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Distributor Pro

To: triumphs@autox.team.net
Subject: Distributor Pro
From: CarlSereda@aol.com
Date: Fri, 22 Jul 2005 14:30:04 EDT
Hi Listers,
This fellow Bob, at lucasdistributors@yahoo.com,
restores Lucas distributors, and sent some 
interesting info (below)..
Seems like a good guy to know if you need your 
TR distributor rebuilt to original specs. 
Regards,
Carl
'63 TR4 since '74
----------------------------

Hi Carl,


Regarding the 40735/40795, they both have the same

advance curves. The only difference is that the 795

was also used on the Morgan. 
This is very similar to the 41385 and 41558 used on the TR6. 
The 558 has the same advance curve and was used from 73 on 
but is not listed in any of the workshop manuals.


Regarding bushing stock, much of what Lucas used was a

steel based Oil-lite type composite. It is really no

better than a bronze based Oil-Lite composite. I use

both and have seen no difference in wear rates. It is

critical however to continuously lubricate the

bushing. The 40795 does have an oil feed hole.

Usually, when I rebuild a 40795, I replace the single

bushing with 2 (upper and lower). This provides an oil

well around the shaft and actually helps lubricate the

upper bushing.


I would be happy to contribute to the distributor

dialog on the TRList and will answer any questions that I can. 
One thought to keep in mind is that no two Lucas

distributors operate alike. I find that the

performance curve often needs to be tweaked to the

particular engine. The OEM performance curve is

usually the starting point if you really want smooth

performance. I have three well calibrated distributor

testers/scopes that I use and love to keep these cars

(Particularly Triumphs including mine) on the road.


Hope to talk with you soon. 

Best regards,

Bob
----------------------
Hello Carl,

I'm in the Cincinnati, Ohio area. I generally

charge $25 for a complete performance and vacuum

advance curve. I plot out all of the data so that you

have complete documentation. Since you replaced the

springs which should be a matched set, you don't have

to worry about a primary and secondary performance

curve. So assuming you have the correct springs,

you're probably OK. The one thing to watch out for on

a 40795 however, is wear on the lobe shaft stop and

spring stud. Because the 40795 uses rather light

springs, every time you hit the accelerator, the stop

hits the stud with a bang. I usually see 1 to 2

degrees of unwanted extra advance due to wear. If you

would like, you could mail your unit to me. I can turn

it around in an evening.


Also, I assume that you replaced your bushings with

Oilight stock. They should be impregnated with 30

weight oil (~160F for at least 2 hours) before

installation.


Best regards,

Bob      
lucasdistributors@yahoo.com




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