Datsun Roadster Forum-311s.org

keith0alan wrote:Check your distributor shaft for wobble. It's a long shot but if the shaft is moving around the Pertronics pickup might be getting out of range.

keith

Well, finally had time to get the car over to the mechanic for his opinion on this stalling problem. After much checking, driving, checking, driving and head scratching, he has determined there is enough play in the dizzy shaft to do exactly what a couple of you suggested..........causing the pickup to get out of range due to torque when turning left. He wants me to find the parts to replace bearings/bushings etc. So my question now is where can I find the needed items for the dizzy? I've searched a couple of places with no luck. Sure hope this works! Thanks

You may need to take the dizzy to a machine shop where they can replace the bushings. Regular garages used to have the tools to R and R distributor bushings but I expect that most don't any more.

keithw

I've got 4 and none on the car. Which part(s) do you need?

One thought, How does the distributor react differently to turning left vs any other situation? I have no doubt there is play in the shaft, but can't see how the car's motion would affect it.

I take apart LOTS of these. Most are in pretty bad shape. The pin holding the tach gear on usually needs to be drilled out. It is steel and it is tapered. drill from the smaller appearing hole after filing it flat and centerpunching it. 1/8" drill bit, use a TIN or cobalt bit, make very sure it is straight. If you don't get it straight, or try to hammer it out, you can easilly trash the shaft.Gary wrote the whole guide here. Replace with a roll pin.
http://www.311s.org/pmwiki-311/pmwiki.p ... yGaryBoone


The bushings for the EI units I make are definatly the right ID, may be right OD, I never needed to change one yet.
Distributor housing bushings, lower is Napa DP105 or Borg Warner DG 8, upper is Napa DP 107 or
Borg Warner DG10

If Spyder doesn't have what you need, I have a big pile of empty housings, I can send you a good one. Also, unless they are new, you should put in a new upper shaft, along with weights and springs, they do wear out, avail on ebay and elsewhere as a desmog or recurve kit.

Just a thought. Labor by the hour adds up quickly. If you are paying someone to rebuild your distributor, it may be more economical to buy an electronic distributor. The people who make them are listed in the Vendor section.

I have no idea how turning left could affect the distributor any more than other movements. I really have a lot of faith in the guy that checked it out. He is a friend and has an extremely good reputation. At this point, thats all I have to go on. He checked for quite some time and was unable to come to any other conclusion. He also has all the tools for job of replacing bushings and such.

I WAS thinking of just replacing the distributor with one of the EI dizzys instead of someone attempting to go through the current one. Its just a fairly expensive option and there is not a 100% certainty that it will fix the problem. If I knew for sure it would, that is exactly what I would do and maybe should have done so at the beginning. Plus, that would make the purchase of the Pertronix EI conversion kit a waste.

Unfortunately, I am not a very good mechanic, although I am learning quickly. I really want to hang on to the car, but do get discouraged from time to time. Hopefully when this problem is worked through, all will be good...............for a bit anyway. Thanks again for the advise!

Walter

If it would make life easier, would you like to borrow a complete working points distributor? Your mechanic could throw it in in 15 minutes and test drive. I have a good spare 1600 and 2000 on the shelf.

Let me know, $10.00 spent for shipping could save alot.