Michael Galloway wrote:
my '78 spitfire has a distributor off an earlier spit (i guess).
its got points, the manual advance knob, and a take-off for a
mechanical tack. to set the gap and timing, should i just use
the specs for the earlier spits or what?
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Michael -
It sounds as though you have a very early Spitfire ((1964 up to "about" 1967
or 68??) distributor, which should be a "Delco" distributor, as that pretty
accurately describes the one I have on my 64 Spitfire. I may be way off the
mark here, but I am pretty sure you will want to use the timing settings for
your year, i.e., 1978, NOT the specs. for an earlier year as the engines are
completely different in terms of carburation, valve timing, cam profiles,
valve lift & duration, etc.
FWIW, you probably should try to find a 1978 replacement distributor for
your car, as I also "think" (somebody - Andy Mace? - help me here) that by
1978 all Spitfires had an electronic ignition (correct??) and an electric
tach (correct??). In which case you won't find a manufacturer's setting for
dwell and gap for points for your year vehicle. If you do go this route
there are probably other members on the list who can provide you with a
replacement 1978 model distributor that has the proper elec. tach drive
hookup. And now for the MOST IMPORTANT PART of this message - if you DO
decide to part with your antiquated, inadequate, improper early Spitfire
tach with the wrong type of tach drive for your car and the stone-age era
points, I'd be interested in taking it off your hands as the mechanical
advance mechanism in my Delco tach is sticking and not working very well and
I could use a new one but haven't found one yet. ;^ ) Please keep me in
mind. Cheers.
Ross D. Vincenti
64 Spitfire 4
64 Porsche 356C Coupe
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