Triggering MSD with Pertronix

[Turbos10]

Hey all,

I fried an ignition setup for some reason and want to see what you guys are doing different. I was using a pertronix running a Mallory Box. I had the pertronix running 12V from the coil and then the ground running to the Mallory Box. It worked great around the shop and one pass at 4200RPM. Next pass it died at about 20ft. After much trouble shooting I could not get the box or pertronix pickup to work at all, but I am wondering about the wiring for the pertronix to MSD. I ended up going back to points and an MSD for the next nights pull.

Time to get it put back right and I want to know how you guys are wiring up the Pertronix to make it last with a box...or will they? I tryed running the unit to the MSD through the magnetic and coil pickup both but neither worked. I was able to get some reaction from the pertronix on my meter, but not with the MSD box.

Let me know how you guys are wiring these things....

Thanks,

Chris

 

[Miller49G]

Goto my web page and look on how to hook up a msd 6a box.
PerTronix Wiring to MSD 6A

 

[Turbos10]

This is how I had mine hooked up when everything went away. The only thing I can think of is that it was hooked to the coil (+). It is a switched 12V, but I am thinking there may have been some kind of feed back that killed everything.

 

[Miller49G]

Don"t hook the Pertronix (+) to the (+) of the coil. Hook it up with its own switched power. You will be getting the jumped up power out of the msd box when you hook it on the (+) side of the coil no good. I you hook it up like the picture on my web page it will work just fine!!! Any other way its all junk!!!

 

[Turbos10]

Ahhh...yes, that makes sense. Guess I better order another one.

 

[oliver77]

You will want to hook it up exactly like his diagram. When it says to the battery ground or positive GO TO THE BATTERY! I had a small block tractor that was having firing problems and after talking to MSD we quit using chassis grounds and hot wires and did exactly what the diagram said. Since then no problems. I don't know why but it worked. Hope this helped.

 

[Miller49G]

Glad I could help you out.

 

[Jeremys108]

What kind of horsepower increases have you guys seen
with the MSD ignition?

 

[High Octane]

Id say he needs a resistor on the + side of the petronix. Think bout this,, that setup is manily used for a low rpm engine, under 2000rpm. running 4000+ rpm, Id belive it to overwork the module,, causing it to overheat and fry the pickup. The petronix is kinda useless when you use MSD,,, where the petronix will amplify the output to the plugs, that output is now routed thru the MSD,, then the msd takes over. If the module is overpowered, it will back feed thru the msd and overheat the circuits for the pick up, or trigger inthe MSD itself. Points trigger will be fine to use, all it is, is a triggering device,,,, nothing more, nothing less since the MSD controls everything now. Keep the points as a trigger, keep the resistor on the coil and run it.

 

[Miller49G]

No resistor is needed on the Pertronix if you hook it up to a MSD box. All the Pertronix is a pick up (like a light switch on and off) it doesn"t jump up the power to the coil. The coil is what jumps up the power like say if you put a high out put coil in there.

 

[Turbos10]

My tractor ran better with the pertronix and Mallory than with points and MSD....far as HP, iono...mine should be 4-500 range once tuned up....not from MSD of course.

 

[Anonymous-0]

MSd with the 2 wire connector, supplies the pertronix with power. Since the petronix is now just a triggering device, it doesnt need as much voltage power to operate it. Too much power out of the MSD to the pick up can overheat the wiring inside the box and short circuit. Best explained, its overloading the unit, where it really does not have to. Dropping the voltage to the pick up isnt going to affect perfromance, it will drop the amp load the MSd needs to operate and not melt it down inside. if it fries on the inside of the MSD box, it will short out the pick up and burn it up too from the short. Resistor on the pick up or put the key switched power to the red wire on the pick up away from the unit itself, it it doesnt backfeed, should drop the amp load down and still operate to its full potential.

 

[Turbos10]

I understand what you are saying about the triggering device and the resistive load...I have a question on the MSD two wire hookup; have you used the blue/green wire set on the MSD(magnetic trigger plug) hooked to the pertronix? If so that would be ideal.

 

[Miller49G]

The blue/green wire set on the MSD(magnetic trigger plug isn"t for hooking up the Pertronix. It is what you just said its a magnetic trigger pick up. If you hook it up to the magnetic trigger pick up it will not work and maybe fry the MSD box. Just hook it up like my link says. Its that easy.
Pertronix Hook up.

 

[Turbos10]

I think this is the best option. I thought there might be a chance the hall(magnetic) pickup would work with the pertronix.