Any advice on a solid/reliable distributor

[MustangRanch 14]

Need a new distributor for 351W. Ebay and Parts sites are full of everything under the sun... from 60 bucks to 300 bucks.

Any advice on a quality distributor that is neither cheapo nor overkill?

 

Thanks in advance....

[miketyler 15]

A safe bet is an OEM distributor retrofit with Pertronix. Most guys have pretty good luck with that and isn't too expensive.

[LindenBruce 27]

+2 on MT's suggestion. If you don't want to go that route I have had good luck with Mallory dual point or electronic distributors. B.

[magician 13]

Second that..I went HEI and don't like the looks of it..runs fine but ugly and big.

[7TCatvert 24]

I always order dist, alt, starters from orielly...they have lifetime replacements and usually have them close enough to get from a store. I have a main store up the street so usually have them in stock...

 

Other than that the pertronix billet dist are very nice pieces...

[LiLMike 42]

I have a Mallory dual point dizzy that I put their electronic conversion kit in it. It is small like the oem one but has the look of the muscle car era.

[Rsanter 152]

Pertronix distributor all the way

 

Bob

[j69302 11]

whatever distributor you go with, make sure it is curved correctly or you are wasting your money.

 

You won't find much better than a stock distributor with a pertronix upgrade, tuned to the boss 302 specs.

[Flanders 46]

just don't forget that with a pertronix ignitor II or III, you should probably upgrade your coil AND re-wire the coil so it has a 12V source

[Kingfish 11]

I had an Accel dual point that was good when it was new. I have now gone with a Pertronix Flame Thrower Dist./& Coil. The $$ is right and I think its the best dist/coil set-up on the market. I got mine from Summitt. I think you can choose dist cap colors. Dark red or Black. I also went with Ford Racing wires. Looks good and works great!

 

Steve.

[Lindy 10]

I ended up going with the MSD 8578 which requires the 6AL ignition box 6425, its a bit pricey but my buddies were recommending MSD, plus I wanted the rev-limiter since I was going all HP parts. Personal choice I guess.

[MustangRanch 14]

Thanks all, the 12V coil does seem like a nice upgrade, not worried about anything concourse, this is a daily driver, and some upgrading in that area would probably do some good.... thanks for all the feedback and discussion. Couple hundred more bucks... will just need to wait for the next payday.

[MustangChuck 16]

I have a Mallory Unilite 3755101 that has worked really well for me. It is mechanical advance, but was set perfectly for my 302. Never had a single problem with it.

 

Chuck

[alanbmx 10]

Second that..I went HEI and don't like the looks of it..runs fine but ugly and big.

 

my son bought one of the HEI's for his 71 351C and it is so big it will not work. money down the drain

[tony 63C 14]

I went with a stock distributor rebuilt and recurved by an old Ford mechanic located in the eastern US (don’t have the name with me at the moment). He provided me with a date code correct original distributor fully restored with all new innards, vac advance, and Pertronix conversion. Plug and play. No fuss no muss. And it was surprisingly cheap at around $200 if I remember correctly. I could not recommend this guy any higher. If you need the name let me know.

Cheers,

Tony

[1969vert 55]

I run a stock ford distributor...so all parts are avalable at parts houses...wide cap..and cheap...but I light it up with MSD....

[Jimjific 23]

Another thing to keep in mind with the Petronix conversion is that you can take all of your points parts and put them in a baggy and keep them in your glove box. If the module ever blows, you can easily throw your points back in and get yourself home.

 

Jim

[jwscarab 20]

I went with MSD "ready to run" with no ignition box required. Havent got to get it dialed in yet since its been -25* and snowing for the last 2 months straight......