History Old Mallory coil thread

I responded to a "conversation" from a guy who wants to run an old Mallory distributor on his 235 Chevy. He particularly was interested in what coils he could run that would match his distributor. I went through my "stash" of old Mallory coils and sent him a reply. After doing that, I thought that there might be a chance that some other folks would also be interested. Here's what I posted. It by no means complete, but I think it is enough to help him. This is in no way comprehensive (or even correct), so if any of you guys have some more information or corrections, please post them here. For us "traditional" guys, this is kind of important.

Here are examples of the old Mallory coils I have. The first is the "Best" coil. I have only seen these in 6 volt versions, but they could easily be run on 12 volts with the proper ballast resistor. It's hard to see, but "This is the Best Coil I Have Ever Made - M Mallory" embossed on the bottom. You have to love that level of confidence. Here are some pictures :


These are my favorite.

Next are the "FlashFire" coils The red one is for 12 volts, while the black one is for 6 volt use. Here are some pictures :



The next is a special version of a FlashFire that has 2 primary windings (note that it has three primary terminals instead of two). It is used with a special distributore that have a 4-lobe cam and the point sets are not internally connected.. I don't believe that it would be of use to most of you, but I am including it so you know the difference between one of these and a regular "FlashFire". Pictures :

Being black, I believe that this one is a 6 volt unit. I believe that a 12 volt version would be red, like the "FlashFire". If you find one at a swap meet (especially a red one), contact me, I'd be really interested in it!

The next set of pictures is of a "MagSpark" unit. They also require a special distributor, and I will admit that I don't know a lot about them. I have included these pictures because Mallory made a coil called a "Voltmaster" that looks exactly like it. They used the same cases for the "Magspark" units and the "Voltmaster" coils. Pictures :



Next is an older unit that I found someplace. It is definitely a Mallory coil and I believe it is for a 6 volt system. Pictures :



Last is an older brown coil. It is also definitely a Mallory coil, and is marked for 6 volts. Pictures :


Mallory made a lot more stuff, but it is usually in the "Muscle Car Era" and really doesn't interest me.

Hopefully, more information will come "out of the walls" to flesh this thread out.

 

Can you recommend a proper brand and part number of ballast resistor to use?

 

^^^^^This would be appreciated^^^^^

 

Great thread Tubman.. I hope you don't mind if I add a few more to your list....

12V Flashfire..

 

Blue Flashfire used with Transistor Kit

 

3 Terminal Red RevPol 12V Flashfire for converting 4 lobe Double Life distributors as Tubman mentioned above

 

"kaddilackid", first of all, thank you for your contributions, this is what I was hoping would happen with this thread.
Second, I see that this transistor ignition is in it's original box. Would you possibly have the instruction sheet that came with it? I have this same exact unit, but no instructions and no idea of how to hook it up.

 

This means that the second to last one I listed is probably the 6 volt version of this coil, given Mallory's "red/black" convention. I see it is also called a "FlashFire". This is not the first time that Mallory used the same name for two different coils (I have seen two very different looking versions of the "VoltMaster");

 

When I set up my engine test stand, I wired it with a SPDT (center-off) toggle switch so I could run it on 6 or 12 volts, depending on what I was testing. I used a ballast resistor from a late '50's 12 volt Chrysler product. Everything seems to work fine, but this was done before I really had considered the ramifications of current and voltage to the coil. I'm sure some judicious work with a multimeter, measuring resistance and current flow through the coil, along with the proper application of "Ohm's Law" would yield the answer to this question. It's a little out of the scope of this thread, but perhaps someone out there with a bit more knowledge of ignition systems than I do has the answer.

 

No problem, I hope these are readable..if not PM me and i can email them to you !

 

If I took an old Mallory 8 lobe dual point and connected each set of points to one of the travlers on a three way switch and connected the coil to the common would I be able to change the timing by switching to a different set of points?

 

"kadillackid" - Those are eminently readable. Thank you very much. Mine looks like yours, but is not labelled "Mallory" (I think it is labeled "Autronics"). I see that they reference a "special coil"; my setup came with a red "FlashFire" that does not have the Mallory "Circle-M" logo on it, so I think it is a matched set. I think it's interesting that they tell you to remove the condenser. I would not have thought of that; now that I have, it makes sense to me.

Thanks again..

 

I've been looking for one of these for years. Would love to find an NOS one. Used with the Mini-mag on a push start vehicle. Part no. 26061A

Need it for a dragster restoration

 

Agreed great thread Denny. Here are my Mallory coil & transistor ignition collection.

 

I also have these 3 old Mallory catalogues

 

The points will be triggering a Capacitive Discharge box so there is no need for the extra dwell..

Five or six degrees is perfect!!

 

Great thread, love these early coils.
Here are my early 6V Mallory coils, 30s or 40s era? not really sure but they look great.
Both work well on my 1933 Model B with or without the Stromberg condenser. The one in the top pic. has an inbuilt ballast resistor, the coil clamps are a work of art.

 

Thanks for adding to the thread. The first coil you posted looks to be a regular "Best" coil with an added Ballast resistor. I have never had one of these, but if I had to make a guess, I would think that the was Mallory's way of adapting a "Best" coil for 12 volt use. I'd love to get at that thing with a multi-meter to decide if I was right or not.

The second one appears to be the same as the last one I showed in my initial post (I am missing the clamp). I would also like to get at this with a multi-meter, as mine reads quite a bit lower than any repular coils I have.

I find the "Stromberg Condenser" to be quite a fascinating piece. Again, if I had to guess I would thing it would be for (radio?) suppression purposes. I have never seen anything like it in my life.

 

The 1934 patented Stromberg condenser arrived in its original box, just awesome.
I have been told it has a spark gap but how it works, I dont know. I do not think it will work as a radio suppressor, though I will find out soon as I have a valve radio for the 33.
The Model B runs ok with it and the Mallory, and should be more economical if you believe the claims on the box. (Apologies I could not rotate the images)
The coils both measure 1.5 ohms internal resistance and work well, probably handy to have a multimeter when looking to buy these cool old items at swap meets etc.

 

Made my neck hurt looking at them sideways.

 

Hi, what a great post! Thanks for sharing. I too am collecting vintage mallory and other coils for my 51 Plymouth flathead 6 cylinder.....positive ground 6 volts. I was schooled by many here on that I was chasing performance the wrong way........with these coils. Now it for fun and looks. Those coils look 100 miles faster than the stock coil.

 

I know this is a old thread but I found this today. This is Tubmans number one pick. Did you say these where all 6 volt? Mine says 12000 12v on the side. Do y'all have any information about this one?

 

Since I originally started this thread. I came into possession of as 12 volt "Best" coil. I ohmed it out and it had different values (both primary and secondary) from a 6 volt unit. I am on my way to Florida for the winter, so I don't have access to any of my information. But there are 12 volt "Best" coils that were originally made as such. I now believe that the ones with the auxiliary resistor around the top were an early version of the 12 volt unit.

 

Thank you. Does auxiliary resistor mean I don't have to use a ceramic reducer before power goes in to it? Hope you have a safe trip and enjoy that nice winter weather down there.

 

I believe that to be correct. The first picture of Post #20 of this thread shows "the auxiliary resistor around the top" I was talking about. I believe the use of a ceramic resistor in addition would be redundant. I have never seen any Mallory documentation on these coils. From some of the additional posts on this thread, I believe there are at least 4 versions of the "Best" coil.