Some ignition questions

macadoo1961 said
I picked up a low cost 4 pin GM HEI and wired it in as I have seen here on FABO, just to see if issues would go away......I could not get it to work period....got spark if you want to include backfiring, LOL.

So far as your orange box, you CAN NOT eliminate the ignition resistor......at least for street use

I would wire up the HEI "minimally" so you KNOW what you have wired, that is don't even hook it to the car harness until you confirm you actually have good spark

One of our good members here came up with this diagram

The HEI module MUST be grounded through the mounting bolts, and the two pickup leads must be oriented according to the "small" terminal going to the BARE harness connector as pictured.

Hook power direct to the coil + with a jumper lead, crank the engine, and check for spark right at the top of the coil tower. Use a grounded screwdriver probe. Good hot sparks 3/8--1/2" long and maybe longer should result.

MAKE SURE that you have the brown and blue run wires hooked together from your ballast resistor. The "run" voltage goes DEAD when using the key to crank the engine. You MUST have the brown bypass (IGN 1) jumpered in.

Backfiring out the carb is usually an indicator you have the distributor off time