributor cap is burned up so I have to replace the cap & rotor; which is getting expensive.

So far, nobody has been able to give me any reason why this is happening.
I e-mailed MSD tech support & they said it may take up to 48 hours to get back to me. It's been over a week & still no response.

Doing a little research, I've learned that the spark plugs (when doing a tune up, I just replaced "like & kind") I'm using are non-resistor plugs.
Could this be the cause of my problems?

Any input at all would be greatly appreciated.
Thanx,
LJ

[neonlarry]

Have you checked to see if the rotor contact is making good contact with the button on the cap? If not put a dab of dielectric grease on the rotor contact and install the cap, then remove and check to see that the impression in the grease goes all the way to the metal of the contact.
Also check all your grounds carefully (shiny metal to shiny metal).

[VetteVet]

This thread was posted by slammed70 last year and he had the same problem. I found a forum where they suspected the plug wires for the cause. I never did get a hard fast fix on it. You might PM slammed70 and see if he found the cause. VV


http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s....php?p=2904910

[El Jay]

Originally Posted by neonlarry

Have you checked to see if the rotor contact is making good contact with the button on the cap? If not put a dab of dielectric grease on the rotor contact and install the cap, then remove and check to see that the impression in the grease goes all the way to the metal of the contact.
Also check all your grounds carefully (shiny metal to shiny metal).

I already did that. I really appreciate you offering the suggestion, though. There has to be a simple solution that I'm just overlooking.
As a side note, you coming down here to cousin Jerry's in 2 weeks? We all met at Roseville. I had the ugly, POS long step.

Originally Posted by VetteVet

This thread was posted by slammed70 last year and he had the same problem. I found a forum where they suspected the plug wires for the cause. I never did get a hard fast fix on it. You might PM slammed70 and see if he found the cause. VV

I pulled the plug wires & checked the resistance. All were good, except one. My multimeter showed that it was open. I wouldn't think that 1 plug wire would cause all these problems; & the plug wires were installed the same time as all the other ignition parts.

Thanks for getting back to me.

LJ


http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s....php?p=2904910

[1970 Bowtie]

This may sound simple but have you tried running a set of resistor plugs instead of the non resistor?

[El Jay]

Originally Posted by 1970 Bowtie

This may sound simple but have you tried running a set of resistor plugs instead of the non resistor?

That's my next step.

What's making me crazy is, although they are 3 years old, the wires, etc., don't have very many miles on them.

I'm kinda, sorta, in my mind, thinkin' about a cross country trip to visit my kids.
I don't really want to have to carry 3, or 4, extra caps & rotors (ever notice that rotor spelled backwards is rotor: how palindromic is that?) to change out on the road when the truck starts running like crap.

[mikajo39]

Just a possible thing running through my mind , maybe the non resistor type have,well, too little resitance, which makes an arc thats bigger than would be with resistor style plugs, resulting in carbon build up haha confused myself. My next step would be go buy some cheapy champion copper head plugs and see how long it takes till you have to change the rotor and cap etc etc

[prostreetC-10]

As we all know....electrical can be the worst to diagnose. I'm wondering if a weak system can cause the build-up? I'm shooting in the dark here but have you taken out a plug, pushed it into the boot and held it against your block while turning over the motor? I have a complete MSD setup too. It really changes the energy of the spark. Each time my rotor hit that plug, it lit it up like the end of your cutting torch. It would be interesting to know if you are really getting a high energy multiple spark.

Seems like battery terminals corrode when there is a weak connection.