Hi All,
While coming home from a little trip-in my 66 Dart (of course)-the slant stumbled a couple of times then died. Thankfully I was about 3/4 of a mile from my house and was able to coast all the way back to my driveway. Motor would crank fine but would not attempt to start. First suspect was fuel delivery. Pulled the air cleaner and hit the throttle. A nice stream of gas came from the pump. Next a visual check of electrical connections-everything looked good-so I pulled the distributor cap. Rotor was next and revealed the problem-the points looked like they had about a half inch gap.....
By this time it was late and my local auto parts stores were closed. The next morning I go to pick up a new set of points. And -yes-the local guys still keep 'em in stock. Counter guy asks me if I want the cheap set or the more expensive ones. I counter back and ask him what the difference is between the two other than price. The cheap set is made in China. The pricier set is made in the USA. It turns out the set that failed in my Dart was the China made set I had unknowingly purchased-they lasted less than 8000 miles. The follower (as shown in the pics-please click on to enlarge) had broken off the cheap set. The cheap set only has two rivets that hold the follower. The Standard made in USA set has four rivets that hold it together and appears to be of much better construction.
Distributor as pulled-note the "follower" laying to the side
Another view of the cheap set
This is the Standard set-note the better construction.
So (obviously) I bought the Standard made in the good old USA set. Pulled the distributor, installed and gapped the new point set. Set distributor back in its prior position and hit the key. It fired up immediately. Set the timing and drove to my folks house, about 8 miles, and it never missed a beat.
The lesson in all of this: Be very careful what you buy! I would not have purchased the first set if I had known of the poor quality. Always ask before you buy. A couple of bucks saved now could spell disaster down the road. Well I've typed enough-Hope someone else finds this helpful!
Todd
