Okay, folks. I've talked before (and about four or five of you now
have seen it now) about the problem with the mounting ring splitting
at the base of Lucas 25D4 distributors. Well, the ring is missing
through about 120 degrees on the distributor that came out of the
Green Car. I don't want to use it, which is too bad as it has no
wobble and checks out fine on Charlie Rockwell's scope.
I've also got a later-model Lucase 45D4 distributor purchased for the
black car. It's recurved for sportier use, but has a problem with
the base plate to which the points mount, namely that it wobbles
enough to send the ignition up to 45 degrees out of phase (on the
distributor machine at Rockwell's). The good part about this,
however, is that the mounting boss on the 45D4 is a step, not
a ring, so it can't crack. (It's also O-ringed on the distributor
shaft, a slightly frightening concept; if British engines can't leak
oil, they explode.) But effectively, what it's got now is a built-in
rev limiter set to about 4200 RPM. The engine misfires so severely
at that speed that you might as well shut down, and that's a real
shame as the cam in the motor I'm planning to use with this distributor
really comes alive at 4000. A 200-RPM powerband isn't much fun.
So my question is this: Can I take the good guts from the 25D4 and
put them into the good housing of the 45D4? Or am I better off
figuring out how to, oh, maybe braze the points base plate so that
it doesn't wobble at 4200 RPM, and then using the 45D4?
--Scott "Hey Roland, wanna learn to pour pot-metal next?" Fisher
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