Hey there y-block32deuce - sorry for the delay in replying about the distributor type. Mine is the version produced right after '56 (fly weights in the base) with the circular grooves cast in the shaft housing and bushings in the fly weights - the later bodies were "three lobed" like a sixties or seventies distributor. The later version will take a set of guts from a seventies Duraspark II and screw together in a few minutes - Holun has one in his outfit. The upper rotor, stator, and reluctor go right in there - get a cheapo donor off ebay (or down at the salvage yard) and go. 

My earlier version was a different animal - the upper rotor has to have the point cam removed and it then has to be turned down to fit the seventies reluctor. We also did a little hot rodding mod to the flyweight slots to get the right spark advance curve. I made a print of the machining required to fit the reluctor - send me a PM with an address and I'l send a pdf file.

Once you have a distributor with the Ford stator and reluctor assembled - it will operate from a Ford Duraspark II box or with a MSD patch cord from an MSD "red box". Holun put a copy of the wiring schematic on his own site - its on a thread from last year, try a search of this forum. I put the later large diameter cap and rotor on my outfit - with the male plug terminals - it fits with a four barrel intake. I don't think you absolutely have to do this - but the wider terminal spacing is what Ford came up with for their electronic systems.

When I was trying to get this figured out I ran across several guys experienced in troubleshooting the Ford system - trying to decide for myself whether it was going to have problems of its own - and no better than the aftermarket stuff. The Ford control box hates heat - there were a considerable number of failures of boxes that were (factory) mounted directly adjacent to an exhaust manifold (don't). The boxes don't like low voltage - make sure it has a good solid full voltage source and decent wiring. I put both the coil and control voltage leads on a 30 amp relay operated by the ignition switch. Don't turn on the ignition and then let it fry without starting the engine (another reason I've got mine on a plug-in relay). The ground for the control box (black wire) goes all the way back to the distributor and gets screwed down to the distributor body at the stator plate. Then the body is (hopefully) grounded to the block through its base or clamp. What I understand is - this didn't work well and there were many service difficulties because of poor grounding. Using the distributor body for ground was OK for the points - but not always OK for the electronics.  

This is where the common thread occurs with the Pertronix failures (I think). I've got one for my '56 tach drive distributor (now stored away). The instructions don't say diddly about the required ground to make the system work. On the points set-up you remove - there is a finely braided little ground jumper from the pivoting point plate to the distributor body so that the points can ground the coil when they close. When the Pertronix transistor tries to do the same thing (its mounted on the pivoting advance plate) - if the jumper is gone - it has to do so through the plate pivot. Some work - some don't - and some just screw up occasionally. I believe that the Pertronix system needs a grounding wire that attaches to the pivoting point plate and exits the distributor body to be fastened directly to the engine block.    

 
 Steve Metzger       Tucson, Arizona

I'm also using the Pertronix.  I installed it 4 years ago with the hotter coil and kept the orig distributor and have loved every second of it.

Andrew 56-Vicky

Well, I can't see the number on the distributor, but it's the original unit for a '57. Mummert gives a breakdown of part numbers on his site. As far as the pertronix, it's # 1281.

i appreciate all the feedback on this guys. steve, because i want to retain the old school look and having 3 yblock dist. and an ancient mallory, i am keenly intersted in your setup. would you mind supplying me with part nos. including the # on your dist.thanks

I've had a pertronix in my car for over 6 years now with no trouble (stock 312), but I do keep a spare one in the glove box after hearing all the horror stories.

Guess I didn't report what's in mine - a Ford Duraspark II in a Ford Y-block distributor. Mine is a "junkyard dog" with one trick part made by a machinist friend, a Ford TFI coil and a performance advance curve. The Ford electronics are designed to retard the spark when the starter soleniod is engaged. Parts are available everywhere - cheap.

Two things that drove the decision - cost - and friends with bad experiences with the Pertronix. The worst of these experiences was having a failed aftermarket part and no spare (or points in your pocket) while out of town, on the freeway, etc.

Also the 70's Ford trigger is the same as used by MSD and an easy future upgrade is to plug it directly into a new red box. 

 
 Steve Metzger       Tucson, Arizona

If your not concerned with it looking original I'd recommend the MSD dist for y-blocks (I believe it's part # 8383).  I used it with the stock coil for a while and it worked great.  Then I opted for a performance coil, ignition control and timing control, and the car is significantly more responsive with a noticable increase in power.

John: Lake Forest, IL



'57 Fairlane 500 - Looking better every day.

Because of all the bad experiences others have posted w/ Pertronix, I installed the Crane product a couple of years ago and have had no problems.  A big plus to me is the Crane has a built in adjustable rev limiter.  I am using the original coil and ignition resistor.

TC

You gotta have the right tools and know how to use 'em.

TC - Austin, Texas

I went thru 2 pertronix Ignitor II in 6 months, then I switched to FORD Duraspark electronic ignition, no more problems.

Here's the deal - the Pertronixs module has a semi-conductor device (power transistor) that opens and closes the coil ground circuit - just like the points you're replacing. Beacuse there is a second, "non-wearing" electronic circuit that causes the main power circuit to open and close in time with the point cam, the repeatability is dang near forever. This is good. There are many who have had excellent results with this device.

There are many who have not. The first generation device won't operate a high performance coil with low resistance and switch high amperage. It will operate several popular types of capacitive discharge devices (that don't require high amperage switching). Follow the directions in the box - the system does have to have full input voltage at the electronic module (can't come through a ballast resistor). 

The semi-conductor switching device has a maximum power rating - too many amps will kill it. Pertronics has specific directions about how much total resistance has to be in the coil and ballast resistor combined. If you violate their recommendation - the amps go too high and the power transistor will die (or cook the adjacent timing circuit in the module). Pertronix has a second generation version of their unit that will handle more amps - so you can run a "hotter" coil with more spark energy. If you are not just looking for the reliability of removing the points - and want a "hot" ignition - consider their second generation system. 

Good Luck!

 
 Steve Metzger       Tucson, Arizona