who uses an ignition box? (msd, accel, etc)

[G_Body_Enthusiast]

for years ive wanted an ignition box, its suppose to give a hotter spark, everyone uses them (or it seems that way)

but who really uses them? what kind and what is the application for its use?

im wondering because MSD has a new box out, street fire. it doesnt have the output of the old MSD 6A and its relatives in the 6 series but is easily under 150 bucks and installs the same way.

now i always thought it was weird that the buick V6 had a spark plug gap of .060 but chevy's usually had a gap of .030. i figure since the gap was so big the ignition could use the help from a box.

ideally i'd like the digital 6 plus by MSD, the volts going to the coil is higher than the 6A/AL. the millijoules going to the plugs is higher than the 6A/AL and seems to use less amps per 1K RPM. second choice would be 6A because i dont need a rev limiter because the engine hardly sees 4K as it is and that is below the cars rev limiter from the factory. but both are kind of on the expensive side, especially the digital 6 plus.

i'm really looking for people that have used these things in stock or near stock applications, especially if it was used with a buick V6 non turbo. one thing im almost obsessive compulsive about is the ignition and making sure those plugs are getting as much spark as possible.

 

[Ausby]

i use a mallory 685 box. it has alot of goodies inside. and its relatively cheap

 

[jrm81bu]

I'd say its overkill on a stock motor. You really don't need it unless you have done something to the motor to make it harder for the plug to spark, like increased cylinder pressure.

 

[shotgun]

Although they are not really needed for a "stock" engine, they are not a bad idea.

First, the rev limiter can save you an engine.

If you have a perfectly tuned engine and a perfectly functioning stock HEI system, they will do little for you.

I am sure some stuff on your car could use some attention ( not a slam) and a MSD type ignition covers much of this up.

They do seem to clean up idle abit.

My race car has Crane box and my daily driver has an old Jacobs unit.

The Wagon ran the same (butt dyno) with HEI,Accel coil as it does with the Jacobs.

It did pick up 1.5 to 2 MPG though. That turned out to be a "free" trip to work a week.

 

[pontiacgp]

I had an MSD box in my car till it stopped working at around 3 am on cool rainy morning. I came off the highway and left the car idling while I got a coffee. The car was idling real strange when I got back with my coffee so I tried to shut the car down but it wouldn't quit. I had to cut the power line to the MSD box to shut the engine down. Lucky for me that I had tossed the distributor guts into my trunk so I was able to install the old parts and make my way home. I sent the unit back to MSD and asked that they inform me of what went wrong in the box. They never responded so I'll never use one in my street car again. Then again I don't use MSD any longer since they make their products in China

 

[Lawfree]

I run a Mallory 6A with a Unilite Dist and the matching Mallory Coil. If you hook up the ballast resistor you can run the Unilite without the Hyfire box should it fail. I have a by-pass Plug in the harness so I can make the change in a minute or two under the hood. I have a 73 Rocket 350 that is running a little over 9 to 1 compression and I can get good performance and smooth idle with regular Gas. The 6A series has the same Multi-strike feature as the MSD's and puts out a little more poop. With better mileaqe
using cheaper gas, I figure it has paid for itself by now.

 

[G_Body_Enthusiast]

I am sure some stuff on your car could use some attention ( not a slam) and a MSD type ignition covers much of this up.

well the ignition is one thing i am obsessed with. the engine is old and everything so i stay on top of the ignition. i probably change plugs and wires more often than called for but i can tell when the ignition isnt putting out like it used to with brand new parts.

about the only things i havent changed are the module and the distributor itself. ive changed coils, caps and rotors plugs and wires...

i'm just wondering if multiple sparks would help out more than just one spark. im trying to get the most burn in the combustion chamber in an effort to improve efficiency.

i also see summit has their own ignition boxes and the cheaper one is 130 bucks. i may get one and try it out.

about the only thing we havent done mechanically is change the engine out. mechanically the car is sound but im constantly thinking about the ignition though. lol i probably shouldnt but i do. im always trying to make sure the engine runs as efficiently as i can get it to given the age of the engine. runs well aside from a leaky real main seal, all praise be to rope type seals...ugh.

it couldnt hurt to run a box and can only help.

 

[Phoenyx]

I put an MSD6AL in a car with a mostly stock 350 a few years back. I didn't notice any real performance gain. But I did notice that the mileage got a little better. And the big difference was when I started it. Before the MSD box the car always started fine, but it usually turned over for about 5 seconds before it fired. After the MSD if fired up pretty much instantly (I'm talking about warm starts). Everything on my ignition except the module was new. So I can't say if the improvements were because of the MSD box, or if it was just that my old module was bad.

But either way getting a rev limiter in it is nice too.

And I ran it in the car for about 3 years until I sold it. And never had any problems.

 

[hp3445]

I have a MSD in my other car (still)... for some reason it always gave me problems at the track.. I always need to adjust my timing and turned out that i went through two boxes in three years.. all my other components were brand new.. Distributor, coil, wiring, ect.. One day it took a crap in my driveway after tearing up the local strip. I just bypassed it until I got the new unit...
another racer suggested that I get my computer re-tuned or get a chip burned... Sure now he tells me.. after close to $500 in boxes..he then asked if I ever saw a nascar set up.. They have two boxes because one will probably crap out during the race.. :shock:

My regal project will be heavily modified and no computer.. so I am doing reseach on the ignition system before spending more $$$$..

 

[Blake442]

I have an MSD 6AL and an MSD pro-billet distributor, and haven't had any problems yet (knock on wood). I've had a few friends that have had problems with them, and they're biggest enemy is heat.

One of my friends had his mounted on his inner fender of his '70 Challenger, and when it died, he mounted it inside the car on the trans tunnel.
Another buddy had his mounted on his a/c block off plate in his tubbed big block powered '78 Malibu, and when that took a crap, he mounted it inside the car as well. Neither of them had a problem after that.
I mounted mine way up front in the engine compartment where the vapor canister used to be.

The biggest factor for deciding to get one was that I knew I needed a rev limiter, and this was an easy solution, otherwise I probably would've just gone with a nice HEI set up.