Condenser differences?

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TylerW

TylerW

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I have a highly technical question-
I see condensers with a regular wire, and I see them with a large copper strap. Why? What are the differences(besides one has a wire and one has a strap)? My 2bbl 273 Dart still has the original installed at the factory in November 1968 and it's the strap-style. I seem to remember that either or both my '66 383 Chrysler and '68 Slant used a wire-style. All are single-point Chrysler built units.
 
IMHO no material difference.

Less material means less cost to produce.
 
Interchangable, the ones with the wire are easier to put in. Carry an extra one with you. I had my first one fail this summer in my Polara in my avatar. I was quite a ways from home and got flat bedded back home The bad thing was, I had a new one in the glove box. Mine started missing and backfiring thru the exhaust, I could drive slow but once I sped up the backfiring got so bad, that I thought I was going to blow my mufflers off. I had never had one go bad before.
 
lemondana said:
Interchangable, the ones with the wire are easier to put in. Carry an extra one with you. I had my first one fail this summer in my Polara in my avatar. I was quite a ways from home and got flat bedded back home The bad thing was, I had a new one in the glove box. Mine started missing and backfiring thru the exhaust, I could drive slow but once I sped up the backfiring got so bad, that I thought I was going to blow my mufflers off. I had never had one go bad before.
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Condensers don't go bad.
Said the guy that insisted I not buy a new one when I did a tuneup on his 35 foot fishing boat.
Two $1500 recoveries of his boat later a 3 dollar part solved the problem. :D

He was pissed, but did acknowledge that I told him we should change it.
 
Basically cost they all have the same value in Mopar. I like the copper strap better myself. Books call different ones for different point applications but same capacitance.
 
halifaxhops said:
Basically cost they all have the same value in Mopar. I like the copper strap better myself. Books call different ones for different point applications but same capacitance.
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Now that’s the answer right there!
The man is a wealth of info.
Syleng1
 
The new parts store stuff sucks around a 40% fail rate after a few hot cold cycles.
 
Thankful for the help but I wasn't satisfied with these answers, so I did my own research:

Mopar apparently used a total of 3 different part numbers for ignition condensers-

1818757 used on early single-point engines and on later dual point applications.

2098058 used on single-point applications approximately 1961-62 through 1969 and a few applications during the '70 model year.

3420600 used on single-point applications from 1970(most) to the implementation of electronic ignition @1973.

OEM Mopar condensers were apparently all the copper strap-type. Some aftermarket manufacturers, namely Standard, still make them, but the wire-type is aftermarket stuff. Capacitance is the same across the board.

I appreciate everyone's contributions but you guys ought to work harder at building your own knowledge instead of directing people to one person who is designated as the board expert in _______. if you can read words on a page then you will know what the experts know.
 
The copper strap type is generally used on the outside of the distributor, like the old Mallory Double Life distributors. Being on the outside, there's much less worry for the condenser lead to ground out on anything. That's why most condensers that mount inside the distributor have insulated wires.
 
Cars came with copper straps on the condensers from the factory. I think the 6 cyl. cars had a shorter condenser, but my memory doesn't go back that far.
 
TylerW said:
Thankful for the help but I wasn't satisfied with these answers, so I did my own research:

Mopar apparently used a total of 3 different part numbers for ignition condensers-

1818757 used on early single-point engines and on later dual point applications.

2098058 used on single-point applications approximately 1961-62 through 1969 and a few applications during the '70 model year.

3420600 used on single-point applications from 1970(most) to the implementation of electronic ignition @1973.

OEM Mopar condensers were apparently all the copper strap-type. Some aftermarket manufacturers, namely Standard, still make them, but the wire-type is aftermarket stuff. Capacitance is the same across the board.

I appreciate everyone's contributions but you guys ought to work harder at building your own knowledge instead of directing people to one person who is designated as the board expert in _______. if you can read words on a page then you will know what the experts know.
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And what is the difference between the parts, except for the part number?
 
it's like T-bars.
The Mopar catalog has a bunch of them and they all do the same thing, which is to keep your K from dragging on the pavement.

Or like the early ECUs. I have a crate of them, from all the various cars I have stripped out. There are black ones, blue ones, shiny ones, even an Orange one; and you know what? I bet everyone of them has a different part number, but
My 367HO runs on any one of them, even the ones with the goo dripping out of them.

Or even better,
Like beer. Go to the beer store and you might find a dozen different brands of beer, but no matter which flavor you buy, drink the box up and sooner or later, yur gonna poison yur brain, and start to malfunction.

much ado about nuttin.

I have other boxes with other electrical parts, and I bet I can find one with condensers in it. If I needed one, I'd just grab whatever one..... sorta like ECUs or T-bars.
I can't say the same for beer tho, I quit drinking in 1993.
 
Charrlie_S said:
Didn't Chrysler change part numbers on some items, just because of a vender change?
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So some have claimed.
What I do at this stage, when interested, is take advantage of the internet and hunt pictures of OEM parts with those numbers. This can of course be time consuming but can also be very informative. Sometime if one asks, members will post pictures of items they have. Other times, not much interest or participation. I have a windshield wiper/refill thread going that just got a contribution several years after starting it - you never know.
 
TylerW said:
I appreciate everyone's contributions but you guys ought to work harder at building your own knowledge instead of directing people to one person who is designated as the board expert in _______. if you can read words on a page then you will know what the experts know.
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That's pretty bold. Halifaxhops is an expert in our hobby as far as ignition goes, especially distributors and components. Why not call on him for information. I see you are building your knowledge base by looking things up yourself instead of asking us.
 
I don't know. If it was my business and I was busy, I wouldn't want to be spending time looking up these details when I had customers waiting for their distributors to get done. If I wasn't busy, then I'd either post an answer or PM the person to call or discuss.
 
Mattax said:
I don't know. If it was my business and I was busy, I wouldn't want to be spending time looking up these details when I had customers waiting for their distributors to get done. If I wasn't busy, then I'd either post an answer or PM the person to call or discuss.
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Yep Hoppy is busy but he's always helpful with a quick answer if he can. The OP just wanted to know why the difference in the strap vs the wire condensers. Hoppy can answer that off the top of his head a lot faster than a dozen of us scouring the net for hours looking for an answer. That's like Mattax stepping in when someone is having a charging system or wiring issue. I wouldn't hesitate mentioning your name and if you have time you can answer. Slant 6 Dan for lighting or Pittsburghracer for questions about porting small block heads. I get quite a few questions about 273's. I'm no expert but I know more than many about the little buggers.
 
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