Think i'd go with one of the summit rebranded HEIs. Either that or get one built from Dave's small body dist. Summits got great customer service if something goes wrong and Dave's has a good reputation to making reliable distributors.
I had a little experience with those the last few years. And of course I have my opinion. First, don't buy a Chinese HEI, I did, the pick up coil came loose and it beat itself to death. The groove for the snap ring was not machined correctly. Second I bought a MSD "ready to run" distributor. It isn't. Just google ready to 'not run'. Has a shaft larger that stock, if you have a melonized or payed $70 for a bronze gear, or a polymer gear that you payed $125 bucks for, it wont fit on the MSD's larger shaft diameter. That means forking over another $125 bucks for another gear. Mine came with a pre bent shaft and everything under the cap was pre-corroded. Saved me the trouble of bending the shaft and getting it corroded myself. Just google MSD corroded distributor. If you can, get a stock HEI and rebuild it using stock parts. You will have a better distributor than you can get from China or MSD! Just my opinion. You may be able to get a good aftermarket HEI, but phone or email the manufacturer/vendor and find out where they are made. DUI says there's are made in the US but I've no experience with those, FWIW
There are still some who say that points are the only thing that won't leave you stranded, somewhere down the line. I used factory points type dist, with Accel parts, in most all my street & race Pontiacs. Ran across one set of points that wouldn't fire at all, when new. Couldn't see anything wrong with 'em. Other than that, the points would always let me know before they actually quit. I always carried some extra dist parts, so I never got stranded by a points type dist.
On my last bracket engine, I used a factory HEI with DUI cap/coil/rotor and MSD rev limiter module. Also used an allen head screw to make a positive mechanical advance stop.
I also carry a spare module in the trunk of my Firebird, never needed it. It's said that is the one part that may fail, after forty years of driving with HEI distributors I've never had one quit. In the fifty three years I've had a drivers license, I've also had insurance on the motorcycles and four wheel vehicles I've owned and driven, never needed that either.
"...a spare module...It's said that is the one part that may fail..."
On GM trucks, I've had the spark start jumping to the plastic part of the rotor, near the center, bad enuff to stop the engine. Put in new rotor, then they ran fine. Don't know if it was the cheap rotors or what. They were just white colored NAPA store rotors.
Have also had the rotor button(bushing) to get hot enuff to melt the dist cap around it. The MSD 8412 button is supposed to cure that problem.
The separate box is just something else to mount and wire up, and another part that can fail.
I once had to buy a new MSD box to replace a failed box, on a dirt racer I was part owner of.
Lots of online info has made many guys think the MSD box is a "must have" item for any high performance street or race car. Not so ! There were plenty of reliable street & race car ignitions, before the HEI & the MSD box came along.
My bud has the D.U. I And another guy EX Line mechanic told me to go MSD but, it's $429 thru Summit Racing AND as Bluebird428 says, "SOME" have had trouble with them....
Think i'd go with one of the summit rebranded HEIs. Either that or get one built from Dave's small body dist. Summits got great customer service if something goes wrong and Dave's has a good reputation to making reliable distributors.
Can anyone confirm Dave's small body is still in business? Their distributors are the best in IMO.
" I bought a MSD "ready to run" distributor. It isn't. Just google ready to 'not run'. " HAHAHA...yeah. I bought the one that requires the "box" to go with it. It works fine.
"Has a shaft larger that stock, if you have a melonized or payed $70 for a bronze gear, or a polymer gear that you payed $125 bucks for, it wont fit on the MSD's larger shaft diameter. That means forking over another $125 bucks for another gear." I ordered the poly gear which my roller cam required. No fitment issues.
"Mine came with a pre bent shaft and everything under the cap was pre-corroded. Saved me the trouble of bending the shaft and getting it corroded myself. Just google MSD corroded distributor.' I did not know this was an option! LOL My shaft was/is straight, but the inside DID corrode. I cleaned it up and drilled vents into the cap as indicated on the various forums. I'll let you know how it works.
"If you can, get a stock HEI and rebuild it using stock parts. You will have a better distributor than you can get from China or MSD!" If it fit, I would have. On my '68 'bird, there isn't enough clearance at the firewall.
As mentioned, I think the stock HEI is the preferred choice.
...and I have had an MSD box go bad on me...$$$
I'm a hobbyist. Not a professional. Don't be hatin'!
