Electronic Ignition System

[DonEGee]

I own a 1955 T Bird and installed a Mallory electronic ignition system about 10 years ago and it's always had a restarting issue whenever the engine was hot. I'm sick and tired of tolerating this behavior and I'd welcome any feedback regarding favorable experiences with other brand name equipment.

[Cdhowell]

Be a little more specific on the starting issue. Cant help if we dont know the problem.

[DonEGee]

I have a Mallory electronic ignition system that was giving me problems restarting after the engine was hot. Finally traced it to a simple broken wire from the coil; a mechanic at Fabulous Restorations in Fort Lauderdale got me straightened out. He also adjusted the valves and set the timing to make the engine run more smooth. He determined that my Demon carb. was too high performance rated for the 292 cu in. engine ... it would run better with a smaller throat. Another good observation was the necessity for a vacuum advance on the distributor. The '55's didn't have that feature. I'll be looking into if Mallory makes such a product?

[bromhead]

Originally Posted by DonEGee

I own a 1955 T Bird and installed a Mallory electronic ignition system about 10 years ago and it's always had a restarting issue whenever the engine was hot. I'm sick and tired of tolerating this behavior and I'd welcome any feedback regarding favorable experiences with other brand name equipment.

I did a pertronix on mine,made for a 55 12volt,,the car ran terrible,,queations and answers were all over the place from every tech source,,recommended not recommended,,the only real solution was to return the item as defective,I didnt just for credit,points are easier

[DonEGee]

Thanks for your reply, but the Mallory system seems not to be the problem as it is more of an issue of an aftermarket carb I installed (Demon 650) ... too high CFM rating for the 292 engine. I'm looking into an Edelbrock carb with 500-550 CFM's and seems to be an ideal carb to install.

[gbhrps]

DonEgee,
I'm surprised that you don't have the vacuum advance on your TPot carb setup.

My 55 is dead stock, has the Holley 4000 carb, has never been messed with to my knowledge (only 26 000 original miles), and has a vacuum advance hard piped to the distributor.

A look at the 2010 catalogue from Mac's Antique Auto Parts shows the vacuum pipe listed as part #B5S-12371-A.

Yours apparently has been removed over the years, either that or the distributor was changed?

[Chemist64]

I put a Pertronix Ignitor 3 in a 1957+ distributor and a Holley 365 CFM on a 1955 Merc with a 292 this summer. Replaced the tea pot and teapot based distributor. They run great. Fires right up cold and hot.