So a few months back I converted my Duraspark III to a DS2/HEI and it ran well for awhile....Then it started popping and bucking and generally not staying timed.

Pulled the timing chain and replaced it to no avail and finally figured out the rotos was freewheeling in the distributor. Replaced that and it was still running rough as hell. Went to the cap and relaced it...still running rough. Pulled my four month old reman vatozone had six teeth sheered off the gear.... Neato...

Took it back and got another one that was sloppy out of the box and the reluctor spun completely independently of the shaft. At this point I chucked the entire thing in the trash...lifetime warranty and all lol.

Last week I ordered a self contained HEI from Skip White on ebay. 48.50 shipped. Yes...its made in China...just like MSDs stuff. From my research it seems the supplier is the same, Skip White simply skips the extra in house QC checks... But for 48.50 and with a lifetime warranty I think its worth a shot.

I will be sure to post up my experiences when it gets here. If anyone else has used it Id love to hear your experiences. Ive read alot on the Corral about guys using them for years...but havent seen anything here.

I also put the Summit/Autolite 4100 clone carb on a month ago but havent been able to test it yet.

 

Well it showed up today, via FedEx, wich is awesome.

Came in a plain box marked "Top Street Performance". No frills like instructions or DVDs with the guy from Horsepower Tv lol. Just a distributor in a box. Has an allen to adjust vac advance Im assuming.

Mahcinework looks good, and Im a machinist by trade (not a button pusher, a programmer). No sahvings or rough edges anywhere, no excessive endplay or anything that seemed too tight either. Basically everything was just fine.

Has brass terminals and rotor, generic GM 4 pin HEI module, and standard hook up for the hot wire and tach.

Since I was already running a HEI/Duraspark 2 all i had to do was hook my wires up (which I flubbed more on that later). There is a red wire with a stripe in the bundle going to the original module that is hot in run AND crank, thats the one you need to locate for HEI hookup. Make sure its hot in crank, or the truck will never start.

I went outside, found TDC, dropped er in there and proceeded to put my plug wires on (FRPP they fit with no issues). BTW ALL my remaned dizzys didnt quite fit the hole in the block and needed some emery cloth love, this fit perfectly. The factory holddown is a little weird though, not sure if it will work yet.

Since the truck has been sitting since Oct I hooked my Jeep to it to jump it. Then went to crank it and got nothing! After a few mins of dinkin around realized I had no spark because I flipped the hot and tach wires...Doh! At that point my wife had already left for work in the Jeep so.... ill let you guys know tonight.

 

Did you have any interference with any engine components and the HEI? Some people have trouble with it bumping into different things on top of the engine.

And when you swap these into early chevies, they always stress to run at least a 12 gauge wire to feed this setup. Apparently it takes a lot of current to run it. So do some research on it, you may decide later to upgrade your power wire.

 

No I had no interference issues. I am running a Performer 351w intake and Summit carb. The base of the distributor is somewhat close the the thermostat housing, and could have hit the hose clamp but due to dumb blind luck mine was clocked in such a way it didn't lol.

You are correct, HEIs require a full 12vs not the 9 these trucks usually run. My truck was already converted to a Duraspark 2/HEI setup though, so I already had the wire isolated from the harness. I used 10 ga wire for it BTW.

 

Ok, I jumped the truck today and I gotta say, it hasn't started easier in decades. I mean one bump of the key and it fired up.

Since I changed timing chain, cam, lifters, intake, and carb. i have some tweaking to do, and no real report. I drove the truck into my shop and put air in the tires and back out lol. But so far, i'm pretty impressed with the product, made in China or not, it works great.

 

Who in the heck is "Skip White?" Is that yet another Chinese HEI ignition manufacturer with a shiny billet distributor and pretty red cap?

 

Yep..........characters.....

 

Any updates on how this distributor is holding up? I have the same model new in the box, but have a friend selling a used Mallory HEI distributor for $100.

 

Just go got the same Skip White 351W HEI.
I completely pulled the TFI harness out, it had sooo many cuts and frays.
Now with out that harness, where can I get 12v in run and crank positions?
How to hook up the factory Tach?
Thanks

 

The red/green wire that used to go to the TFI E-coil is hot in start and run.
Did you go back to the C102 connector?

As Dave F suggested, you may want to use this to trigger a relay and use a 12Ga wire to power the distributor itself.

 

Thanks Ard
Ordered a 12v 40A rely today

 

Be sure to have a fuse in the circuit.

 

I thought most of these HEI distributors came with the tach port?
You can see it from the underside.



White Performance Detail Description

 

Yep Got the Tach port on the dizzy, wondering where to tap into on harness, think I found it, Dark Green w/ yellow Dash. wire.

 

Which tip is #1? not indicated on the cap.
If Vacuum port is at 5:00, is number 1 at 11:00?