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Distributor ID

Posted: Sat Aug 05, 2023 4:18 pm
by greenacres36
Can anybody identify this distributor? The nameplate is missing off of it. I know that somebody will say it makes a good wheel chock. lol

Re: Distributor ID

Posted: Sun Aug 06, 2023 9:39 am
by Tom VanMeeteren
Need to see the points for sure, but looks Delco

Re: Distributor ID

Posted: Sun Aug 06, 2023 6:25 pm
by Wayne Sheldon
No, that isn't a good "wheel chock". The die-cast metal is too soft to hold a car securely.

There were many dozens of manufacturers and models of distributors made for model Ts back in the day. They are a legitimate part of the model T's history!
Most of them however, are not good to be used today. Some because the cheap pot metal they were made from had warped or become too fragile to be run. Others simply because the wore out and properly rebuilding them is not practical. A lot of the many lesser common models might be in good condition? However often the special cam gear that isn't like any other is missing.
Sixty years ago, people were collecting era distributors because nobody knew how to make the model T's ignition system work correctly. Along come Ron Patterson and John Regan saying the original system was very good IF it was properly restored. And they figured out what needed to be done and how to do it to make it work the way it was designed to.
Today, people that want their Ts like they were nearly a hundred years ago, mostly use the Ford timer and coils, properly adjusted. A few people with era correct speedsters find decent distributors or external magnetos and fix them up to run them. Otherwise, nice era distributors now are mostly shelf display items.