# FINALLY installed my pertronix ignitor III and coil



## xcmac26 (Dec 1, 2008)

unbelieveable, I know, but it's in there. got the sucker christmastime last year, then waited on the backordered flamethrower III coil, got that two days before i shipped out and...long story short, 11 months later it's finally in the car.

first off, many many thanks to 68greengoat for helping me out along the way and answering my dozens of emails to get this thing installed.

now on to the good stuff,

seriously wish i'd done this earlier. car fires over without a hiccup now, just crank, vrooom, and smooooooth idle. engine became way more responsive to my throttle inputs. had to take her out for a quick spin of course, and found very quickly that the responsive throttle would translate to lots of squeeling rubber.  the rev limiter kicks in right around 65 in 1st gear which is a helluvalot of of fun (but should probably wait till after a rebuild before i go pushing it too often. 

the install went slow (as i mentioned i had tons of questions), and the best recommendation i can make (sorry troy, i'm disputing your knowledge here) is to put the rubber grommet in from the bottom of the distributor first, then snake the two pertronix wires through the top. had to lube the grommet up a bit with some oil i had laying around, but it got in there eventually. also, managed to pull a back muscle reaching from the fender to the center of the firewall, not sure how to avoid that but hey...just a warning.

one other thing i found interesting is how much quieter the exhaust got. smoother running yes, but surprised it toned it down.

i'll be running her out to san antonio this weekend (if i fix the gas gauge before then) so will let you all know whether the claims of improved MPG are true or not.

so once again, thanks to green goat for the help along the way, now i just need to get my new intake set up and a posi out back. think that'll be enough for me :cool


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## Eric Animal (Oct 28, 2007)

Will that trip be with the top up, or down????:confused


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## Rukee (Feb 8, 2007)

You'll not get better MPG, cause with the increased throttle response you're going to be working that responsive gas pedal way more then you use to. 


I'd expect at least 2MPG increase on the highway. :cheers


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## Eric Animal (Oct 28, 2007)

I like that one too..."my new ignition MAKES my rear tires squeal" :lol::rofl:


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## xcmac26 (Dec 1, 2008)

Eric Animal said:


> Will that trip be with the top up, or down????:confused



Down, hoping the weather holds together through the weekend. still waiting on delivery of a new hook and knuckle for the driver's side, and my body by fisher book hasn't arrived either.


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## Eric Animal (Oct 28, 2007)

:willy:


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## xconcepts (Jan 4, 2009)

I just put in the pertronix ignitor I and it now doesn't take as long to fire up, 2-3 cranks compared to 5-6 it use to. I'm wondering if I should add the coil as well though.


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## jetstang (Nov 5, 2008)

You haven't got the intake and carb on yet?? That will really wake the car up and kill the MPG, lol..
Without a gas gauge I would estimate 10 MPG, have a spare five in the trunk and go. Fill it up when it gets to half tank and adjust the MPG based on that. The 2 barrel should get good mileage. Congrats on the ignition upgrade, nice.


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## 68greengoat (Sep 15, 2005)

Thanks Steve! Always willing to help out where and when I can....

I did the wires thru the grommet b/4 installing the grommet, because for me, it worked out the best. I tried installing the grommet first, but for the life of me, I couldn't get the wires thru. Ya, stretching out to reach everything was a pain, literally. Well worth the effort tho.......:cheers


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## xcmac26 (Dec 1, 2008)

x - get the coil, the flamethrower III only ran me about 35 bucks, but the backorder damn near killed me.

jetstang - i got about 14 mpg highway before the ignitor, sky's the limit! haha. The intake is heading to the shop to be blasted and anodized, just need to pick a color, after that it'll go on there and i'll never have to worry about cleaning it again 

goat - hey what can i say, younger eyes maybe?


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## 68GTO4004Spd (Jun 19, 2008)

I bought a pertronix II about two months ago, still haven't gotten around to putting it in. I need to get my butt in gear and do some work before it gets too cold outside.


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

I don't know why you young guys are reaching into the engine bay. Yank that sucker out and install on the work bench... Work smarter, not harder...:lol:

Next time you have a spare hour or so, pull the plugs and open the gap to .045. That will utilize the extra voltage of the coil and it will almost squeal the tires in nuetral....:cheers

Yes, waiting 5 months for the coil sucked...


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## jetstang (Nov 5, 2008)

I agree with TMP, mark the location of the vac can and the rotor, pull it out, repair, and drop it back in, make sure it flushes to the manifold, it it doesn't then it's not in the same location as it's not engaging the oil pump shaft...
What are they claiming out of the coil? I put an accel on my 5.0 Mustang thinking I would pick up a .10th or so, didn't do anything. Quality coils, as other ignition parts all add up, but I don't think I would run out to get a hipo coil unless I had extra bucks to burn, thats if the car is running good with a newer stock coil, if it's old, then get the best you can..


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## Rukee (Feb 8, 2007)

Don't pull it out unless you have too!!!


Trust me on this.  




...and with distributors too.


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## jetstang (Nov 5, 2008)

Rukee said:


> Don't pull it out unless you have too!!!
> Trust me on this.
> ...and with distributors too.


For the love of god, pull it out.. It will save you tons of money in the long run.. Make sure you lube the lobes while you have it out, smooths everything out, but that's if you have points. No lube required for electronic ignition..:cheers


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

jetstang said:


> I agree with TMP, mark the location of the vac can and the rotor, pull it out, repair, and drop it back in, make sure it flushes to the manifold, it it doesn't then it's not in the same location as it's not engaging the oil pump shaft...
> What are they claiming out of the coil? I put an accel on my 5.0 Mustang thinking I would pick up a .10th or so, didn't do anything. Quality coils, as other ignition parts all add up, but I don't think I would run out to get a hipo coil unless I had extra bucks to burn, thats if the car is running good with a newer stock coil, if it's old, then get the best you can..


If I remember correctly, the Flame Thrower III is rated for 45,000 volts and a stock one is around half that ?

I learned that it's better to pull it out than regret not doing so for 18 years...


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## xcmac26 (Dec 1, 2008)

I just want to add my $0.02 here...

pulling the distributor requires just as much bending and stretching as i performed putting in the pertronix, maybe more. The biggest issue was determining the "best" way of putting it in. knowing what i know now, i could drop in a pertronix ignitor III in about 15 minutes, 20 if my hand cramped, which would be about as painful as pulling the distributor off. 

you guys can take this as me saying "i'll put one in your car for a 6 pack" :cheers


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## Eric Animal (Oct 28, 2007)

All this talk about pulling it out...and lubing it is starting to scare me.....arty:


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

xcmac26 said:


> I just want to add my $0.02 here...
> 
> pulling the distributor requires just as much bending and stretching as i performed putting in the pertronix, maybe more. The biggest issue was determining the "best" way of putting it in. knowing what i know now, i could drop in a pertronix ignitor III in about 15 minutes, 20 if my hand cramped, which would be about as painful as pulling the distributor off.
> 
> you guys can take this as me saying "i'll put one in your car for a 6 pack" :cheers


I'm looking at getting 3 for all my other cars now so, say for a case you'll put them all in ??
Just let me know what time your planes lands so I can pick you up....:seeya:
Oh yeah, I haven't bought beer in 27 years. What brand do you like ?


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## 68greengoat (Sep 15, 2005)

As far as the coil. For the Pertronix 3 they request you have a coil that's rated at .32ohms or greater. To get the full potential out of the module, I would put in a hotter coil than stock.

As for the dizzy. I saw alot less hassle putting the module in w/o pulling the dizzy than pulling it and trying to get the dizzy back in it's proper location. But that's just me.


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

68greengoat said:


> As far as the coil. For the Pertronix 3 they request you have a coil that's rated at .32ohms or greater. To get the full potential out of the module, I would put in a hotter coil than stock.
> 
> As for the dizzy. I saw alot less hassle putting the module in w/o pulling the dizzy than pulling it and trying to get the dizzy back in it's proper location. But that's just me.


I pulled my dizzy to do a thorough clean and inspect. It had more end play than I wanted, which affects timing, and the grease in the cup under the points plate dries out and is useless. I also had it recurved on a Sun machine for optimal advance timing. The pins for the mechanical advance weights were quite worn so I swapped in a shaft from a 327 dizzy I had on hand. Obviously, none of this can be done unless it is removed. I now have the advantages of quicker starts, better combustion efficiency AND improved performance with the enhanced advance curve...


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## jetstang (Nov 5, 2008)

:agree Putting new parts on a worn out distributor isn't any good. As for my coil comment, I was thinking upgrading an electronic distributor, not converting points to electronic, so yes, electronic needs a hotter coil, but an accel supercoil should do the job as good as any. MSD is always a good thing.
TMP, the last time I had access to a sun machine was 84 in highschool, it was a handy tool, and wish I remembered what to do with it. But it would be great when setting up the max advance and filling/filing the groove.


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## xcmac26 (Dec 1, 2008)

Too Many Projects said:


> I'm looking at getting 3 for all my other cars now so, say for a case you'll put them all in ??
> Just let me know what time your planes lands so I can pick you up....:seeya:
> Oh yeah, I haven't bought beer in 27 years. What brand do you like ?


what's good that MN has to offer :cool don't think i'll be making any special trips. now if you wanted to bring the cars to _Houston_, we could work soemthing out


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## Too Many Projects (Nov 15, 2008)

xcmac26 said:


> what's good that MN has to offer :cool don't think i'll be making any special trips. now if you wanted to bring the cars to _Houston_, we could work soemthing out


What's good here ? 
MALL of AMERICA !!! It's a destination in itself.
At this time of year beyond MOA, nothing much. Not enough ice to ice fish and too cold to boat fish.


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## 68greengoat (Sep 15, 2005)

Don't forget about the snow!


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## xcmac26 (Dec 1, 2008)

what good is snow without mountains to ski down?

anywho, maybe someday when i crack the block i'll buy a crate motor and have a shiny new distributor...but for now, the old guts will have to suffice. i'm not reaching back there again considering how well the car's running. guess it's kind of like putting in a pacemaker :lol:


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## 68greengoat (Sep 15, 2005)

Bahhh, sledin's more fun anyways. For you southerners, snowmobiling...


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## jetstang (Nov 5, 2008)

xcmac26 said:


> what good is snow without mountains to ski down?
> anywho, maybe someday when i crack the block i'll buy a crate motor and have a shiny new distributor...but for now, the old guts will have to suffice. i'm not reaching back there again considering how well the car's running. guess it's kind of like putting in a pacemaker :lol:


The shaft play isn't as critical when you go electronic, with points, it changes the duration of the points. I wasn't against you, I was just fighting the fight of pulling the dizzy or doing it in place.. It is a good idea to check out the mechanical advance and make sure it is working correctly.



68greengoat said:


> Bahhh, sledin's more fun anyways. For you southerners, snowmobiling...


Sounds fun, I was in WI in early dec a couple years ago and it was 9 degrees, I said, holy hell, nobody should live here ever!!! If you like it, thats cool, but that's real cold to me and sucks. I'll stay south and be miserable in the summer!!! I don't like to ride my Harley when it gets below 60, no way do I want to snowmobile... I do ski though, and enjoy it.:cheers


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