I'm lookin to change over to HEI on my 69 400. should I stay with a stock HEI or go for pertronics or another? motor just has a mild cam and its the 360hp any pro's/cons? thanx, paul

 

IMO if you have the stock distributor in good working order stay w that and put in the electronic set-up crane xri or pertronix (second choice) the stock curve is setup the stock HEI curve will need to be changed and the big cap HEI possibly requires air cleaner mods

 

For a stock to mild build the Pertronix type ignitions are a decent upgrade to get away from points. Unfortunately with this type of ignition you will not realize any improvement in performance. I like the HEI's because it has a shorter timing curve and I can get more initial advance for cammed engines with little investment or difficulty.

Cons are more expense, not as simple or reliable as points for trouble shooting. A bit of a learning curve for tuning and understanding their operation. With an HEI you cant use stock tuning specs. Requires modding electrical systems in some cases.

 

i tried that pertronix setup and something wasnt right and the car ran bad. and are a simple setup. i still have the kit somewhere

 

oldcutlass, yes iv'e read up on this change over. whats happening is im getting high end pinging. just tryin to find the culprit. hell it could be my stock balancer rubber shot.

 

What is your timing settings? Initial without vacuum, total without vacuum and at what rpm does it stop advancing, and your total with vacuum? My guess is your running a higher initial thus running a higher total and/or your vacuum advance is throwing it over whats tolerated.

You can verify your balancer by finding tdc for number one and seeing where the mark is pointing.

 

by the book it calls for 14b. its been awhile since i been under the hood. and i need to ask, what is the difference from 14b and 14? i have it set at 14. like i said i havent played with it for some time,

 

14b is 14 degrees before top dead center. Some tune up charts have note declarations somewhere and it explains it at the bottom of the chart. I would check the condition of your points and then see what your dwell/timing is doing before you just jump in there and start throwing parts at it. Points systems require some periodic adjustment to keep everything running correctly. I would also check the condition and regap the spark plugs at the same time. After that I would check my carb tune. Basically if all your parts are in good shape, your doing a tune up without parts.

 

my book says 14b (manual) and 14 (auto) and yes i need to check all my components. i just bought a nib point/dwell/rpm tester that is a plus, and i had my original carb redone to specs. i have other projects and need to focus on my 442. it sits to much! lol

 

Is there a note on the bottom that's labeled B?

 

First, HEI is GM's brand name for the coil-in-cap High Energy Ignition system. Aftermarket electronic conversions like those from Pertronix are NOT "HEI", they are just electronic trigger ignition systems. The whole point of GM's HEI system (and the similar high voltage systems of other automakers that came out at the same time) was NOT for additional performance. HEI was developed to satisfy the then-new EPA requirements that new cars had to meet emissions requirements after 50,000 miles without a tuneup. The HEI coil increased voltage at the plugs to more reliably fire the lean mixtures, even with dirty plugs. HEI (or any electronic conversion) will not increase performance over that of a properly maintained point-style ignition system.

Yes, there are more advanced electronic ignition systems designed for high-output engines with high cylinder pressures. I assume you are not asking about those, as they are considerably more expensive. I install HEI or a conversion system because I am lazy, and want to avoid having to perform maintenance on the points. There's no disadvantage to doing it, but don't expect any magic performance improvement, either. People who claim a big upgrade are either 1) replacing a well-worn non-maintained point distributor with a brand new one or 2) are believing their "butt dyno" and not objective testing data.

 

prob gonna stay with points, send dist out to have it gone thru and set up for correctness. any reputable dist builders anyone can think of? and thanx joe

 

if i go with Pertronix D110710 - Pertronix Flame-Thrower II Billet Distributor, what timing specs do i go with? wires? plugs? will my stock tach work with this? thanx, paul

 

You can use your stock settings or set it up for a performance application as it has a limiting feature for the mechanical advance.. If you use the flame thrower coil then it needs a full battery voltage. If you use the stock coil then you use the resistance wire.

 

thanx eric! nice diagram, by the time i send my dist to get a rebuild this is cheaper.

 

Are you currently getting pinging with points, after rebuilding the carb? Did you have a problem before you rebuilt the carb? A lean condition (too large secondary rods) will cause pinging as well.

 

could be stale fuel as the car doesnt see daylite often. lol