Pertronix Ignitor II installation

rock tractor said:
I don't run a wire. I run the GM style resister. Mm am I supposed to run the resister with the petronics.
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A pertronix II and a "regular" pertronix are somewhat different animals, though both accomplish the same end result...replace the breaker points!

With either version, a resistor wire or ballast resistor (either one should be in the range of 1.5>1.8ohms) is not necessary. A bypass or "re-wire" can be done to provide b+ to the coil with the ignition switch in the "run" position.

If...ya ever want to revert back to a breaker point/condenser system though, you will need the "resistive" feed.

I'll say this again...the instructions enclosed with any pertronix product are extremely ambiguous and don't fully explain the "why" of the primary side of the ignition wiring system. I'm installing a fresh pertronix ho-141 in a Holley four cylinder distributor right now after it having been on backorder for nearly three weeks due to a major change in it's design. And I now understand why the gold box version has recently undergone a redesign. More on that to come in another thread:

http://www.forums.IHPartsAmerica.co...ower-missing-odd-noises-gold-box-failure.html

But what has not changed are the instructions, they are now actually even more difficult for a novice to understand than ever before!

And the pertronix iii is the exact same "lobe sensor" design as was previously developed and marketed by crane for some distributor conversions (but not a Holley distributor). Right now, those items are not available from pertronix, but they assure me they will be back in production soon (crane's doors were padlocked several months back and the company is history). When I asked about the plans for a p-iii for a Holley app, they tell me..."not now, but maybe in the future".
 
scoutboy74 said:
those fuckers! Well, I guess that nib unit I snaked off greedbay a few months back has now turned to gold.
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Go to the p-tron website:

pertronix performance products

And you will see the pertronix iii banner running as the eyecatcher. Look familiar??

And p-tron dude readily admits the rights to that unit along with the production source are now proprietary to p-tron. With some labeling changes and "maybe" some internal circuitry alterations.

So your lobe sensor crane unit has not gone away! And that conversion is one more reason why all delco distributors used in IH apps are superior platforms to use for building a performance ignition system. They are totally bulletproof, very easy to work with the mechanical advance curve for diddlin', can use the lobe sensor points conversion that requires no magnet wheel/reluctor, and will trigger any aftermarket "6" or "7" series cd ignition box, no matter what brand name. But then...so will a p-tron or a p-tron II!

Comp cams ended up with the crane cam technology in order to get the crane cam blank manufacturing facility and technology. The cam blank bizz was separate from the "public" face of crane. That operation supplies cam blanks and similar forged and/or cast items to the oem manufacturers and most all other aftermarket cam grinders.
 
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Opening up an oldie here, but I just want to make sure I don't cook a ~$100 part.

The above is all very well written, but it still leaves me with a question. Let me just start by stating what I am about to do.

This is on a completely stock 72, 304 with a curved point Holley distributor. Coil is reading 1.5 Ohms. Still has the cloth resistor "run" wire in-tact. I'd like to leave everything stock, with the exception of the addition of a Pertronix 91481. The question is simple. Do I merely remove the points/condenser etc. as stated above, and connect the Pertronix to the +/- of the coil, (which operates at reduced voltage while running)......or should I connect the red Pertronix lead to a full 12v acc feed buried in the harness? If I understand correctly, the latter is preferred for performance. I'd like to carry my old distributor with me, and be able to swap it back in, as backup.

Just want ask before I light it up.

Much thanks,

-Brett
 
Brett, the points would burn up faster than normal if a full 12v went to them all the time. That's what the resistor wire (or ballast in some trucks) is for. It drops the voltage to about 8 volts in normal operation. The Pertronix wants full 12 volts all the time. That being said, I ran an original Pertronix via the resistor wire for over 20 years and never had a problem. So they will work at 8 volts, but its not what is called for. Ideally, you'd want to swap the resistor wire for a ballast resistor on the fire wall. Cut the stock resistor wire close to the bulkhead connector but leave enough to strip/solder/splice a new 14g wire to one post of the ballast resistor. Then FROM THE SAME POST, stack a second wire and continue that one to the red wire of the Pertronix (Probably the + Coil post?). This way, if the Pertronix ever goes paws up, you simply re-install your points, and take your second wire off the first post of the ballast resistor and run it to the second post. Now you have 8 volts again to your coil/points. Of course, points would certainly survive a few hundred miles at 12 volts, and in an emergency, as long as you had the points to install, you could get home.
Also, there is a wire that comes off of the starter that provides a full 12v during starting. This will also go the the +Coil post. No need to mess with that one.
 
Got it.

Somewhere in the back of my mind I can hear MM screaming that I don't need to change out the original 72" wire, and I don't need no damn relay etc......but I get your point(s).

So the ballast resistor is what, 1.5-1.8 Ohm ceramic?

As you describe it, the Pertronix module would see the full 12v, but the coil would still be reduced to ~8v via the resistor. Coil says 12v (to be used with a ballast resistor). This would be using a stock coil...not a Flamethrower II, if I understand that setup correctly.

Also.....what is the condenser looking thing hanging of the coil? I'm thinking maybe a capacitor for radio static? Does that stay?

Correct? (and thanks)

-Brett
 
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