Having initially bought a high energy Powerspark distributor I subsequently decided not to use this and returned it. This was because the HE system required a low resistance 12V coil and to bypass the ballast resistor system: I have just reinstated this system following the installation of the new starter so I'm not too keen on undoing this, and anyway the ballast system makes sense to me. Secondly, the new distributor lacked a vacuum diaphragm and consequently would look different from stock. Instead I opted for a Stealth Accuspark conversion kit for the existing distributor which has now been cleaned and lubricated.
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| Stealth Accuspark kit- appx £30 |
As before the first step is to set the motor at tdc with no 1 cylinder on compression, the rotor arm pointing at no 1 plug lead.
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| Motor at tdc |
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| Distributor cap removed- Rotor arm pointing up and forwards at no 1 HT lead. |
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| Remove distributor by unscrewing the two clamp to block bolts- not the distributor clamp bolt so as to maintain some semblance of correct timing. |
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| distributor removed. |
I could then clamp the distributor in the vice (soft jaws) and start to dismantle it.
Pull off the rotor arm revealing the points plate and condenser
Pull the lead off the points spring and remove the clamping cheese head screw
... and lift the points plate off.
The coil lead passes from the points, through a grommet in the side of the distributor, but whereas earlier cars have this grommet fitted into an open half-moon slot so it simply lifts out, in this distributor the wire passes through a hole drilled in the distributor wall. This means you have to cut the wire to pull it through and remove the contact breaker plate.
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| Cut wires and pull through the grommet in the wall. |
The condenser is retained by a single screw so undo this remove the condenser but leave the earthing braid cable attached to the lower plate.
The magnetic trigger sleeve slips over the distributor shaft- it has a quatrefoil internal profile that fits closely over the spindle lobes so it cant go on wrongly.
The new pickup is fitted next, it slips over the stud that retained the contact breaker plate tip and is retained by the cheese-head CB plate screw into its original hole. The new pickup plate has a slotted location hole which allows the unit to be adjusted in its final position. The pick up on the base plate must be close to, but not touch any part of the collar on the shaft as it rotates and although the size of the clearance gap isn't critical, it should be as even as possible.
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| Pick up positioned to give an even gap between collar and pickup and does not contact the sleeve at an point in its rotation. Note grommet already fitted onto the wires. |
The new unit already has a grommet on the leads to insert into the distributor wall. However, the fact that this is a hole rather than an open slot means that the wires will not pass through and once again I needed to cut the terminals off to slip the wires into place. I will refit appropriate terminals later.
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| I had to cut these lovely new terminals off. |
The earth braid has to be re-instated. Since there is now no condenser mounted beneath it, I needed to fit a spring washer on the screw to ensure it made good contact with the floor plate. Here the braid has been refitted.
The kit also comes with a cable tie to ensure that the new wires are tied away tidily and will not foul the base plate as it moves. Cut the excess tie off
... and fit the rotor arm- I used a new red arm
Finally I could refit the distributor by reversal of the above process. I re-timed the motor to 30 deg full advance but you have to slacken both the distributor clamp bolt and one clamp-to block-bolt to allow the distributor to be turned.
In the event, I also installed a new Accuspark coil to ensure maximum compatibility with the new system although this was probably not absolutely necessary. In any event the coil I had was a Lucas item, possibly the original and so now some 40 years old and replacement shouldn't hurt!
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