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HELP! Doing the HEI Shuffle Dizzy issue
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Author:  MoparBrit [ Tue May 06, 2008 1:55 pm ]
Post subject:  HELP! Doing the HEI Shuffle Dizzy issue
Okay, swapping the HEI onto the '71. Got an electronic dizzy out of the UPull yard. Here is the problem. Everything was fine (famous words a lot of stories start with eh?). Got everything mounted. Up on no 1. Everything seems aligned. Pop the cap on. Tries to start, sort of runs rough a few rotations and then stops. Hit the key won't start.

So, thinking it is not timed right I leave it until today. See that there are a couple of variances in the instructions out there. One says to swap the wires off the dizzy to the module. Did that nothing. Just spins over without a hint of firing. So, pull a wire no spark. Pull the coil wire off, no spark. Check for voltage on the B and + terminals of the system (just ran a jumper wire plugged into where the resistor is for power) and have voltage. Measure the voltage and it is 11.54 or something like that. Of course, been cranking it over with no start for a bit testing things out.

Okay, so believe it to be a dizzy problem as it must not be getting the signal. Put is on no 1 again and look under the cap. The rotor is pointing about 50 - 60 degrees off. Hmm, must have the dizzy stabbed out, but remember aligning it right. Put the cap back on and run the wires around to align with where it is (yes, was up on compression stroke). No start. Back to the dizzy. Notice the cap does not seem to fit just right. Pull the cap and pull the dizzy.

Here is the kicker. Dizzy gear now has two and a half or so teeth chewed off of it (plastic gear). So, not sure if the cap was not seated right all along and the rotor was in a bind on the cap which did the teeth in from the start. Not sure if it just happened this last time and I've another problem. Insight?

So, here is the question. Should I pop the old good working points dizzy back in and forget the HEI?

Should I swap the dizzy gear off the points one onto the electronic one and try again (appears to measure the same)?

Should I pop the points dizzy in and do a Pertronix (used quite widely on classic Minis with no issues) on it? If so and not looking at the old distructions on the Pertronix, is it possible to run the HEI with it?

Help this old fumble fingered codger please. :oops:
Author:  cantcatch06 [ Tue May 06, 2008 2:17 pm ]
Post subject: 
i had similar problems with my HEI conversion. turned out i had a bad distributor not sending spark all the time. well to be more accurate it had a bad pickup. New dizzy and it cranked first try.
Author:  MoparBrit [ Tue May 06, 2008 2:39 pm ]
Post subject: 
Thanks for the reply.

Thought it might be the pickup and, apart from restabbing the dizzy to make absolutely sure it was right, I was pulling it to check the wires for breaks and to go from there. That is when I noticed the cap being sort of wobbly on the top. Opps, what's going on here? So I mucked with it and found it not to be down all the way correctly. Still would not start with it down so I was pulling it out and that is when I saw the plastic teeth on the dizzy were chewed off. About 2 to 2 1/2 teeth are gone.

So, in a quandary. Do I put the points in and forget it for a while. Do I see if the dizzy gears will swap. WILL THEY? Do I put a pertronix in the points dizzy and see if that will run the HEI. WILL IT?

I guess my concern is that if I do put the points dizzy gear on the electronic one and there is still a problem that chews the gear then I'm stuck. I turned the electronic dizzy shaft and it seems to move freely enough so scratching my head on what to do.

Anyone got and old electronic dizzy for a slant that they want to trade for a pile of old Mopar mags?

As per usual the budget is extremely tight now. Actually the next three months budget is shot as got a super six setup yet to put on. Waiting for the kickdown assembly to be ready for that. Thought I'd take one step at a time.

Thanks for any help.

Cheers
Author:  DusterIdiot [ Tue May 06, 2008 2:43 pm ]
Post subject:  Get you by...
Quote:
That is when I noticed the cap being sort of wobbly on the top.
This happens on remanf. distributors a lot since they use a cast body that isn't OEM and it doesn't have the chamfered edge the OEM version does..

The gear will be that same, just drive the pin out and swap, I would also put a multi meter on the pickups and set to ohms and make sure it's sending a signal (it should bounce between 100-400 ohms each time a tooth/gap is reached)...

-D.Idiot
Author:  MoparBrit [ Tue May 06, 2008 2:59 pm ]
Post subject: 
Thanks for the great info. Will check the ohm measurement. Getting up courage to swap the gear and give it another go. Might wait until tomorrow just to start fresh.

Is it fairly common for those drive gears to strip?

Do you think the rotor being wedged perhaps on the cap could have done it?

Got me second guessing myself now. Makes me wonder if I had the dizzy all the way down or not. The electronic dizzy had a large sealing o ring up top under the adjustment plate. My old points dizzy does not. There is no relief in the block for the ring to sit in either. My old points dizzy sits down flush. When I tried to install the electronic with the top o ring around the shaft (it has a slightly inset seal lower down) it would not seat flush so I removed the large o ring and it giggled down flush like my old one.

Would this have been a problem you think?

Dizzy came off of a slant Duster out of the scrap yard.

Thanks for the help.

Cheers
Author:  SlantSixDan [ Tue May 06, 2008 3:15 pm ]
Post subject: 
The drive pinions are quite robust and tend to go for many years without failure, but they don't last forever. New ones are readily available and would obviously be the first preference, but as DI says, if the pinion on the points dizzy is in good nick it'll fit and work fine.

There are meant to be two O-rings on a slant-6 distributor: the big upper one you describe, and the smaller (thinner) lower one in the distributor body shank. The upper O-ring having been absent from your old dizzy was the anomaly, not the other way round. Put the O-ring back.

Anything stopping the dizzy turning, even briefly, would easily root the pinion, including cap/rotor interference. This is especially true if the pinion were old.

HEI's better than Pertronix and way better than points.
Author:  Charrlie_S [ Tue May 06, 2008 5:42 pm ]
Post subject: 
I wouldn't bother swapping gears. Just get a new gear, they are only in the $5-$10 range. While installing the new gear, adjust the shaft end play to about .015-.020. Stay with the HEI.
Author:  MoparBrit [ Wed May 07, 2008 4:10 am ]
Post subject: 
Thanks for all the replies everyone. Going to get out there and work onit today. Fingers crossed that I get it going and done right this time!

Cheers
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