Topic: WHAT DID I WRONG ?
in Forum: C3 Engines
Put new power valve and greater jetting in the primarys : 75 instead of 66 ! . And it is better : almost 4000 rpms , but with "square" running engine above 3000.... Perhaps my engine was very lean and installing tubular headers made it tooooo lean ???
I have something to celebrate : just 1 month with those engine problems and no further....
I carefully listen to the engine noise reving it up very slowly and find that around 2000,2500 rev's there's an beat under the normal noise , getting more audible on 3000 and prevailing in the more rpms. Yes , just idling at 2000 i find the noise not anymore running "round" as with 1000 , 1500 rev's.
Checked with friends pushing the car in gear the (inlet) valves moving to verify AGAIN the firing order. Is OK.
Had the ( new) points ( with grey spot ) "scraped" clean. ( with a point cleaning tool )
Looked in books and find that the condensor is a critical element. I only tryed 2... perhaps a thirt one ? Also read that single points give critical time in high rev's to load the condensor ( dwell 30°) , perhaps changing after all to electronic distributor ? And what type should i order ? I need the rev cable connection .( and vac advance ? ) Do you have experience with a good one ?
Driving i must tell the car has great power in all gears up till 3000 rpm.Spinning wheels are no problem.
To do SOMETHING right today i washed the car and cleaned it inside.
And i can be very proud : there's not the least spot or damage on the paint work : somebody ever did a quite great job .As i'm told the specialist from Germany whe did the restoration now moved to the US and is working among you guys !
see you !
Lifetime MemberI wish I was there to check it out. Yes, the condenser could be the problem. Not likely, but possible. If you can rig a propane bottle to supply a lot more fuel above 3000, it would be interesting to see if it makes a difference.
And there are electronic distributors that you can buy with the tach drive. Check out MSD and Holley. You can also install a conversion and use your original distributor upgraded to electronic.
Had installed a ( 4the !, one spare from my OMC V8 boat engine , witch i found in a toolbox , must have been there for about 15 years ! ) condensor and always the same pufpuf's....
Need new plugs as i think they all are fouled by now. Put primary jetting back to 69 , 75 was to high.
NEW ITEM : watch engine idling in the dark ( was very dark this night ) and what do i see : it's like a christmas tree !!!! i see litlle fires around cables , fires around the coil ( + and - ) , fires jumping from distributorcap to coil-housing !!!!! not regarly but many from time to time.
Could it be because my plugs are fouled now ? Everything is dry and clean . ( the car is in a very dry garage for more than a month now... )
I can also see on all plugs the firing on the porcelain piece between plug-steel and wire-boot. Is that the firing i see trought the porcelain ? or also surrounding , flying ,electricity ?
Pitty , christmas is just passed. My god, what's that now ???
This is not unusual with a high out put ignition coil. That's why I suggested installing a stock coil. Either that or you need a performance cap, rotor, and wires that match the coil. I remember this well in the muscle car days. A lot of people had the same problem.
When you put a load on the igntion system, the resistance raises, and the electricity tries to find the path of least resistance. There is so much energy in the coil, part of it finds it easier to overpower the insulation, and short out. If you could put the engine under load and watch, it would look like a fireworks display.
Unfortunately, when the system starts arcing, it often burns carbon tracks into the components, and further breakes down the insulation. So going back to the regular coil may not cure the problem, if other components have become damaged and carbon tracked. There is now an easy path to ground. You may need replace all of the secondary ignition. Just make sure it is a matched system, either stock or aftermarket.
I have an MSD distributor, but it is also an MSD cap, MSD rotor, and MSD wires. The system matches the power output. No problems.
Went this afternoon to shop for performance cap and rotor. They had a ACCEL kit. Also new points and condensor, new plugs and new cables. All ACCEL. Hope now there's some improvement... Have a appointment with dentist at 7 h but after i sure go finding out ! 
Isn't the coil in the standard support on the manifold VERY close to the captower ? Shouldn't it be better a bit more further away from something it likes to arcing ? The top coil is only 1/2" from a plug boot on the tower...... The only best thing i've done till now is rotating the coil so that + and - connections are as far away as possible from the distributor. I even think original the + one is just next the tower , no ?
always much thanx for advise ! 
Norbert,
I think you should just fly Ken over there and let him fix your car. You sound like me trying to do a mechanics job. You're tearning up more than you're fixin.
Just kidding buddy....hang in there. You'll get it, if it don't get you first.
Glad to hear you now have matched parts. I'm going to lose a bit of my mind waiting to hear how it turns out.
As far as the coil cap position goes, that's fine. With good secondary insulation, it won't arc.
Haha Jim, no , i want to try it myself. Besides , we call that a oldtimer, so it is supposed to be a hobby . But what is the definition of hobby ? i think killing time ....
I have many amusement working on the car but ofcourse in the end one wants to see some improvement.... and i have a deadline ! sunday it's the first annual meeting of Belgium Corvettes ! don't say i can't go , sh*t.
OK, if now not better , i'll go saturday to a garage to ask help... but i don't surrender right now ! 