Points for M

[Anonymous-0]

Has anyone had any problems with ignition parts from Farm & Fleet. The cost is considerably less than my local NAPA. Bought points,cap,rotor,condensor and it cost close to 50 bucks. Same stuff from F&F was around 20-25 dollars. Any feedback would be appreciated. Thanks

 

[mike1972chev]

From what I have found and from what I have been told,GOOD quality points HAVE NOT been available for quite awhile now from ANY source.(No matter how much you are spending.)


I would like a GOOD set also.

 

[Ellis Kinney]

I always go with a brass distributor cap if I can. For a while in the 80s and 90s all you could get was aluminum and corrosion was a problem for me. Ellis

 

[CNKS]

Those parts I would buy from CaseIH, we don't have a Farm and Fleet, do have a Tractor Supply, I won't buy ignition or carb parts from them.

 

[AG in IN]

Try them and share your experiences with us. You might have no problems and never buy elsewhere again. Some people have had no issues with similar parts. I've had enough issues to completely discontinue using all "farm store" ignition parts.

My experiences with ignition parts bought "to fit" IH tractors sourced in the last decade or so at local farm stores and from aftermarket dealers include:
Occasionally condensers were dead in the package. More often (improperly rated?) bad condensers made points look like they'd been welded on inside of 5 hours. I had plenty of condenser issues from every brand of farm store ignition parts.
More than once, new points grounded out in the pivot area. Some suppliers of "to fit" parts for IH distributors had points that sometimes didn't align properly and/or sometimes had excessive slop in the pivot. Some points for Delco distributors required bending to properly allign the contacts.
One supplier's rotor tip outer contact for IH distributors looked like it was pop-riveted on and was sometimes loose before it's even installed.
One supplier's caps occasionally required scraping with a knife or use of dremel tool inside to clear excess material away from contacts to allow proper function. Failure to do so in some cases would destroy the rotor.
Also a few other headaches that after switching to NAPA/Echlin I haven't had since. Have these and other suppliers changed since I've last used them for these parts? It's been about 2 years since I've bought any of them, so, I can't say. I hope so. I'm not in a hurry to go back to any of them for these parts unless NAPA's parts let me down.

From my experiences with NAPA/Echlin ignition parts with these tractors:
Parts are rather expensive, and stores don't usually stock these parts until customers start buying them.
Parts fit and function properly.
Parts have a reasonable amount of life expectancy.
Parts quality is good, and consistent.
I feel I can depend on my tractors with these parts installed. I've never had to walk home since NAPA's ignition parts have been istalled in my tractors. I feel that I get my money's worth, certainly compared to the above alternatives.

AG

 

[ih1566]

if i were you id invest in an electronic ignition from petronix! but if they arent in your price range then points will do ya fine, there around 100 dollors or so. cant remember what i paid for my last one but they are money well spent, you dont have to worry about filing points or changing points every few years and the tractor starts alot easier with electronic ignition.not trying to sell them, just my opinion, ive had an electronic ignition in our 400 farmall for going on 8 years now? hadnt had any problems with it or had to touch it
at all.

 

[mike1972chev]

I AM hearing you AG!

But I am hearing Echlin is not good quality these
days.

When Dad ran a garage back in the day(70s EARLY 80s)
we went to NAPA for the customers who were willing
to pay extra for the "good parts".

Now,I am not so sure there is even a difference????I think the contact surface on the contacts are now just PLATED with a coating instead of made of the "good " material.

 

[mike1972chev]

Brass caps are still available and I will buy one tomorrow.

But,the old Copper caps are a BETTER conductor of electricity.


My last cap was aluminum,and I regularly "scrape" the poles on the cap to keep it running! Last IHC chapter #7 tillage day I had to do it AFTER 2 back fires in the furrow. Cleaned the "white stuff" off of the cap and it ran wonderfully!!!

 

[jkies]

no big secrets in this world when it comes to parts,
if it's cheaper - there is a reason.

 

[mattwillson]

I gave up on points etc last fall. I modified a mopar distributor and wired up their electronic set up. Likely will never mess with ignition again and it works fine on 6volt

 

[AG in IN]

(quoted from post at 01:43:12 03/05/13) I AM hearing you AG!
But I am hearing Echlin is not good quality these
days. When Dad ran a garage back in the day(70s EARLY 80s)
we went to NAPA for the customers who were willing
to pay extra for the "good parts".

I can't argue with you Mike, but I can say I haven't had any real issues with NAPA's ignition parts as of today. If they start giving me fits, NAPA will hear about it, and certainly I'll post it here. I'm not the type to be singing the praises of crap and cursing quality!

NAPA has at least 2 "grades" of automotive ignition parts, maybe more for some applications. I think there's only one grade of ag and industrial ignition parts. I tried to save a buck and try a cheaper grade for my 95 Chevy truck. The cap had alum. contacts and didn't last nearly as long as the more expensive ones do. I got what I paid for, and went back to the pricier ones. I despise aluminum contacts, anyway.

I do see more and more imported parts sold under the Echlin name. Several ignition parts are from Mexico, but those haven't given me any trouble. Last push button starter switch for H's & M's I bought in an Echlin box was Chinese and it'll be interesting to see how that holds up, if at all.

As far as elecrtical and ignition parts, I really haven't seen anybody's parts that were being made 30+ years ago being made better today. Some is about as good, but it's mostly going the other way. There's a reason NOS Delco Remy parts bring good money on Ebay! I'd bet that most of the time it isn't because of the fancy olde-time packaging they no longer use that looks neat in a display, it's the product inside that will actually function people want. Not really electrical, but I opened an IH tin can the other day for a governor thrust bearing and just about gave a buddy a coronary! OH, THE HUMANITY! :lol:

AG

 

[mkirsch]

Just like car batteries, there are hundreds of brands but only a handful of manufacturers, if that many.

With stuff like antique tractor ignition parts, I'd bet that there are really only 1-2 manufacturers making ALL of it. Sometimes when you pay more you just pay more, and perception of better quality is all in your head.

 

[Brownie 450]

Very good for junk. 3 or 4 years ago, we went to get points & cond. from Harvester, & noticed that some of the points were made in Mexico--the rest from USA. Price was the same--so we sorted out the USA ones & had parts go bring out the rest to look at. The latest shipment had 9 out of 10 points made in Mexico. Don't know how the Mex. ones will last.
Talking about point material, the good ones used to have tungsten contacts.
Some folks on here will disagree, but Filko used to make the best quality ignition parts available.

 

[AG in IN]

(quoted from post at 14:44:57 03/05/13)
With stuff like antique tractor ignition parts, I'd bet that there are really only 1-2 manufacturers making ALL of it. Sometimes when you pay more you just pay more, and perception of better quality is all in your head.

I disagree, at least somewhat. There may be only one mfr. of these parts today for all I know.

I can't speak for today as I've been buying from the same supplier for awhile, now. A couple of years back, points to fit delco distributors (1111411) were probably the easist to see that there were many variances in design between various suppliers for the same application. Some used an aux. stiffner spring, some didn't. Some were vented, some weren't. Some had a flimsier arm leading to the contact area than others. I don't see anyone offering them as 2 separate pieces anymore (years ago they were), but one supplier's still came apart as it must have been designed that way. Some had an extra hole in the arm (for adjustment in another application?) that wasn't needed. Some didn't allow for enough adjustment for the application. I don't recall 2 supplier's parts being exactly the same. That doesn't mean that they weren't being mfd. by the same company, but the parts were different. Parts for that distributor came labeled USA, Mexico, China, and I think even Canada from various suppliers and some were a combination of the above. Some didn't specify a country of origin.

AG

 

[AG in IN]

(quoted from post at 15:55:34 03/05/13) 3 or 4 years ago, we went to get points & cond. from Harvester, & noticed that some of the points were made in Mexico--the rest from USA. The latest shipment had 9 out of 10 points made in Mexico. Don't know how the Mex. ones will last.

10+ years ago CIH's IH (H, M, etc.) distributor rotors were being made in Mexico. Caps would be aluminum one week and brass the next and aluminum again 2 weeks from Tuesday. A couple of years ago they were selling distributor caps that just plain didn't fit. That's when I stopped trying to buy ignition parts from them.

Years and years ago there was a law that if you were packaging or repackaging parts and not directly manufacturing them, you had to specify that fact on your packaging. I sure would like to see that enforced today.

AG

 

[dej(Jed)]

(quoted from post at 14:16:23 03/04/13) Has anyone had any problems with ignition parts from Farm & Fleet. The cost is considerably less than my local NAPA. Bought points,cap,rotor,condensor and it cost close to 50 bucks. Same stuff from F&F was around 20-25 dollars. Any feedback would be appreciated. Thanks

They are junk............ Any of there electronic parts will be roached shortly after installation. I have had extremely bad luck with there key switches also. Heck the stuff is so bad I run a wire to the positives on the coil and battery and trip the starter on my AC. I would buy good stuff, but I don't think it is out there. We live in a world where it is all about taking your money.

 

[mike1972chev]

Yea Brownie,

I believe "back in the day" there was a GOOD amount of tungsten in the contacts.Now it is just a light "plating" of it I believe?(not sure about this,going from what I have heard.)

Once upon a time,I used to have a an item called a "points file". (lol) You could probably use it a few times on the older sets. Now I think they are junk if they would EVER get burnt just once?

 

[HenryO)]

I got a tune up kit from Yesterday;s Tractor for my M .. Sets run from $12 to 41 including new wires. Best buy around.

 

[Mike Genrich]

Its getting harder to find good ignition parts all the time, not to mention switches. echelin {spelling?} seem to be about as good as any ive found. Standard Ignition blue streak used to be the deal but they suck now to. After years of getting hell about using champion plugs I have been using ngk plugs and they seem to last longer.

 

[Dan Richardson]

You can save a couple bucks from top quality if you want to. When you have to walk back from the south 40 you have plenty of time to think about how much you saved.

 

[Dave S.]

Bought a set of points from the local CARQUEST 3 days ago and had to bend them 2 different directions to contact right. Bought some from NAPA a year ago for Wisconsin, only half the contact would touch each other, took them back.