Reman Distributors??

[BigRed]

I've been wanting to replace my aged dist. on my '86 burb. I priced some reman ones at both Auto Zone and O'Reilly. They both cost about $100 with a $50 core charge. That sure beats the price of a new one. Has anyone had experiences with these? I don't have alot of $$ but would like to replace the dist soon.

Thanks!

[swervin ervin]

Scott,

steer clear of anything remaned at Autozone, or any of the chain autoparts stores. They are junk. The companies who rebuild this stuff for them do it so cheap in order to stay in business, they use the cheapest quality parts they can find. Then on top of this, the workmanship, if you can call it that, is something my 16 yo son could beat and he can't even work on distributors.

Do yourself a favor, if you can't rebuild your old one yourself, find someone local who can. You will be much better off in the end. Or a better idea would be to try the dealer. It might just surprise you what you can get one for.

[PHOENIX]

Stay away from the rebuilts. Ignition components are not fun to play with and figure out. Rebuilts will cause you problems.

I have one of these Proforms, had it for a few years now. Has always worked great:
P/N Jegs: 778-66941R

HERE

I bought mine for $150 from a local shop.

Thanks to Mike I now have a MSD coil and module in it.
Not a bad upgrade!

[old Rusty C10]

ive used them once and once was enough i had to take it out and replace it cause it too burned out due to cheap parts went with a new one

[BigRed]

Ok, thanks guys. I did see that the Proform is just as cheap as one of the rebuilts. Sounds like that may be the way to go.

As far as removal, will the dist clear the firewall and hood to remove in vehicle?

[Slonaker]

Yes, the distributor will clear the firewall and hood. I had mine out a couple of months ago when I changed cams.

It is a little tough to look down in the hole to line up the oil pump with the distributor, but it can all be done.

Slonaker

[1972C10]

They also sell an accel thats a tad bit cheaper and IMO just as good of a dist

http://www.jegs.com/cgi-bin/ncommerc...48&prmenbr=361


Oriellys sells this accel locally there about 5 bucks more than jegs wich equals out by the time a person paid shippin

Ive got one of them remanufactured dist. looks like someone took a bunch of parts tested them then cleaned them in a parts washer and slapped it back together the bushings and stuff have been replaced the all the electical componets are used defiently junk I belive if rather rebuild my own last time i checked you can get all the parts to do so for like 60 bucks

What i do when im just changin a dist is mark where it was pointing with a sharpie then try to put it back and if it dont fall down onto the oil pump driveshaft bump the engine over a little it will fall down. or use a big Long screwrdriver

[swervin ervin]

Accel stuff is junk too. Proform is cheap Taiwan made crap too. Sorry Eddie. I do have one piece of Proform stuff on my truck though. A harmonic balancer cover with the degreed timing marks. But this doesn't perform any electrical function. The stuff they sell isn't a bit better than Mr. Gasket junk. Just my opinion. I've got my flame retardent suit on.

Go with a new one from GM or rebuild the one you have. If you have the funds, go with a MSD unit. I know it's overkill, but hey, it's the best there is.

[bigd65]

I have to second that Mike on the PROFORM. a Buddy bought one for his 69 and it was in there about 3-4 months and one of the weights broke. can you believe that, one of the weights. Now that is just plain weekness.

[1972C10]

Friend of mine runs an accel with no problems. I normally rebuild my own but that was before i found out i could get a new one for 109 Kinda a toss up If you rebuild your own you can put in a larger coil a curve kit and a good module i belive the accel and proforms just come with stock type module and no coil

[MylilBowTie]

I knew better not to get a autozone reman distributor. But I was kinda in a jam and went ahead with it. They are junk and I will never buy one again. Had it installed two days and the module went out in it. This was after I replaced everything else coil, cap, rotor button, wires, and plugs. I didn't want to pull the distributor again and mess with all that stuff. So I got a GM module and installed it. Its been okay since then. When money allows or it kicks the bucket I will get an MSD setup.

[r0lf-]

Its all about the GM stock parts. They are plenty strong. MSD is nice and all, but most people dont need it. Unless your revving 6k+, then it might be useful.

I just think that there are many better options out there than MSD for the price.

[BigRed]

What are your thoughts on Mallory distributors? Seems like they're less than MSDs but not quite as cheap as the Proforms and Accells.

[MylilBowTie]

Keeping the engine stock-mild I would get a GM distributor. Moving on up the scale I would get an MSD setup. But that's just my opinion. Might be a good idea to find a place that will rebuild that distributor depending on cost. Im not really all that sure about what to recommend for a "good" middle of the road distributor.

Proform and Accel could be a lot better than what they are. You use cheap labor and inferior parts you will get a less than desirable product. So now you end up with a parts that doesn't work like its supposed to and for a little more money would have been able to get a better product. I also understand that people don't have a money pile to burn. Most the time you are ahead of the game in using better products. With all the down time, warranty work, shipping and labor all that it adds up. There are also just sometimes you do actually get a decent part from those companies also. My success rate using parts like this isn't to good at all.

[1972C10]

Good ignition is a must for any engine regardless of How Souped up the engine is Im sure there is such a thing as too much ignition on a stock motor but real good stuff wont hurt it.