Technical Question for Bubba or anyone else who may know

I recently converted my old chevy points dist. to electronic using a Chrysler reluctor wheel and magnetic pickup. Like I have seen bubba do in an older post. The only thing I did differently was use my MSD6Al box for the module instead of an HEI module. I tryied to start the car for the first time and nothing. I did some checking and found that if I tapped the orange wire to ground that I had spark. So next I removed the dist. grounded it and spun it (with everything hooked up) no spark. Then I removed the magnetic pickup and used a screwdriver to swipe past the pickup and NOTHING. So I went to the parts store, bought another and installed it. Put it all back together and WAM, fired up the first time!!! I ran the car for about a minute or two and noticed a fuel fitting leaking. Sut off the car, fixed the leak, went to start it again and NOTHING. Did all the same checks as before and now thing the pickup is bad again! What the hell! Is my msd causing this for some reason? Thanks guys!!!

 

What do you have for an air gap between the reluctor and pick up coil?

 

About .008. I have messed with that too. I made it closer, I pulled it apart farther. Didn't seem to matter

 

Did you try swapping the MSD6Al module out for a known good HEI? At least that would test the MSD6Al as being good or bad.

 

I use the stock Chrysler module mounted up under the dash. I'm a sissy and I am a little leery of race car stuff. If it dies... any parts house will have one in stock. People can't tell that it is electronic so I don't need that ugly red box. others may want to brag about it. Not me. That's a 90s thing.

 

I run the delco style with the chrysler set to a GM hei module. O haven't had to touch it in about 8 years. Got the idea from an accell dist I picked up at a swap. Just use a heat sink under the module like stock.


jerry

 

I used the MSD because I use to use it in my OT Chevelle, it worked great in that car. I am also using it because this is a 4 speed car and I have all the MSD stuff for a 2 step. I have also mounted the box under the dash so it is completely out of sight. (I don't care for the looks of them either). I also know that the box is working because like I said, I can tap the signal wire to ground and get great spark. It's almost like I have killed two of these magnetic pickups in a row, the first didn't work and the second one ran till I shut it off.

 

I don't know anything about the msd stuff but, does it have any kind of resister in the system? I've heard of people burning the pick up if it does have a resister. You could install one in the harness or buy a coil with a build in one.

Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!

 

I am running an msd blaster 2 coil. And I have wired it all up according to the MSD instructions for a Chrysler. Actually the wireing diagrams for a Chrysler and a GM HEI are basicly the same other than the color of the wires are different from GM to Chrysler.

 

OK. I took the dist. out to get the gap as close as possible.

 

Well I think I figured it out!!! One thing I noticed was that if I spun the dist. by hand I had to spin it pretty fast to get it to fire, faster than the engine would turn it when it was trying to start. I noticed that the little bracket on the magnetic pickup was bent just a little so the gap between the two wasn't quite even. (closer at the top, wider at the bottom). So I bent the thing just a little to get it square and readjusted the gap. Hooked it back up and spun it by hand and noticed I could spin it pretty slow and it would still fire!!! Put the whole works back together and WAM!!!! Fired right up!!!!! Just like to follow up incase someone else has the same problem and is searching it. And thanks to you guys who responded!!!

 

Good deal. What I remember about the mopar dist was you had to use a brass feeler gauge so the magnet in the pickup coil wouldn't give a false reading.