My Truck is 1974 F-250 w/ 360

My truck since purchased came with just an msd box.
wiring is a mess, they used wiring twist instead of actual wire connectors not sure if connections are still good because moisture has gotten in.
I bought spark plugs and gapped them to .045 I did this because I found online that with electronic boxes that it is better. Now the truck wont even start.
Should i gap them back to oem?

the truck doesn't the dura spark system.

I recently purchased and HEI Distributor off ebay to try and eliminate the wiring mess.
LINK: https://www.ebay.com/itm/392898382731

I had the pleasure of finding out it did not fit.
Would any of you have any HEI recommendations for my 360?
Or other easy to install systems.

I did notice that the distributor that it currently has there is notches on bottom. The oil gear is also longer on the current one. Gear seem to be the same.
The distributor wouldn't go down all the way. There was like 2 1/2 inches before it sat.

Im not a mechanic, i'm just a teenager with a love for these trucks.

 

A box like an MSD 6AL or similar with just about any coil shouldn't have trouble firing a plug gap of .100 or more in an engine like that. I think that I would start from scratch and make sure the wiring of the box is done correctly. Having the black ground wire properly grounded it very important as is having the big red power supply wire connected to a good source of unswitched power. The small red wire is switched with the key so make sure that it has power with the key in the on position but also in the cranking position.

 

Hey Dave thank you for the advice I will be trying it out to see if I can fix it. The box that is has is a 6A Multiple Spark Discharge. I will be back in a couple days with an update. I won’t be able to work on it.

Thank You again

 

A nice upgrade is the Duraspark unit- last thing you need is one of those ugly and poorly made HEI conversion deals. The selling point they use is that is is easy to hook up with minimal wiring. MSD actually uses the Ford Duraspark internal setup in their distributors. You can still buy a new Duraspark for the late FE pickups from parts stores, use a good used one, or convert one using parts from a cheapo 5.0 or 460 Duraspark. MSD also makes a conversion harness that will connect a Duraspark to your MSD box for about $20, with the factory connectors at both ends, and they also have a 6' extension cord for that if you want to hide the box somewhere. I am in the process of straightening out a similar deal, bought a 65 on a 79 frame, PO had a wiring problem that his Chebbrainwashed buddies blamed on the ignition, and talked him into an HEI deal, which lasted about 40 miles of running rough (lousy and sticky advance curve) before it quit completely. He confirmed that the original 79 Duraspark had been working fine and was not the problem, so now putting it back together with Duraspark. I have the near-new parts store Duraspark that he had also bought while fighting the wiring problem, but I may use one of the older 460 units I have, as the engine is a 400, and use the MSD conversion cable

 

Thank you Gene for your advice. I will definitely try this out. Rather have something more reliable for dialing in and driving around.

 

Do an internet search for Duraspark ignition conversions, you will quickly find several diagrams for various setups. You can run the "Blue Strain" factory box, MSD, or the simple 4-pin module that goes with an HEI, but will easily wire up to the Duraspark. You will find a ton of info with a simple search

 

Sweet Thanks 👍 Summer Time is around the corner hopefully I’ll get her ready to go.