I chickened out on putting a Pertronix in years back with one of my cars. I know you only get the negative feedback online but I saw a number of guys who had them fail when they were relatively new, and I've just never had trouble with points and condenser so I sold the unit new in the box and went old school.

I know of guys who have posted here that they've run Pertronix trouble free for years though too.

Sorry Todd but anything would be an improvement over a Triumph!

427carl wrote:

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I would guess 90% of the older muscle cars in our area are running Pertronix      

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 .....4 out of 5 in our shop still run points, the 63 409 has Pertronix (almost 4 years now) and loves it,

great idle and no breakdown above 6000rpm.

Will be swapping the 66 427 to Pertronix because of the 45,000v coil that allows you to run a bigger gap (.045)

I have no problem with points they are usually reliable but the coils are inherently weak and after swapping to HEI or Pertronix there

is a noticeable difference in idle and high rpm especially in higher horsepower cars.

DonSSDD wrote:

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Had pertronics for 15 years now Mobo, very happy with it. Never did figure out points, condensor, and dwell.

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 Well.....if you're ever in the area.....I'd be happy to give you the seminar....

If I can understand it........You'll have no problem.....

Just make sure your Triple A membership is current.....for when that module expires...

I bought a 61 last August from a buddy......with a Pertronics distributor.

He had it in the shop in the spring.....for some work......and the dist. module was replaced....and it didn't last 1500 miles before it died on me...(well,wouln't start)...

I had already found a nice clean original Delco points distributor .....which I just happened to have with me in the trunk...

We changed it out at the side of the road.......and it starts like a champ now...everytime...

 

I am exploring a bit more inside the car, and am finding it even more solid than expected. I found one small hole in the floor pans, right behind the drivers seat. It really is a pity that the last ten years the car was left in a humid environment because it must have been in superb shape before that. Found a couple of pics of the car before it was neglected.

Canadian Poncho wrote:

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I'd like to buy an "I".

The front floor braces (under front seat).....are prone to rust out on these cars.

The wide portion.....where it joins the inner rocker ...gets packed with dust/dirt...

You can break up the dirt with a screwdiver....and coat hanger wire......and then blow them out with air and or water....

Same deal....with the lower parts of frame rails.........especially the rears......

You will be amazed at all the crap that comes out...

MoboMac wrote:

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Same deal....with the lower parts of frame rails.........especially the rears......

You will be amazed at all the crap that comes out...

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 I flushed-out my spare X-frame with garden hose/spray nozzle ... you should have seen the amount of silt/sand that came out! There are many factory holes in the frame you can use to flush it out.

If it were mine I'd be tempted to do just that.  Toss in the 283, repair any structural/safety/mechanical items that need to be addressed and drive it as is while you make a plan for restoration.  It'll give you some time to sort the car out and maybe help decide what you want to do/not do once you get into the restoration.  Also, it'll give you some happy memories to draw from when the car is blown apart in your garage when you are in the middle of the restoration (if that's what you plan to do).

Either way, it's a gorgeous, historically significant car, and I'll put it on the record that I'm extremely jealous!! 

I'm with Mobo on this one. These cars can easily break the bank if you do a full resto.

long stroke wrote:

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The more i look at that fine 59 the more i love it. 

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 ........agree George......as MC put it .....extremely jealous.........

 

Finally got the keys from the former owner, so I could explore the trunk. There is a bit of rot in the trunk floor, a little more than I expected, but not too bad overall. On the plus side, everything original to the car is there: spare, spare tire cover, trunk mat, side lining, jack, jacking instructions, etc.. Thats amazing!

Some pics of the trunk archeology:

 

-- Edited by 59paris on Saturday 20th of January 2018 08:02:27 AM