Mallory Dual Point Distributors

Tim · Post by **Tim** » Tue May 24, 2011 9:31 pm

Hi,

The first of many questions from me I'm sure!

My Tiger has a misfire/back fire when the throttle is opened more than about two thirds.

I'm trying to track the cause down, and have discovered that the car has a Mallory dual point distributor fitted.

Firstly, can you get an electronic ignition conversion such as Pertronix for one of these distributors?

Secondly, how do you set the dwell on these distributors?

Thirdly, what advantage does a dual point distributor give over the standard item fitted by Ford/Sunbeam?

I've used Google to try and find the answers to the above to no avail.

Thanks,
Tim

paulw · Post by **paulw** » Tue May 24, 2011 10:32 pm

Hi i have been told by freinds with mustangs etc that the dual point is not to good as i was thinking of going for it, but you can get a mallory electronic set up that sits in the dizzy with just 3 wires coming out its for the standard type, a freind got one and put it in for me no points now so look for the mallory one hope this helps

paul

V8 burble · Post by **V8 burble** » Tue May 24, 2011 11:04 pm

Hi there Tim and welcome to the fold.

There is plenty of info available for this conversion. Just make sure that you know the exact model number of your Mallory.

Try Retro Rockets who are a UK Pertronix dealer:

http://www.vintageperformance.com/retrorockets/

Dual point Mallory to Pertronix conversions get positive feedback here:
http://www.cobraclub.com/forum/engine-t ... dizzy.html

gtsmrt · Post by **gtsmrt** » Wed May 25, 2011 10:39 am

Hi Tim,

Normally dual point distributors were more of a performance type distributor before electronics took over. Is your car's engine modified? If it is modified there would be better options than just point replacement kits. If your car is basically stock, the pertronics or similar would be perfect.

Regards, Robin.

bigbob · Post by **bigbob** » Wed May 25, 2011 2:19 pm

I've fitted the mallory electronic distributor with no problems.Been in for years & never had to touch it. Make sure that you also fit the "filter" which stops damage from any power surge.

Tim · Post by **Tim** » Wed May 25, 2011 2:59 pm

Thanks for the welcome & replies chaps!

Yes, my car has certainly been modified; it has a 302 engine fitted with a Holley carb, and the way the car goes suggests that there maybe further modifications to the engine. When you put your foot down it feels like the car picks you up and hurls you down the road!

Unfortunately the car came with no history at all so I don't know what work has been carried out in the past. The chap I bought it from believed that in the past the car may have been used for hill climbing, but there is nothing definite. In fact, at the moment my biggest challenge is working out what is standard, what isn't, and if it isn't standard then how to maintain & set it up (carb, distributor, etc).

I am quite keen to fit something rather than the dual points as like I said, there is a misfire at higher revs. Also, reading the threads on the link which V8 Burble posted the Mallory dual point distributor can be a source of endless trouble....

By the way, the distributor does not have a vacuum advance fitted. Is that correct?

Thanks again for the responses.

martin172 · Post by **martin172** » Wed May 25, 2011 3:13 pm

IIRC, the ad for your car said it was well known within the club.
I would take from that that it has had a few owners within the club and so it's history mod wise should be pretty easy to find out.
I would have thought that the vendor would be a good place to start as he will know how he bought it from etc.

Alternatively, you could (sorry Graham) contact Graham Vickery and see what he knows of the car.

V8 burble · Post by **V8 burble** » Wed May 25, 2011 3:43 pm

As martin172 says, it would be useful if you could find out from the previous owner exactly what modifications have been made to the engine.

This article may be of help:
http://fordmuscle.com/archives/2000/03/timing/

I don't know where you are in South Glos, but you could do a lot worse than go to Dave Young and get the car sorted out once and for all on his rolling road.

Mech Motorsport (Dave Young)

Unit 4 Haven Works
Tewkesbury Rd, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire GL51 9AL
Tel; 01242 243 385

Tim · Post by **Tim** » Wed May 25, 2011 6:33 pm

I will most definitely investigate the history of my car both via the club and the DVLA.

I take it that the chap at Mech Motorsport knows his way around a Holley?

V8 burble · Post by **V8 burble** » Wed May 25, 2011 8:59 pm

He knows his way round most performance vehicles including V8s.
I suggest that you ring him or visit him to tell him about your engine. He may well advise you to obtain certain parts beforehand, such as different jets for the Holley etc. See what he recommends.

Tomaselli · Post by **Tomaselli** » Wed May 25, 2011 11:01 pm

Tim wrote:My Tiger has a misfire/back fire when the throttle is opened more than about two thirds.

I've had this before in the past, actually on two occasions. First, it turned out to be a faulty condensor in the dizzy, and the second occasion, it turned out that "Bosch" spark plugs I had fitted didn't work for me. Problem cured on both occasions

Make sure your HT leads are in good order also, then swap the Holley carb for a more modern efficient unit.

Finally, are the points in the dizzy in good shape and is the fuel pump clean of debris and delivering the correct fuel flow.

I now always check the basics, I've learnt that valuable lesson from the past

gtsmrt · Post by **gtsmrt** » Thu May 26, 2011 9:09 am

Tim wrote:By the way, the distributor does not have a vacuum advance fitted. Is that correct?

Hi Tim,

A standard Tiger does use a vacuum advance distributor, but it really depends upon the engine setup. Does your carburettor have a vacuum port? If it was raced, the previous owner may have opted to go just mechanical advance.

Regards, Robin.

Tim · Post by **Tim** » Thu May 26, 2011 9:25 pm

I'll be going through the basics very soon, hopefully this weekend.

I've already found that it has a coil designed for a non ballasted ignition system fitted, and a quick check with a volt meter yesterday showed that the car has a ballasted system. In fact Redbaron has told me that the coil is not even correct for an 8 cylinder, ballasted or not, so that'll be the first thing to be changed.

The car has almost certainly been set up - if not used - for competition so that would explain the non vacuum distributor.

Tim · Post by **Tim** » Fri Jul 08, 2011 2:16 pm

Hi,

Just thought I'd let you know that the car is sorted

. I think there were a multitude of faults, but the main culprits were the HT leads.

However I found so many components getting towards the end of their life I went the whole hog and replaced pretty much everything in the ignition system.

Stripping the doubler pumper carb down also revealed stripped threads and and a float adjustment screw which had been 'glued' in with what looked like some kind of silicone sealant. So the car now has a Holley 1850 carb with vacuum secondaries which has massivly improved the 7 mpg I was getting!

Finally I took the car to Mech Motorsport as advised by V8 Burble. Here the misfire was sorted once & for all and they set the engine up properly. The rolling road showed that the car wasn't producing huge amounts of power, but it was producing an awful lot of torque consistantly across the rev range. The trip back from Cheltenham was fantastic fun!

V8 burble · Post by **V8 burble** » Fri Jul 08, 2011 2:27 pm

Tim,

I am glad that Dave Young of Mech Motorsport came up with the goods on the rolling road.

If there are other Tiger owners in the Cheltenham area who need their engines tuning, then give Dave a ring on:

01242 243 385

sunbeamtiger.co.uk

Mallory Dual Point Distributors

Mallory Dual Point Distributors

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