Re: Suggestion for tailgater haters and MSD

["Owen" <renarac@domain.elided>]

I've got to disagree, Landry. I have the MSD 6AL and it's rev-limiting
features are a lifesaver on my motor when I'm punching the throttle and
hightailing it through mud, over hills and down washboards in 4-low and in
1st.

If I get too excited and over-rev, it graciously shuts off cylinders and
drops power untill the RPM is low enough.

Especially handy when you'd going over really bumpy stuff at high RPM and
yout foot is dancing around on the pedal.

The benifit of the MSD rev-limiter built into the 6AL is that it cuts of
random cylinders. First 1, then 2, 3,ect. until the revs are down. Most cut
off one cylinder or cut the coil wire (whch can cause some nasty backfires
if it switches the coil wire back on half way through the discharge period.)

So buying the MSD with all the bells and whistles is worth it. A basic MSD
6A is just for kicks unless you're running a race car.


----- Original Message -----
From: John A. Landry <jlandry@domain.elided>
To: John Fleck <jlfleck@domain.elided>
Cc: <ihc-digest@domain.elided>
Sent: Thursday, March 25, 1999 3:18 PM
Subject: Re: Suggestion for tailgater haters and MSD


> The aliens commander decided John Fleck <jlfleck@domain.elided> would make
a
> perfect specimen for dissection, and he yelled...
>
> >I mean can 90% of the 300 or so drag racers that
> >came to the track I was a member of (Bremerton Handlers Racing
Association
> >in Gorst WA) be wrong????
>
> Oh I get it...
>
> Then we need nitromethane, roots blowers and open header pipes on our
daily
> drivers too because 100's of funny car drivers can't be wrong... right?
>
> I respectfully disagree with you John.  You don't need a $200.00+ ignition
> system to get an otherwise *properly* functioning stock IH engine to run
> perfectly.  But yes... if someone feels the need to spend some money to
> cover up other neglected maintenance items, then an expensive ignition
> system is a perfect place for them to start loosing cash.  This is America
> after all and that's the beauty of stupid consumers... they help the
> economy by buying stuff they don't need.  It's the same mentality that
> keeps those oil additive manufacturers in business even though countless
> studies have proven them unnecessary to outright useless.  Sooner or later
> (probably sooner) they'll be back to spend more money on the other items
> that needed fixing in the first place... but those needed repairs weren't
> quite as attractive as a shiny new MSD computer and pretty spark plug
> wires.
>
> I'll stick by my position that a setup with say a Pertronix Ignitor,
> something like a set of cheap 8mm Autolite spark plug wires, platinum
plugs
> (brand of your choice) and an Accel super *stock* coil (or brand of your
> choice) will give just as good performance and fuel economy as a Jacob's
or
> MSD system with all the expensive bells and whistles.  That's on an engine
> in otherwise top mechanical condition.  If you have some neglected nasty
> oil burner that fouls the plugs every 1/2 mile, then *possibly* something
> like the MSD might help keep the plugs cleaner because you can open the
gap
> farther and run the plugs hotter.  But again, it's a band aid and you're
> still going to have to fix the engine at some point.
>
> 95% of the people installing aftermarket ignition systems replace just
> about every component (plug, wires, ignition module, rotor, cap, etc.)
when
> they perform the upgrade.  They're blown away by the performance increase
> when they could have gotten the same effect by replacing everything with
> quality auto part store fare and doing a tune-up in the first place.  It's
> the $350.00 they just spent at Jacob's that finally gets them off their
> butt to tune-up their engine.
>
> I'm not saying there's anything wrong with the aftermarket ignition
> systems... just that more value for the money can be had elsewhere... like
> purchasing some basic diagnostic equipment and doing regular tune-ups,
etc.
>
> Just MHO,
>
> John L.
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------
> jlandry AT halcyon DOT com      |
> Conservative Libertarian        |  "The road to  tyranny, we must never
> Life Member of the NRA          |   forget, begins with the destruction
> WA Arms Collectors              |   of the truth."
> Commercial Helicopter - Inst.   |                     William J. Clinton
> http://www.halcyon.com/jlandry/ |    10-15-95, speech at the Univ. of CT
>