I run an MSD ignition triggered by the original distributor with vacuum advance and mechanical advance and using the original points. Except for the red box on the firewall the ignition looks totally stock. I disconnected the condenser and tucked the wire out of the way. I keep the original wire from the coil to the distributor in the glovebox in case something goes wrong with the MSD unit (like the dreaded EMP). Nothing has gone wrong in nearly 20 years. The sun hasn't exploded, the Russians haven't sent anything to take out the electrical grid so all is well.
There are a few drawbacks with this setup, however. One is that if the truck sits for a couple of months in the rain on the wet side of the mountains the points will corrode resulting in a no-start condition. That requires 2 swipes with the point file I keep in the glovebox and a dry cloth to wipe out the dist. cap. Another is that even though the points don't arc and burn over time, you have to remember to grease the rubbing block every so often. A third is that if you run too large a plug gap or don't change the plugs forever, the insulation on the plug wires will arc through and begin to short out on anything nearby, including the coil housing, always when you're in the most remote part of the Navajo Nation in Arizona (or maybe it was New Mexico) and it's Sunday. A forth is don't grab a plug wire with the ignition on for any reason. The shock can be lethal.
