[Spridgets] Electronic Ignition

Dean Hedin dlh2001 at comcast.net
Wed Mar 18 17:53:48 MST 2009


A "low voltage to the points" electronic ignition system is OK, but once you get 
to the stage of a transistor firing the coil then you might as well go to the next tiny 
step and have the magnetic or optical sensor fire the transistor instead of the points.  
This is, after all, what a Pertronix is.

The problem with the points is not just the arcing, it is the fact that the cam wears
and they bounce at high rpm, etc...   Those problems all go away with the 
Pertronix and systems like the 123.

When it comes to failures of these electronic ignitions, I think it really comes down to 
is that you can't "cook" a set of points by hooking up wires incorrectly like you can with a
circuit that is encased in epoxy and cost $90.

Any you know what?  It shouldn't cook.  If you spend $90 for something to 
replace a $10 set of points then it should last a mighty long time.  Even if you 
accidentially connect those leads up the wrong way the first time around.

The reason nobody on this list has gripes about the electronic ignition on thier modern cars 
is that they did not have to install it themselves.

You guys can argue the quality of the aftermarket electronic systems, and you can argue 
whether it's "vintage correct" to have points vs. electronic ignition.  But you can't argue 
that points are better or are more reliable than electronic ignition systems because that is 
disproven  by the fact that virtually all modern cars have electronic ignition 
WITHOUT POINTS.


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