For those who are running a 85 distributor with a roller cam.

A66Auto · May 27, 2009

I have a 93 block that I am putting in a 66 coupe. I planned on using the 85 distributor from a 5 speed gt so I can run a roller cam and use my existing ignition system. I bought the distributor from Autozone and have never seen one before and I assume it is the right one.

The problem is that I ordered a cap from Summit and they sent a wide cap and rotor. I have a small distributor and I/we cannot figure out why it is the wrong part.

Can anyone help me? What cap did you use? I don’t have the money to buy a new distributor and I need to find a way to make this work.

Thanks,

Alex

PS How can I tell what type of gear is on this distributor? I know what bronze looks like, but I can’t tell steel from iron.

CraigMBA · May 27, 2009

The big cap has an adaptor you can remove so you can use your small cap.

Hack · May 28, 2009

For telling the cast from the steel gear, it's not that easy, but you can have the parts store pull one of each. That way you can look at the one on your dizzy and compare to be sure you have the right one.

A66Auto · May 28, 2009

CraigMBA said:
The big cap has an adaptor you can remove so you can use your small cap.

I have an MSD cap and I took a look at it. I don't see where anything would come off. Do you mean that if I went to the auto parts store, and bought a factory large cap, that it would have an adaptor?

golf4283 · May 28, 2009

the newer distributors used a larger cap to decrease the chances of crossfire between cylinders at higher RPM's. All you need to do to use this larger cap is buy a set of plug wires for a late model 5.0 and you'll be good to go. I did this on my roller 302 I dropped in my Mustang.

Just be cognizant that the distributor you bought is a duraspark distributor. I am not sure whether or not you can run these without using an ignition box. I'm sure someone will clear that up.

D.Hearne · May 28, 2009

The large cap uses an adapter to fit the distributor.The adapter snaps onto the distributor housing, the cap snaps onto it. All you need to do is run to the parts house and buy one. Some of the cap/rotor kits come with the adapter too. As for the steel vs iron, the steel gears are smooth in texture on the unmachined surfaces.

hipo_p51 · May 28, 2009

get rid of that garbage dizzy. get a MSD 8352 ford 302 ready-to-run pro billet distributor. you will thank me later.

D.Hearne · May 28, 2009

hipo_p51 said:
get rid of that garbage dizzy. get a MSD 8352 ford 302 ready-to-run pro billet distributor. you will thank me later.

Nothing garbage about it. I've got one and it runs just fine. I spent the $300 that an MSD distributor costs somewhere it produced more benefit.

golf4283 · May 28, 2009

The Duraspark dizzy is a great model and the MSD design is based off of it.

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

D.Hearne · May 28, 2009

I had a freind that was talked into a full MSD system to replace the stock Duraspark setup. Cost him something like 4 or 5 hundred dollars from a local speed shop (they were the one's talked him into it) I warned him to spend the money somewhere else. He showed up at the house one day after getting the MSD installed. I asked him if he noticed the difference that $400-500 it cost. He kind of hung his head down and mumbled "no", knowing he'd learned an expensive lesson

hipo_p51 · May 28, 2009

to each their own, i have the msd ready to run on my roller motor and i cannot be happier. one reason i have this distributor is because it does not require any external ignition box. it also fits well with my manifold. having no problems with it i would recommend it to anyone.

golf4283 · May 28, 2009

Im running the stock Duraspark dizzy with an MSD box. when my car was running for a few days it fired up on first turn and the thing wasn't even timed right. So mix and match is an option too if you're going with a box type ignition.

For those who are running a 85 distributor with a roller cam.

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