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Re: Electronic ignition x-mac-creator="4D4F5353"

To: Gary Boone <gboone@sisna.com>
Subject: Re: Electronic ignition x-mac-creator="4D4F5353"
From: Vicki Burrows <gregnvicki@earthlink.net>
Date: Tue, 03 Sep 2002 21:42:27 -0700
In non technical terms, I can attest that, when by friend Bill and I did this 
swap
about 12 years ago, I noticed a great improvement in my car, and my friend Bill
picked up about 3 mpg in his 1600.  Spark is one of the weakest links in these
cars, in my opinion, and what Gary has is a great conversion (not to "sell" 
Gary's
product here... only to say, however you get there, go there!).
Greg Burrows
67 2000

Gary Boone wrote:

> A Pertronix Ignitor (and maybe the kit on eBay too) still has its limits, just
> like points.  They can't tolerate more than 4 amps for a 4 cylinder
> application, which means you have to provide a lot of resistance in the
> circuit to protect the Pertronix, just like points.  This resistance is
> provided by your old fashion ballast resistor (old as the days of points)
> having 1.7 ohms of resistance.  The roadster coil has its internal resistance
> of 1.7 ohms to add to that.  With the ballast resistor in the circuit, the
> voltage is dropped from 12 volts to 6 - 9 volts.  Do the math (shown below)
> and you'll see why a ballast resistor is required to not exceed a Pertronix
> current limit of 4 ohms.
>
> But, with a real electronic distributor like the Hitachi for Nissan (like the
> ones I convert for a roadster), the voltage supplied is 12 volts because the
> EI distributor is designed to take it, so the ballast resistor is removed from
> the circuit.  The 12 volt EI coil used with the EI distributor is low
> resistance (from 0.84 to 1.02 ohms).  Do the math again (shown below) to see
> how much current flows.
>
> Ohm's Law - E = IR       or         I = E / R         or        R = E / I
> where:
> E = electricity in volts
> I = current in amps (cannot exceed 4 amps for a Pertronix Ignitor)
> R = resistance in ohms
>
> Original roadster system (best case):
> I = 9 volts / (1.7+1.7) ohms = 2.6 amps
> EI system (worst case):
> I = 12 volts/1 ohm = 12 amps
>
> Now compare the power fed to the primary windings of the ignition coil for a
> roadster ignition versus a 12 volt electronic system:
>
> Power Formula - P = IE
> where:
> P = watts
> I = amps
> E = volts
>
> original roadster system (best case):
> P = 2.6 amps X 9 volts = 23.4 watts
> EI system (worst case):
> P = 12 amps X 12 volts = 144 watts
>
> That's a lot more power to the coil for the EI system.  More power in, more
> power out, less misfires, wider spark plug gaps, etc.  You get the idea.
>
> Gary
>
> datsunmike wrote:
>
> > Go with a Pertronix setup. That thing must be from the 70s.
> >
> > Mike
> >
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: "L Jordan" <ay107@lafn.org>
> > To: "Datsun Roadster List" <datsun-roadsters@autox.team.net>
> > Sent: Monday, September 02, 2002 1:54 PM
> > Subject: Electronic ignition x-mac-creator="4D4F5353"
> >
> > > List,
> > > Does anyone know anything about the electronic ignition kit on ebay? Was
> > > wondering if it is the correct type and if anyone else has used it.
> > > Thanks,
> > > Linda
>
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