[Roadsters] Dwell of 37 degrees - are my points shot?

[Nathaniel Leeds]

Still adjusting the car after the long road trip and I'm starting to wonder
what's up with my points.  So here's the problem -- above 4500 rpm's, under
any load, I'm getting the chinese fireworks out of the back of the tailpipe.
My thought: maybe I don't have enough dwell; not enough dwell => not enough
magnetic field => weak spark.  Right? So I go to check my dwell and it's a
sorry 37 degrees. My attempts to bring it up to the 49-50 in spec. are
rewarded with a car that doesn't start at all.

Who says this means that my points are shot; or, more specifically, that my
foot is so shot that the geometry can't both give me enough dwell, and
enough separation for a really nice spark.

I know this means that I should be going away from points and condensers and
buy an electric system, but I'm a poor, out of work, attorney with student
loans and an expensive dry cleaning bill who can't afford the upgrade just
yet.

Nathaniel Leeds
'69 2000 SU's