Where's the best place to source a Duraspark distributor for an '85 Mustang? Is new or remanufactured better? Rockauto has Cardone in both new and reman versions as well a reman from Autoline which seems to be of higher quality. Any other options to look at. There are none in the salvage yards in my area so I'm pretty much looking at online only. Thanks.
Best source for '85 Duraspark distributor?
- Thread starter 92LX5spd
- Start date
Not sure how the aftermarket Duraspark distributors are.... Most on here complain about the later ones with the TFI module
Do you still have your original?? Won't DUI rebuild yours?
Didn’t think the ‘85 had a TFI module as that is for fuel injection.
Are you replacing one or do not have one and need one?
Are you replacing one or do not have one and need one?
If you want a factory one then you can search 85 Mustang 5.0 with manual transmission at www.car-part.com as I just did and there are supposedly six near me. You can also search for Broncos, vans, pickups, passenger cars in the Ford Lincoln, and Mercury lines that are between '75 to '85 as they all came with 302's and these distributors. Do some research and you can find compatible cars. I just looked on OReilly's website and close the Cardone new dizzy and clicked on "Compatibility" and the whole list comes up. Again, research as the list are decent but not always right.
If it were me I would just get an MSD and move on. This is where some will jump in and
all over MSD but I run one in my T-Bird with the 351W and a 6AL with zero issues. Its not cheap so be forewarned.
www.holley.com
If it were me I would just get an MSD and move on. This is where some will jump in and
all over MSD but I run one in my T-Bird with the 351W and a 6AL with zero issues. Its not cheap so be forewarned.MSD 8598 Ford 289/302 Billet Distributor
For Ford enthusiasts that are serious about performance! Just under the brass terminals of the MSD cap and rotor is an easy-to-adjust mechanical advance assembly. The assembly is fine blanked from chro-moly steel, TIG-welded for strength plus receives a QPQ coating. The precision weights glide...
www.holley.com
I checked out that car part website and the closest one was 345 miles away. Neat site though.
While that distributor was probably used in a bunch of small block Fords, I need one specifically for an '85 MT car which means I need a steel gear for the roller cam. I should have said that up front. My bad.
Looking over what Summit has with a steel gear, there's Pertronix's HEI version, although the one review says it won't fit a roller motor for some reason. It runs about $326.
Procomp has one for $72 but since I don't like tow bills or walking after a sudden breakdowns, I'll likely pass on that, lol.
MSDs run $435 for their street Pro-Billet model plus another $338 for a 6AL box to run it or $216 for their cheapie Street Fire box.
The goal was to get a Duraspark unit and trigger it with an HEI module remotely or possibly a Duraspark box. but I'm mostly concerned with ultimate reliability in daily use over the long haul. Will I need top dollar MSD stuff to do that in this day and age? There's a lot of junk floating around out there.
Oh and most importantly, can MSD put the gear on in the right spot as to not munch up the block surface? lol.
While that distributor was probably used in a bunch of small block Fords, I need one specifically for an '85 MT car which means I need a steel gear for the roller cam. I should have said that up front. My bad.
Looking over what Summit has with a steel gear, there's Pertronix's HEI version, although the one review says it won't fit a roller motor for some reason. It runs about $326.
Procomp has one for $72 but since I don't like tow bills or walking after a sudden breakdowns, I'll likely pass on that, lol.
MSDs run $435 for their street Pro-Billet model plus another $338 for a 6AL box to run it or $216 for their cheapie Street Fire box.
The goal was to get a Duraspark unit and trigger it with an HEI module remotely or possibly a Duraspark box. but I'm mostly concerned with ultimate reliability in daily use over the long haul. Will I need top dollar MSD stuff to do that in this day and age? There's a lot of junk floating around out there.
Oh and most importantly, can MSD put the gear on in the right spot as to not munch up the block surface? lol.
I Purchased what you need from lMR... My car project is not done yet so the engine has not been started or run yet.... No recommendations as of yet..
While looking through the Summit catalog remembered one of the ;problems with an HEI or Pertronix was stock Air cleaner clearance....
Here is the distributor...
https://lmr.com/item/LRS-12127BK/Mustang-50-Distributor-Steel-Gear-1985-Carb-Only
While looking through the Summit catalog remembered one of the ;problems with an HEI or Pertronix was stock Air cleaner clearance....
Here is the distributor...
https://lmr.com/item/LRS-12127BK/Mustang-50-Distributor-Steel-Gear-1985-Carb-Only
How did the quality of the LMR distributor seem? Did it seem to have proper endplay and most importantly, was the installed distributor gear height within spec?
Alternately, here's Ford's method:
If the gear is too low, it will be too tight against the block surface inside the engine, potentially damaging it. I've had a parts store distributor for a later model fox (TFI) that had the gear too low and had virtually no shaft end play. Endplay should be .024" to .035".
A quick check would be to press down on the distributor shaft with the distributor installed. You should be able to pull up on the distributor body and have some play. Now press down on the distributor body and pull up on the shaft and there should be some play there too.
If the gear is too low, it will be too tight against the block surface inside the engine, potentially damaging it. I've had a parts store distributor for a later model fox (TFI) that had the gear too low and had virtually no shaft end play. Endplay should be .024" to .035".
A quick check would be to press down on the distributor shaft with the distributor installed. You should be able to pull up on the distributor body and have some play. Now press down on the distributor body and pull up on the shaft and there should be some play there too.
A couple of items here....
Been trying, but being by myself and having to use the inner on one end, AND the outer on the other end measuring area on my calipers, I have been using a straight edge on the bottom of the drive gear... I need another hand.... Besides pulling or pushing the shaft end play.....
2. the pictures show measuring to the bottom of the teeth of the drive gear, NOT the flat area at the bottom of the drive gear.. Do I have that right? Big difference here...... There is a small flat area on the teeth, also a bevel.. so it makes this interesting....
Might have to try to get a neighbor to help me..... Working on it.......
To the machinists on here, Have I got this right using my calipers this way?? You can see by the pics the measuring points are inside to an outside.
Been trying, but being by myself and having to use the inner on one end, AND the outer on the other end measuring area on my calipers, I have been using a straight edge on the bottom of the drive gear... I need another hand.... Besides pulling or pushing the shaft end play.....
2. the pictures show measuring to the bottom of the teeth of the drive gear, NOT the flat area at the bottom of the drive gear.. Do I have that right? Big difference here...... There is a small flat area on the teeth, also a bevel.. so it makes this interesting....
Might have to try to get a neighbor to help me..... Working on it.......
To the machinists on here, Have I got this right using my calipers this way?? You can see by the pics the measuring points are inside to an outside.
Last edited:
I always thought it was measured to the flat machined pad on the bottom of the gear. This is the surface that rides on the corresponding machined pad down inside the engine block. Its my understanding that the two surfaces ride on an oil film. The helix angle of the gear in rotation pulls the distributer shaft with the gear attached down to ride on the that surface in the block. If the gear is too low on the shaft, tightening the hold down clamp will smash the two surfaces together and cause damage to the gear and block. If the gear is too high, their is too much gap between the surfaces and the distributor itself might be damaged. The end play in the shaft, dictated by the collar pinned above the gear, is there for wiggle room/manufacturing tolerances and to allow the cam rotation to pull down on the shaft and gear during rotation, if that makes sense. At least that's how I've read it in my research. I think there's some Youtube videos on this too as well as other articles on the net.
Thank you very much for pulling that distributor back out and checking it! Its tricky to do with one person. It looks like a nice piece from your pics.
