Yes you can swap it right in there, and what they did back then was swap to an aftermarket mag or distributor. The Bubba distributor will be a huge improvement!
One really good fix for this is to take an old style Mallory dual point Chevy Dizzy and turn it down to fit into the 8BA front cover and match the bottom of the shaft to the 8BA. Also Chris makes a really good point about changing the jets. The plugs are fouling more than likely because they are drowning. My little 21 stud is doing the same thing right now. I'm going to make my own jets for the 94's to solve some of this. You could always just put a Mag in there. Good luck and keep us posted. tim
Bubbas ignition he will whip up a small block chevy dizzy that will work like a charm He is a member here look him up you won't be disappointed.Also lean that bad boy out. Tig.
Stock dizzy is out and replaced with the Bubba! Wow what a difference! This car has never ran so good! I guess not it's just a matter of time to see how long the plugs last.
I've found when spark plugs [any brand] get gas soaked for any length of time they just stop working. They'll be 100 guys come on here and say that's crazy but I've run into it many times. Glad you got your distributor problems behind you [I also have a bubba-built distributor for my Pontiac engine] but if you continue to wash those new plugs with fuel, they'll continue to fail.
You may or may not still need to re jet, but with the timing being so slow before I doubt you were getting the combustion temps needed to keep the plugs burned off properly.
back in the day, mallory made high quality ignitions that were made specifically for flatheads. today they are supposedly junk in every way. Even if you got one that worked out of the box they have the wrong advance curve! They put the same advance curve in the flathead distributor that they use in a sbc. I've got an older "new" mallory in my flathead. from the early 90's when they still made decent stuff.
Hook a timing light up to it to see what your vacuum advance is doing. If your running manifold vacuum your lucky your carbs are running rick or you would have burned holes in your pistons by now. I've had the same problem running 2 94's. The stock Ford dist. just won't work wih multable carbs. Your timing jumps all over the place.
Good to hear.Success is satisfying. Now wire that bad boy correctly and have some tell you it isn't correct.Put #1 where it belongs.There is a wiring diagram out there that is incorrect.This one is correct. Glad you have the dizzy done. My2¢ Tig.
OK! Timing thrashed! Now...make a plug board...one foot of 2X4 lumber, 2 rows of 4 holes to take sparkplug tops to keep plugs in order for viewing. 1. Warmitup and let it idle for a while. Pull plugs, lookemover. 2. Longish run at highway cruise speed, no use of full throttle. Off the ignition, coast down in neutral, pull plugs, lookemover. 3. Long blast at full throttle, repeat rest of step 2. Sorry, officer, I used one of them Toyota gas pedals and it ran away on me!
Hmmm...that picture DOES suggest a slight rich condition. I'd first look for a dead squirrel in the carburetor intake.
Jalopy, Nothing can be done with that distributor. Pull it out of there and throw it in the ****can. It will only work well with the stock manifold and carb and then not all that well. Buy a Chevy conversion dizzy from Bubba and you will have a mechanical advance that operates as it should. I think it is most of your problem as the timing is not advancing with the engine. Also, I'd see what jets you are running. I don't have an answer about #1 and 8. #1 being on the right front and #8 being on the left rear. I think its just coincidence........
The power valve also should match the jets in a 97. Stromberg told me to use .43 jets with a number 65 valve at sea level. In high al***ude, use .41 jets with a #69 PV.
The 90* plug wire ends at the cap look a little out of place too Otherwise, it looks pretty cool man Glad you figured it out!
This is a good idea, and one I plan on pursuing. However it has been pouring rain here for the last two days, so the roadster hasn't gone anywhere haha. When the weather clears up, I'll let you know the results. Thanks for all the help!
You can't use manifold vacuum for the distributor. Vacuum starts way up in the venturi.manifold vacuum is too slow.on the back of your holley 94 you have a port for the distibutor. if your runnig two carbs,change the distibutor to mechanical advance.The ford 8ba diistributor is junk. look at : mikes av8
Reading this is like reading what has been happening to me over the last five months. Plugs dying in quick succession of each other !!! I went to the extreme thinking it was heads.... gaskets... over fueling, mixture screws, plug heat range, poor quality fuel, rings and or compression ration low,. I just can't figure it out. I have purchased new heads, gaskets, plugs, replaced head studs, washers and nuts in an effort to ensure the combustion chamber is tightly sealed. Reduced from tri carb to single carb with a down jetted .41 jet and 6.5 power valve. It's a mild 239 but just seems to lose its punch as the plugs die one by one. The difference is my Flathead runs a Vertex Magneto (which was in it when I got it) and there is no obvious TDC mark to runs a timing light over. I need help before I put this car in gear and send it over a cliff !!!
I’d remove that magneto. You have no idea if it’s advancing properly. Here’s some info. https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/vertex-magneto-advance.972426/
Hi Oz, can you get some photos of your plugs when you take them out? That will help some of us see what you're dealing with. Timing a mag can be a fun little process, and you can do it pretty easily if you have a digital multimeter, especially one that "sounds" when continuity is present. Loosening the mag and rotating it while the meter is connected to the power leads (isolate from system) will let you find out when the mag fires as the continuity will be broken and the meter will shut up. Used in conjunction with a degree wheel, you can get very accurate with your timing. Mags are all different, and I don't know much about Vertex, so there might be some bench set-up that needs to happen first (there usually is).
If you don't know about or how a Magneto works then either remove it or take the time to get it right. That's not a snarky statement, it's an encouraging one. I have Magnetos in all but one of my Hot rods. Have for over 20 years in one of 'em. I also run three pedals. Here's why I love them. No battery needed. It's just a simpler process. While some may think not, it really is. But you have to think of it as a system all in itself. It is the ignition system. Here's what I suggest. Pull it out and send it to Joe Hunt Magnetos in Rancho Cuca****a. Tell them what your engine is in this case Flathead. Ask them to limit the advance to 24 degrees total. Unless you have a really ragged edge Flat motor that's all it'll want. Have them set the curve so it's all in at 2500 RPM. Too much too soon and it'll ping. But by 2500 RPM the Flathead can take it and will run great. But you don't time a magneto by the TDC mark, you really shouldn't set any timing by the mark on a balancer unless you have set it yourself and know for a fact the engine is at TDC #1. Balancers move, and guys before you may not have really known what they are doing. So find out exactly where TDC#1 is, exactly. Be diligent here because it matters. Ignition is where power is made or lost. Carburation is part of the air pump (but that's another discussion) without the right spark process your chasing your tail. Once you get the Mag back and you know exactly what you have and you have the engine at #1 TDC install the mag. Make sure you put it in the correct spot. So that #1 is at #1. These are the most important steps. Find someone with a buzzer for a mag. The Buzzer is how you set the timing to start. Not with a light. Plug wires are often a stumbling block as well. When inserting the wires into the cap ignore the order in the white circles. Know the firing order and go by that. The white circles have ruined many an effort to use the "Dreaded Magneto". Do one wire at a time from Plug to cap. That will get you started, then use your ears. Advance it manually until it idles up slightly, then back it off until it just idles down. Tighten the clamp. That's the perfect timing spot, maybe a degree or so up or down. Set the idle at 800 RPM. Then start to read the plugs and messing with the jets. Carmel Brown is what you are after. All the best - Tim
Hey guys.... Thank you for all the input. I am definitely going to all of it on board as I work through my problem solving to develop options. I know this is going to seem like a stoopid question as I try to learn a little more about mags, but here goes.... If my thinking is right then advance on a mag should be the same direction as a dizzy... clockwise to advance and anti-clockwise to retard... Is that right?
If your Distributor/Mag rotor spins Clockwise then Counter clockwise is advancing the spark, If your Distributor/Mag rotor spins Counter Clockwise then Clockwise is advancing the spark. Always look at it like this - If you were swimming you'd go against the Current to go Up Stream. So when you turn the Distributor into the Rotation you are DA TAH DA TAH - Advancing the current. Now the advance weights in the distributor will go outwards no matter which direction you turn it. And one last thing to make sure of is that your cam lobe in the Magneto is the correct one for the direction your engine turns. It makes a difference and the ramps can be different. - Tim
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