[Schroeder]

Hey guys, I just purchased an MSD distributor with rust all over the metallic parts such as the pick up inside the cap. if you type stuff in google about it you will get lots of hits. It's a common thing. Apparently new distributors are coated with some marine grade crap that prevents the rust. Several guys reported painting the pick up and such with paints, but I didn't see too much review on this and it seems like it would inhibit the flow of electricity. How do you guys clean yours? Has anyone cleaned and painted the pick up parts and reluctor?

I have seen guys say stuff like " I need to clean mine twice a year or once every year." I am looking for permanent solutions. MSD only warranties their parts for a year after purchase. This ticks me off. The problem lies in a bad materials and/or coating choice. IT IS A DESIGN FLAW! They should repair these for nothing! Too bad I always learn the downfalls of stuff AFTER I buy it or I may have gotten something else.

And yes, I have the vented cap. Thanks.

[Sun Tuned]

A lot of moisture where that dist came from.

Mix that with ozone and presto!

What you see is what you get.

Wire wheel it off and coat it with gear oil, bout all you can do on those.
Newer ones have supposedly better plating to combat this problem...

A lot of $$$ looks like to me for not much in the durability of finish dept.

It'll still work just looks like hell.

[66bonne]

A vented distributor cap should help that.

Jim

[4dblnkldude]

Yep that's what happens. It still works just as well, I don't think its so much a design flaw, than wanting to save a few bucks on not coating, or painting etc. Mines been purring away for 3 years now, not many miles but.......I haven't even looked at it.

[ronk455]

Yep, same here. I had also read about using coated parts now. I sent mine back to MSD, three weeks and $70.00 later it came back looking like new. Time will tell how it will hold up. I have my fingers crossed.

[Cliff R]

Bead blast and clear coat the housing and electroplate all the metal parts. It will last many years without rusting or oxidizing anyplace......Cliff

[olescarb]

The corrosion is caused by the ozone that is created by the ignition spark and if you are using a MSD box you have 4 times as many sparks as a standard ignition. The cure we use is to drill a 1/4 inch vent hole in the side of the cap and another hole down in the body of the distributor to vent the ozone out of the body. This problem is not as common on a distributor with a vacuum advance (because the area around the advance rod allows venting).


I hope this helps Henry @ oles carb

[Sun Tuned]

Guys he already stated he's using a vented cap In his first post

[olescarb]

Originally Posted by Sun Tuned

Guys he already stated he's using a vented cap In his first post

The stock MSD vented cap has a vent that is very restricted, if i remember correctly it is in the 0.060 range which is not enough venting plus the cap seals so well to the body that there is no easy way for the ozone to escape.

Henry@ oles

[66bonne]

olescarb: Where do you suggest drilling the hole in the body of the distributor ? What size ? My MSD dist is plaqued by this plaque.

Thanks, Jim

[olescarb]

Jim what we have done is drill a 1/4" hole thru the body opposite the pick up assembly to allow venting then we drill a 1/4" hole in the cap on the back side by the firewall (to help avoid water or debris getting in). I would like to see the distributors equipped with vents that are filtered by a brass screen like they use on marine distributors but I doubt MSD would ever do that.

Every distributor we have added vents to no longer have corrosion problems.


I hope this helps Henry @ oles

[66bonne]

Henry: Big thanks. Coincidentally I am getting ready to pull the distributor for inspection.
I like your idea about brass screens, that would work.
Thanks, Jim

[Sun Tuned]

Cool deal Henry. I thought he meant vented like the older caps that had 4 3/8" holes around the circumference.

The need ones have a vent hole like the ford dists, and your right it's not very big.

[Pontirag]

its not about conducting electricity but eddy currents or magnetic fields. certain alloys create a magnetic field more efficiently. the down side is that they may also rust more easily. so cheap is not the reason. you will note that other components are well made and finished in various coatings.

be carefull cleaning it up with a carbon or stainless steel wire brush or in a sand blast media used previously for other types of metal. they can cause problems all thier own.

better to scrub it with a nylon toothe brush and some gun cleaning products and lube it lightly with some gun bore lube

venting the cap is a good deal, on some aircraft magneto's alternators and generators a vacuum line is hooked up between the distributor guts and a sorce of intake vacuum to remove moisture and ozone and cool the components

be carefull about using a metallic screen over holes. it may cause arcing. better to go with a nylon or non metallic screen material

[olescarb]

Originally Posted by Sun Tuned

Cool deal Henry. I thought he meant vented like the older caps that had 4 3/8" holes around the circumference.

The need ones have a vent hole like the ford dists, and your right it's not very big.

Even the larger MSD GM style caps are not as well vented as the original GM style caps mainly because the window that was used to adjust the points is sealed by a plastic door that fits much tighter than the tin door used by GM. The corrosion issue is not as common with the larger GM style cap but it does happen. The corrosion issue is also much more common on a distributor that does not have a vacuum advance (mainly because the opening created by the vacuum advance acts as a vent.

PS: Suntuned I always enjoy your posts

Henry @ oles