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Does anyone know the part numbers for the rotor and points for my 1929 PA straight-8 and where I can purchase these parts? Thank you, Steve
http://Www.special-interest-auto.com should have everything.
Sorry it is autos with an s
I had some electrical gremlins and went through my entire engine electrical system last year with the helpful suggestions of many PAS members. For points, you can get them from NAPA (parts numbers CS779A and CS778A. The CS778A needs to be modified by cutting off the post which is easy to do). They have been working great for over 1000 miles.
Robert
A few years ago I did what Robert has done and replaced my points with the ones from NAPA.
As he mentioned, the modification was very easy to accomplish.
It has been said by others on this forum that it is best to use Onan condensers if you can find them.
I believe I purchased them at NAPA as well.
As for the rotor, those can be tough to find but they are out there.
Thank you all for your help. NAPA no longer sells CS778A but they do have CS779A. I ordered 4 so I have 2 extra. Does anyone no what the points gap should be. Thanks again, Steve
Steven,
I am surprised about the points. I just bought them last year. You may want to try another NAPA store, they may still have one in stock. As for the points gap, the owner’s manual recommends 0.018 of an inch.
Good luck,
Robert
I think this is the Onan condenser. RV stores carry them for the generators. I bought one from these people, but I washed the part number off with lacquer thinner.
Also, I have an external condenser, but it looked like they had some that would fit in the cap
The Napa points are not correct, they will not set up correctly. I have seen cars not even start after using these when replaced. Just buy a correct set of vintage deco points. They aren’t hard to find. Ed
Ed, if the NAPA points are not correct then why are they listed in the parts and services directory?
I used that and this forum as a guide to replace the points in my car.
I’m not saying you’re wrong as I don’t know one way or the other but if the parts are not correct then the references to them should be removed the Parts and Services pages.
I think they have changes suppliers and the new ones are a fit all type of situation. I can tell you this, they wont set up on a distributor machine, and they don’t have enough adjustment to get set up correctly. The angle of the cam follower is also steep and awkward. I have thousands of miles on my 36 V12 over the last 25 years……I think about 20k…..and when I pulled the distributor last year the points were fine and where I set them in 1991. More often than not, points are fine. You don’t need to change them for a tune up. It is a good idea to replace condensors now and again. Its more important to get the distributor set up correctly, with a free and fully working advance. More often than not, they are not functioning correctly. I probably set up 15 Pierce distributors a year, I have never had one come in that didn’t need attention. Ed
Or…You can be a traitor and call Pertonix and have them build an electronic unit for your distributor. That, and their new coil makes my car start quickly, and I swear gives it more punch on the road. As a non wrench, closed up points have left me hitchhiking many times over the last fifty years. The installation is virtually undetectable from the outside.
Thank you all again for your input. So I just changed the 2 condensors (did not install the new NAPA points yet) and now the engine will not turn over. I re-installed the old condensors and it still wont start. I am now charging the battery and will try again later. Tony your idea of using Pertonix sounds like a good idea.
Steve,
Don’t do this without checking your entire charging & starter setup & condition. If voltage drops to 5.9 volts when cranking, the Pertronix will not fire.
Use of Onan condensers with the regular points is well advised. They have been bulletproof for me on multiple vehicles.
Dave
Hi Steven, with your distributor cap removed, rotate the engine so that one set of points is closed. With the ignition on, open and let the point arm snap back against the fixed point. The points should spark when opened, with a spark generated by the coil.
There is not a lot of voltage going through a set of points, and only the slightest bit of dirt, or oil, or even a fingerprint on the points’ surfaces can prevent current to flow. I often run a piece of paper or a dollar bill between the point surfaces to remove residual oil and dirt.
Since you have been inside the distributor, make sure that the condenser wire is not touching ground anywhere, there are some tight clearances in there. Make sure the condenser is grounded.
Usually, something simple is the problem. I remember last year when my ’25 7-passenger Touring just quit. and would not restart.. I fiddled with this and that.. finally I found that the ignition switch was only making electrical contact when my finger held pressure on the lever. I jury-rigged a short jumper cable and resumed the tour.
So as Dave Stevens mentioned, check everything, it will work.
Just as an expression of the reliability of points and condenser, the 20-year old points and condenser in my 1933 836 Club Sedan still work perfectly. This car was last driven in late 2012 where I drove it back from the Western Michigan PAS National meet, on a 95* day. A fellow PAS friend, Bill Lyons, was here visiting on Saturday, we had to remove several inches of split rubber fuel hose that had suffered from the ethanol-tainted gasoline, but once this was fixed, the car fired right up, and we went for a 10 mile drive. Bill had a great time driving it and my ’29 roadster. I can’t drive right now, I’m healing from shoulder surgery, .
So, 20+ year old points and condenser, ignored for the last 4 years, needed nothing to work correctly. I’m sure your ‘no-start’ problem is a simple one.
Greg Long
Thank you all again for this amazing amount of information. How do I go about obtaining a wiring diagram for my 1929 PA Model- 133 straight-8?
My E-mail address is [email protected]
There is a wiring diagram in the Owner’s Manual in the Library section of this site.
If the link below doesn’t work just click the Library link on the left side under the Member Pages heading.
Once there just search for 1929 133 and you’ll see a link to the full Owner’s Manual pdf.
http://https://pierce-arrow.org/passecure/librarysearch/manuals/cars/PAS-OM40-09000160-OCR-R.pdf
Another example of points and condensers going the extra mile, my 33 V-12 1247 sat for 48 years, I put some gas in the tank, installed a new battery, and it fired right off. I drove the car for 10 years and 9000 miles, and seven years later the car is still running fine on the same parts. My 1914 Cadillac with 7000 original miles had the factory points and condenser until 2011. The condenser went bad after driving it for the first time since 1947, and killed the spark on the road. I cut the wire, car started right up, and drove it home. We installed a modern condenser but the 1914 set of points is still in the car. Ed.