pertronix ignition

Will pertronix ignition add any horsepower to my series IV D17? 

The Pertronix Ignition won't add any HP, but it does add reliability.  Eliminating the points and condenser is big in the plus department! Faster starts as Gary mentioned, also an even amount of current to each spark plug. A hotter coil can be added also if so desired for a little more fire in the hole making for a little better combustion. Cool part is it fits right inside the stock Distributor with no mod's, so looks stock as can be. We sell quite a few E.I. kits. Usually when one is purchased and installed in one Tractor to try it out, the rest of the Tractors wind up with em' to!  LOL!
Steve@B&B

I put one on my series IV when I restored it 5 years ago.  It dyno'd at 58 hp.  The guy operating the dyno told me I could have hit 60.  Never tested it before the Pertronix.  I will say that it is a very nice piece and worth the money.

Ive got them on Allis' and farmalls. Love'em.

Ive converted 9 engines with Pertronix, never had one fail, there is no comparision to points. If it starts better and runs better, it will have more power. Converted 2 Ford 361s, absolute dogs before, much more power now, no choke to start, and use less fuel. Of course points work, theyve worked since the begining of mass produced internal combustion engines, but there has been better technology available for 40 years, my 2 cents, Trev. 

Let me know if my info is wrong. With points on a user tractor, you will have to change points once a year. With the new electronic ignition, no maintenance other than change spark plugs periodically?  Dave.

We have installed quite a few. When I did my uncles stock D17 I noticed the timing was the same before and after. I have had some trouble with brand new chineese rural king points in the past. Never had issue with pertronix yet. Like others said once you put one in you will want all to have them.

If one wants a good electronic  ignition if not the best ignition a chevette hei from autozone $150 and you have one of the best. even petronixs best module is a four pin hei style module.

Edited by mlpankey - 13 Jan 2012 at 8:49am

If you got 22 years out of a set of points on your WD45 using it everyday without lifitng the cap, I wouldn't buy a Pertronix either. I'd have to find out who the mfr of those were, cause' they gotta' be outta business. The only set of points I had that went for 22 years is the set that's still in the box on my shelf for a Rolls-Canardly. (Not a popular set of points ya know.) Unless the Tractor sat for 21 years, I find that one hard to believe. But, stranger things happen I guess....

petronix coil and hall effect switch usually  120  chevette utozone remain hei 150.

[QUOTE=79fordblake]Well this was my Grandpa's tractor.. I don't know what brand the points were...but I do know they were in there for 22 years. The tractor plowed....disked...dug ponds with a pond scoop..pulled a combine and pulled thousands of tobacco wagons... it took many wagons full of grain to town also 14 miles away. Grandpa did everything with it.

Maybe it was just luck? I have no idea...I just know I'm not buying pertronix.....lol :)
[

Electronic Ignition won't work after a EMP is set off and points will. Right? Mabe not.

Edited by Josh(NE) - 13 Jan 2012 at 6:47pm

So back to the beginning:   Jim's question was 'will it add horsepower'.

If you have a properly setup point/condenser system, tight distributor shaft, properly set timing and dwell, no wear on the contact points, no wear on the point cam, a good condenser, cap, and rotor, it will fire on time, every time, like it was originally designed... and regardless of what type of ignition system you compare, the power results will be the same- every cylinder, fires every time, on time.  So the answer is NO.

Now, if you have a distributor that is 50 years old, perhaps rebuilt 20 years ago, a little play in the shaft, contact points that sit for a while between runnings, a little wear on the point cam, and a condenser that's been on the engine for 12 years, some piston/liner wear, a little slop in the valve adjustments, a carbeurator that's got some play in the throttle shaft, then the answer is YES... but nothing more than what SHOULD have been there with the stock setup, in a brand-new condition.

So in that respect, everyone here is correct.  The answer is yes and no.

So what's the real answer here?

Electronic ignition of ANY type will naturally be superior, because it is devoid of the wear of the mechanical components, in critical locations, is integral to point-condenser design.  The long-term stability and reliability of an electronic trigger method IS superior, simply because it lacks moving parts, and is not subject to timing variations due to mechanical action and wear.  This is why you won't even find lawnmowers with contact points- they're all electronic trigger systems.

Wether or not it will survive an EMP isn't greatly relevant to horsepower development in the field, and wether or not you can stand alongside both while running and tell the difference isn't very relevant, but if you put BOTH under a series of tests, you'll find that, in all instances EXCEPT an EMP, that an engine equipped with point-condenser, when parked in a barn and ignored for five years, alongside an identical equipped with ANY brand of electronic trigger system, that the electronic will start sooner, and be more accurate, than the mechanical system, with NO maintenance to the trigger mechanism whatsoever... and without contact on the breaker cam, the distributor bushing doesn't wear out.

And from the final respect, the Pertronix kit has a distinct advantage over Pankey's HEI suggestion-  you can slap it in a stock distributor, and keep the point-condenser kit handy for the day you need to put it back in to get you home. 

I'll advise, however, that if you choose to keep the point-condenser option, don't expect the contact points you buy today to be anywhere near as good as the ones that came stock, so buy about five kits.  The springs are made of lousy metal, the contact point material and plating suck, and the condensers are marginal in holding tolerance.  Good points and condensers are all but gone from the market now... the last half-dozen kits I've gotten were lucky to hold steady timing for more than a few weeks without having to take the cap off and clean the contacts, and it's a must after every long-term storage.  They just don't make 'em like they USED to.

And don't think I'm partial to old technology- I love brutal simplicity... I love the magneto in my '39 B, and I love the magnetos on my '42 Kohler, '43 Hobart, and '59 Consolodated generator sets... I wouldn't trade them, or the hand-start ability, for anything in the world.... and I truely fear the day that contact points become NLA for these mags.  The world's change to SMD electronics has made the availability of 'conventional' electronic components go way down compared to what once was... ignition condensers will soon join their ranks.

I love the Pertronix kit in my D17... and in my dad's '54 Century Resorter... and everything else I've put 'em in. They work as advertised, and when applied to ANY distributor, will outperform contact points in all categories of performance with exception of surviving EMPs and accidentally reversing the battery cables.

I agree with most of what you said. I guess if there comes a time when I'll switch to the electronic but I still have good luck with points so I'm not going that route yet.
The fairly simple DuraSpark electronic ignition on my 79 F150 and Bronco is the most complicated system I have on anything. This is the whole reason I like things that are old. I see brand new vehicles littered all over the road...

I've been sorta off topic this whole time but I guess it worked out alright. I guess nobody is offended? If so I'm sorry....never meant to nor did I want to. I may be young but I was brought up in old ways and I am kind of set in them. I see all this old equipment/vehicles running around with minimal problems and then see all this new equipment/vehicles always broke down...doesn't give me much confidence in the stuff. I like computers and all that but I don't think the world should be consumed by them like they are now. Makes me think of this saying "America.....we use to make stuff here".
I have nothing more to add to points vs. electronic....lol...wow aren't you guys gonna be happy? :)
Sorry for dragging on everything guys. When I stand behind something I won't change my mind for nothing lol.


Edited by 79fordblake - 14 Jan 2012 at 11:32am

DaveKamp wrote: So back to the beginning:   Jim's question was 'will it add horsepower'. If you have a properly setup point/condenser system, tight distributor shaft, properly set timing and dwell, no wear on the contact points, no wear on the point cam, a good condenser, cap, and rotor, it will fire on time, every time, like it was originally designed... and regardless of what type of ignition system you compare, the power results will be the same- every cylinder, fires every time, on time.  So the answer is NO. Now, if you have a distributor that is 50 years old, perhaps rebuilt 20 years ago, a little play in the shaft, contact points that sit for a while between runnings, a little wear on the point cam, and a condenser that's been on the engine for 12 years, some piston/liner wear, a little slop in the valve adjustments, a carbeurator that's got some play in the throttle shaft, then the answer is YES... but nothing more than what SHOULD have been there with the stock setup, in a brand-new condition. So in that respect, everyone here is correct.  The answer is yes and no. So what's the real answer here? Electronic ignition of ANY type will naturally be superior, because it is devoid of the wear of the mechanical components, in critical locations, is integral to point-condenser design.  The long-term stability and reliability of an electronic trigger method IS superior, simply because it lacks moving parts, and is not subject to timing variations due to mechanical action and wear.  This is why you won't even find lawnmowers with contact points- they're all electronic trigger systems. Wether or not it will survive an EMP isn't greatly relevant to horsepower development in the field, and wether or not you can stand alongside both while running and tell the difference isn't very relevant, but if you put BOTH under a series of tests, you'll find that, in all instances EXCEPT an EMP, that an engine equipped with point-condenser, when parked in a barn and ignored for five years, alongside an identical equipped with ANY brand of electronic trigger system, that the electronic will start sooner, and be more accurate, than the mechanical system, with NO maintenance to the trigger mechanism whatsoever... and without contact on the breaker cam, the distributor bushing doesn't wear out. And from the final respect, the Pertronix kit has a distinct advantage over Pankey's HEI suggestion-  you can slap it in a stock distributor, and keep the point-condenser kit handy for the day you need to put it back in to get you home.  I'll advise, however, that if you choose to keep the point-condenser option, don't expect the contact points you buy today to be anywhere near as good as the ones that came stock, so buy about five kits.  The springs are made of lousy metal, the contact point material and plating suck, and the condensers are marginal in holding tolerance.  Good points and condensers are all but gone from the market now... the last half-dozen kits I've gotten were lucky to hold steady timing for more than a few weeks without having to take the cap off and clean the contacts, and it's a must after every long-term storage.  They just don't make 'em like they USED to. And don't think I'm partial to old technology- I love brutal simplicity... I love the magneto in my '39 B, and I love the magnetos on my '42 Kohler, '43 Hobart, and '59 Consolodated generator sets... I wouldn't trade them, or the hand-start ability, for anything in the world.... and I truely fear the day that contact points become NLA for these mags.  The world's change to SMD electronics has made the availability of 'conventional' electronic components go way down compared to what once was... ignition condensers will soon join their ranks. I love the Pertronix kit in my D17... and in my dad's '54 Century Resorter... and everything else I've put 'em in. They work as advertised, and when applied to ANY distributor, will outperform contact points in all categories of performance with exception of surviving EMPs and accidentally reversing the battery cables.

Pankey's Hei has several advantages over the petronix hall effect switch installed into a very small cap distributor.   1 can run 16 volts to coil and magnetic reluctor. 2 cap large enough air space to keep ionization from happening .3 terminal spacing far enough apart to keep high powered coils from cross arcing. 4 spacing allow more coil saturation time . 5 Hei is bullet proof .6 if u fubar wiring  24 dollar module and atube of heat sink paste and your back in buisness as quick as changing points with out the need of feeler gauges.