The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area The HiPo Shop Pertronix installed, do a mess with timing, etc.?

Installed a Pertronixs unit yesterday in my inline 230 ci. It came new with the truck purchase so I said, why not. Had a little grief getting the magnet over the cam shaft lobes and getting the 0.030" spacing, but it's done.
The instruction doesn't say but do I need to adjust timing and plug gap to get the most out of this upgrade? Also, do I remember reading that one should carry a spare pickup or the old points in case of failure?

Better keep a towing company on retainer, or join AAA. If you're still running the stock coil, don't mess with the plug gap, and leave the timing advance at OEM specifications.
Jerry

Some folks keep a set of points and condenser in the glove box, but I've installed several and never had any trouble.

A couple of vehicles running the pertronix unit have now been doing so for right at 10 years now.

As Jerry said, keep plug gap and timing original.

I put the old points, capacitor, and plate in glove box just in case. Stock gaps and timing will be left as is. I've run an aftermarket HEI setup on my streetrod 350 for years and never had a problem.
I did have a problem with too much current into the primary side of the coil. Someone had chopped the ni-chrome wire and not installed a ballast resistor. I replace the coil after findinding the problem with an ACCEL unit with a 1.5 ohm ballast.
Thanks.

You would be better off to carry:
1) A set of points and condenser, and the appropriate screws.
2) Feeler gauge
3) The plastic insulator for the original distributor wire. (Removed when installing Pertronix.)
4) The special tool for tightening the nut on that plastic insulator.
5) A new coil. (If you leave the key on without running the engine, you will fry the Pertronix module and melt the end off of your coil.
6) A new ballast resister, and all of the wires necessary to assemble it all (the Pertonix wiring is different).

I may have a better option.
Run a points setup in the distributor, and keep the Pertronix in the glove box in case the points fail you on the road.
I expect that the Pertronix will spend a very long time in reserve in that glove box.
I am not basing this on what I learned while in my easy chair. I learned it the hard way. Fortunately it happened in front of my house, and didn't catch on fire.
Carl

I had one of those high buck Mallary on mine, worked great for many yrs then one day all kind of weird things started happening,
wont go in detail.....but finally found it was the module was petering out after it got hot, etc.........fixed it and bought
a spare...never got a chance to use the spare..