> Wow. This is really interesting--these things should be rock
> solid reliable by now.
I think you're assuming that the design has been updated in the last 30
years ...
> I discovered to my chagrin that swapping polarity on a Pertronix
> toasts it--unless you buy the "new and improved" one for $40 bucks more.
> What does it take to put a blocking diode in a circuit?
Well, first you have to decide that you have a problem, then you have to
decide that it's worth fixing a product with declining sales, then you have
to hire an engineer ...
My suspicion is that the redesign was not driven by improvement, but rather
by no longer being able to get the parts to build the old design. Reverse
polarity protection was just another bullet on a sales brochure (and
justification for the price hike).
> I bought the MSD box and Pertronix for my new distributor, but I'm
> having some
> second thoughts about installing them.
Heat is the biggest killer of electronics ... my suggestion is to mount the
electronics boxes in the cabin instead of in the engine compartment. One of
the things I dislike about the Pertronix design is that it has a power
transistor actually mounted to the engine, where it can get hot & have it's
life shortened.
BTW, MSD does update the design of their boxes fairly often. For a nominal
charge, you can usually have your working MSD box upgraded to the latest
specifications. They also repair failed boxes, unless they're too far gone
and/or out of date.
Randall
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