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I pulled out my petronix from distributor (thought it was a total piece of sh&t), and was putting back old points and condenser, but I couldn't remember...does wire from distributor attach to (-) or (+) of coil? Thanks

Hy starsfan, if your truck is negative ground, the wire attaches to the negative coil post, if it is positive ground, then it goes to the positive post, hope that helps. What was happening with your Pertronix setup? I can't remember how many of those I've installed, but I've never had a problem with any of them.

Thanks, I appreciate it. Regarding the Petronix, I hooked it up, timed it perfectly, and found it didn't run well at all, a lot of popping, spitting, and major loss of power. Put in new plugs, new gas, blow out passages in carb, did everything I could think of, but nothing worked. It was very frustrating, considering I pumped about $160 in it, including the Flamethrower coil (I think that's what it's called). Anyhow, I was very, very disappointed in it. My truck always worked really well with old-style points and condenser, I just thought I'd use the Petronix and get it to run even better; not the case at all.

Thanks again for your response.

Hy starsfan, did your magnet piece fit tightly on the distributor cam? Which kit did you install, and what year truck are you working with?

What is the year and size of your engine?

What is the part number for the Pertronix unit you tried to use?

Is your electrical system 6v or 12v?

GMC or Chevrolet?

It's a '50 216; I don't have the exact number in front of me, but I talked to the Petronix people and they said I had the right one. Yeah, the magnet fit perfectly. It's 12 volt. With it in, I couldn't even get up to 50 miles/per hour with it floored; with normal points and condenser, I could cruise at 60-65 on the highway (don't have original rear end in it, that's why those speeds). Very disappointing

Have you reset the timing? The timing may be slow. It should run as good or better then the points. If it has a rev. limiter maybe it is set to low.

My buddy had a similar issue w/a Pertronix('54 235) & the Flamethrower coil, he shoved the points back in also. Knowing him, it was something he overlooked, but it was easier to just go back w/points.

I have used a number of these setups. I did have a issue with one and ended up adding a better ground for the distributor body. Once that was done its worked great for the past 2 seasons.
Poor connections and old wiring lead to most problems with these conversions. Use top quality connectors and make sure the crimp is working so the current can flow.
Don

thanks, guys, I appreciate it. It's tempting to give it another try, but I think I'll back with what was working. Thanks again for your help.

Don, when you refer to "ground for distributor body", what are you referring to? Is there a separate grounding wire that goes from distributor to ground? I have distributor wire (from outside of distributor housing) going to (-) of coil, then, of course, the condensor and points attached to that same bolt, which is the one that extends outside of the distributor onto which the wire that goes to the (-) side of the coil is attached to. Thanks.

Since the entire distributor housing moves every time the vacuum advance changes timing, it's possible for a poor ground to develop between the housing and the engine block. This can affect how well the points ground the coil primary winding, and cause a loss or reduction of the high-voltage spark. If a wire is added between the distributor housing and the block, the ground isn't subject to resistance changes as the advance moves. The wire must be extremely flexible, as it will be in constant motion. I like to use a coil-to-distributor wire for a mid-60's Ford distributor for a ground wire, which was made of extremely fine strands of high-flex wire. They used to be stocked by every auto parts store, since they were still prone to break up inside the insulation, just not as fast as regular primary wire.
Jerry

Thanks, Hotrod. So how is the distributor housing supposed to be grounded to the block (without having a separate wire, as you mention)? And if I was to put a grounding wire between the distributor housing and the block, what on the distributor would I attach the wire to? And where on the block have you attached the other end to? Thanks.

Use any convenient screw that attaches something to the distributor housing, like one of the spring clips for the distributor cap, for instance. The wire can attach anywhere on the engine, maybe under one of the bolts holding the side cover over the pushrods? Usually, just the metal-to-metal contact between the distriubutor housing and the block makes the connection, but rust or possibly wear on the housing from 60 years of use could give an erratic contact.
Jerry

Great, thanks. I'll try it when I get done with this totally unnecessary business trip