picture request - pertronix setup with a ballasted system

I installed my pertronix ignition and flamethrower coil the other day, and havent been able to get it started since. Well, it did start for a while but ran so incredibly poorly it was unbelievable.

Anyway, I think I have diagnosed the problem. My 1500 has a ballasted system doesnt it? So when i was able to get it started, it was running so poorly because it wasnt getting enough spark? And now it wont start at all, again because not enough spark?

Anyway, if im right about that, according to the instructions i need to connect the red pertronix wire to the ignition wire prior to the ballast resistor. That sounds easy enough i suppose, but where is the ballast resistor and what does it look like?

If someone has the pertronix ignitor with a ballasted system, it would be very helpful if you could a post a pic of how you wired around the resistor.

Thanks in advance!

Here is mine. Follow the arrow.
Sorry, can't help with the ingintion but I'd love to here how you like it when you get'er going.

Guess i should have added the picture

Thanks for posting the pic Dave

Hmm....I dont recall ever seeing anything like that under the hood.....but I will look again tonight. Im really hoping thats what the problem is because otherwise I an stumped.

Do all 1500 midgets have the ballasted resistor?

note: mine is a 1977 with the Opus distributor.

one other thing, I removed the old ignition control module when I installed the pertronix. was i supposed to do that?

Looke around, someone may have moved it's mounting location. On mine it was on the other side of the coil hidden away. Looked like it had been there forever.

Tim.

Well, no luck finding the ballast resistor...so maybe that wasnt the problem after all.

Battery is good, electrical connections are good, fuel is not the issue....what am i missing here?

By "enough spark" do you mean you are not getting a good strong blue spark across the plug? Try pulling all 4 plugs, lay them on the valve cover and crank it over with the plug wires connected. Are all 4 plugs firing strong and in order? (make sure you didn't mis-wire the dist, I believe it turns counter clockwise).

Let us know if you are getting good spark at the plugs, if so, your timing could be off from installing the pickup for the electronic unit. If you aren't, could be a weak coil, or the signal from the electronic unit--you can test by moving the dist. with the ign. on and holding the coil wire 1/4" from ground. you should hear and see a spark jump when the pickup moves back and forth in the dist.

Tim.

Ok i just tested the plugs and they are definitely not getting a good strong blue spark. More like a very small yellow spark.

I am about to go back out and test the coil, but it is a brand new 40,000 volt pertronix flamethrower coil, so it would seem odd for the problem to be in the coil.

Does the rotor arm in the distributor need to be a certain distance from the module? If so, does it just need to be bent down, or do i need some sort of shim?

Ok, some good news. I was able to get it to start up, but it wont keep going unless i keep my foot on the gas. Is that a timing problem? I tried moving the distributor around a bit but it still died as soon as i let off the throttle.

Also, the smell of gasoline is VERY strong. I did have to remove the fuel pump when i replaced the starter motor... is it possible that i damaged it and fuel is getting into the motor?

One step forward two steps back with this car! Oh well, summer is still a few months away up here anyway.

Lack of a strong spark is concerning, is the coil the proper resistance for the Pertronix unit? Test with an ohm-meter. Also, did you remove the distributor from the engine when you installed the pertronix? It is possible you installed it a tooth off. I bought a car that acted as you describe, and the PO actually installed it 2 teeth off and it would fire but not run. Check that and also the coil. The pickup does need to be a certain distance, check the instructions online for how to adjust, but it sounds like that is less likely than the coil or timing scenerios.

Tim.

Yup, the coil is the proper resistance. The distributor wasnt removed during the installation.

I happened to have an extra set of spark plugs laying around so i replaced the old ones which were pretty dirty. Seem to be getting a better spark now.

I also solved the problem of the car dying as soon as i let off the throttle, i just needed to adjust the idle speed screw.

I tweaked the timing a bit (just by ear, i dont have the tools or the knowledge to use the strobe thingie) and it is running a LOT better now. It starts right up and idles pretty well, although far from perfect, but i think the carb still needs to be tuned a bit.

Thanks for all the help!

p.s. i do have a new problem but thats going to be a new post!

Just in case anyone is still following this post, the problems have officially been diagnosed and solved.

The one thing i didnt mention, because i thought it was totally unrelated, was that the car was making a weird chirping noise when running. I assumed the cause was a loose alternator belt, but i was WAY wrong. I took a closer listen and the noise seemed to be coming from the area of the starter motor. So i pulled it off and noticed all the metal filings in there. The chirping noise was my new hi torque starter motor rubbing up against the flywheel or something! I put it back on, using some thick washers to shim it back a bit and the problem is solved.

The engine now starts up faster and idles more smoothly than it ever has before. I give a big thumbs up for both the pertronix ignitor, and Hap's hi-torque starter motors.