Electronic Ignition

I have a 1986 Martinique with a 351 Ford engine.
I would like to change it over to electronic ignition to get away from points.
Any info on parts & installation would be helpful.

Thanks

no, he means the points conversion inside the original dizzy. Any reason for getting away from points?

8122pbrainard wrote: Greg, I need to ask why? There are problems with them especially with certain brands to the point where some even carry a spare in their boat. If it goes, you are dead in the water. If a point set goes, you can clean them up to get you back home or to the ramp. I went over 20 years on my point set in my 312 Y block without even looking at them. Also, there are no performance gains.

Good "point"!

FWIW:

I installed a "ChevProMarine" in my 1981 Century Resorter 18', 350 CID small block, and had this to say at the time:

I would not have believed anyone describing the improvement in engine performance!
It starts on first "blip," runs much smoother, seems to have more power, has no hesitation when accelerating, idles smoothly, etc. etc.
It is possible the coil was failing, or maybe some other problem.
The old distributor was oriented incorrectly, but firing order was correct.

We installed everything "by eye" after finding #1 close to TDC. It started with NO hesitation, then Mark used his timing light and vacuum gauge to tweak it. He thinks his timing light is not working properly, but the engine is running PERFECTLY! It is amazing.

I'll trouble shoot later this week. We ran up to Grafton and back at 40 mph. It will go much faster, but 40 was very comfortable.

(Later, on a smooth lake with only me aboard and 5 gallons in the tank, the GPS said "54 mph.") The fastest speed with points distributor was 34 mph -- admittedly there could have been some some unidentified problem.)

I'm now trying to determine which system to order for my '72 CC Skier (302 Ford). It will not be a modification like PerTronix. It will be a complete and new electronic ignition system.

Any suggestions?

Gary, Thanks.
I think that's what we'll get. But on closer look, I could not determine the model. (My boat is at trailer-maker's right now. I must find engine SN before ordering ignition, methinks. I'll find engine SN soon.)
-=Grant=-

oh... what ever you do, DO NOT do the points to electronic conversion that fits under your original cap. not reliable, your better off putting new points in instead. and yes, the second post is the one to get and they come in more colors like yellow, black, and even clear. you can order it online at summitracing.com. they are well worth the money, trust me.

and one more thing... LOL, my 1980 23' correct craft cuddy PCM 454 has been running around lake erie for the past two seasons on my D.U.I.. 90 gallon gas tank. I put about 150 hours every summer so far on it, running around every weekend, and I only fill up every other weekend. went perch fishing last weekend, 22 miles out northeast of kelly's island and back in one day. about 44 GPS miles and topped off tank with only 24 gallons!! and I have yet to put trim tabs on my boat.

just giving you an idea of how reliable the D.U.I. is, I haven't touched the thing since I put it in and set the timming. More about that boat in my diary.

I just bought a 1970 Mustang that's been sitting in a barn for 20 years with a chrysler 273 that the owner told me was froze up. well needless to say, $500 with a trailer, it's mine now and, Haha, I got the engine to turn over by hand... haha it just had a bad starter solinoid. put in a new one with a new battery, plugs, wires, D.U.I. distributer, carb. rebuild, new fuel lines, fuel pump, and getting fuel tank cleaned and coated. for now i put the fuel line in a 5 gal. gas tank to start it and it purrrrrs like a mad cat with 3" exhaust.

It's going to be a long winter LOL.

Im one of the biggest proponents of the DUI on this site- I have 2 boats with them installed. Performance did improve incrementally on both boats with the DUI's installed, and I love their simplicity (2 wire hook up).

That being said, I would not opt for one on an otherwise stock engine- especially on a vintage boat. They are not going to improve performance to the tune of 1000 additional RPM unless there was something seriously wrong with the unit it replaced. My nicest starting and most reliable running boat has a newer (mid 90's vintage) Prestolite screw down points dizzy installed. I replaced the points/condensor/cap/rotor when I bought the boat in 2008, and havent touched the ignition since, beyond the bi-yearly plug change. Its not far removed from EFI.

You do not need to convert to EI, or spend big bucks on a new dizzy to get a nice running and starting boat. Unless your dizzy is plain old worn out (bushings/weights/springs/etc) then simply tuning it up with a new points kit is all that you need to do. Properly setting the dwell and timing afterwards is a must. Unless other performance modifications are planned, I would pass on the DUI or high dollar Mallory options... just not worth the expense.

Gary S wrote: But Tim you are an exception. Many younger members have 0 experience with points. Certain point replacements seem to be having a lot of problems lately so rather than a conversion maybe taking that money and putting it toward a dedicated complete system is a better answer for them.

Are you calling me old, Gary? Geez, a guy cant turn 30 around here and not get his balls busted!

The aforementioned points swap on my Skier was my very first ever. Not a big deal and seems to be holding up great! Ive had too many EI modules behave erratically or just flat out die for me to recommend them as the "set and forget" "upgrade" they are so commonly referred to as. The tried and true, CHEAP points do exactly what theyre supposed to, in my experience.

Thats why I said your the exception Tim,Zach fits that catagory too Guy's like Pete and me grew up with them and like driving it was a right of passage to watch your Dad do a tune up every year. Then cdi's started to come out.They were not the most realiable and no hobbiest had a means of testing them. Now we jump in our car and don't think twice. Of all our cars since 1982 we have had 1 failure on a Mercury. Our Jeeps,3 out of 4 have had the crank position sensors go which really isn't an ignition problem.