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TR2/3/3A the value of experience when setting timing on a modified engine

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A friend of mine has a 53 Jag MK VII with petronics and had an issue like this. Petronics asked what wires he was using and coil. He was using copper core wires and stock coil. They recommeded carbon wires and hotter coil. Problems stopped. Give them a call, advice is free.
 
If it is timed by ear and ran good I would leave that alone for now. An electric fuel pump can let too much fuel in or perhaps the needle seat is letting too much fuel in. The carbs are easy to rebuild and you could do just the bowls first. Because it seems to be only in front, I would make sure the choke returned completely also because that will fowl the front out right away.
 
LarryK said:
A friend of mine has a 53 Jag MK VII with petronics and had an issue like this. Petronics asked what wires he was using and coil. He was using copper core wires and stock coil. They recommeded carbon wires and hotter coil. Problems stopped. Give them a call, advice is free.
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So I thought ,; " Larry's got a point there" so I called pertronix 10m ago & I still have a 20 minute wait (according to their robot voice) ....no wait, now I'm caller # 9 w/ 18minutes to go.
Question is, does the hold time tell us something about pertronix products issues or just an overwhelmed customer support dept. ( I would not want to be that poor tech. guy)

well i finally got thru after one hour plus hold time.........but in the middle of our conversation, right after i explained the symptoms the tech begins "well you should try,......................................"
(the line was dead.)
guys, im going to have a beer, happy friday.
 
Or you could do what I did : Toss the Pertronix in the bin and go back to points. Might not solve the problem, but at least you'd know it wasn't the Pertronix.

I get frustrated with "upgrades" that cause more problems than they solve! And at some point, it makes sense to me to embrace the "50's-ness" of the car, the bad as well as the good.
 
"it makes sense to me to embrace the "50's-ness" of the car"

I concur. I've always been vulnerable to new, improved, uprated and so on. But I find that over time I've stripped back to "50's-ness" with almost all revisions. I'm left only with Macys' fan, Uncle Jack's stub axles, a gear reduction starter and a front anti-roll bar. I did install an alloy head with roller rockers and since then I can no longer even understand why.

I'm so happy to have points and a condenser to change periodically.
 
Or you could do what I did : Toss the Pertronix in the bin and go back to points. Might not solve the problem, but at least you'd know it wasn't the Pertronix.
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I did discover(finally) my engine troubles stemmed from a new flamethrower III hotter coil.
though it was rated & recommended with the new pertronix ignition system. Stepping back to my original coil was the ticket.
Less pep, but reliable.

happy to have points and condenser to change
Click to expand...

i was gun shy about that, early on, thinking I'd probably screw something up, but now I think I'll convert my back up distributor to P&C just to try it out.
( "a little knowledge is a dangerous thing")
 
Perrymip said:
and a front anti-roll bar.
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Apologies for the thread drift, but FYI anti-roll bars were not unknown in the 50's; and in fact Triumph announced a kit for same on the TR3A in 1959, at the whopping price of $19.50!

From the July 1959 issue of the TSOA newsletter :
untitled_5.jpg~original
 
I could be mistaken, but it seemed to me that it improved high speed stability on roads that were less than perfect; an area where the TR3 could certainly use improvement. Not an issue so much on glass-smooth pavement, but a definite issue on (for example) asphalt that has been worked into ruts by heavy trucks.
 
"improved high speed stability"

I, too, apologize for bending the thread. But the above is certainly correct. But I way over-paid for mine.
 
LarryK said:
A friend of mine has a 53 Jag MK VII with petronics and had an issue like this. Petronics asked what wires he was using and coil. He was using copper core wires and stock coil. They recommeded carbon wires and hotter coil. Problems stopped. Give them a call, advice is free.
Click to expand...

Hey Larry,

just wanted to to let you know you were right!
i had forgotten I had ordered the pertronix wires. But they arrived today. I was about to send em back, because they weren't cheap, but I decided to try the new coil one more time.
older cobalt wires & new flamethrower III coil:.....missing & hesitation again.
new pertronix wires & new flamethrower III coil, problem solved with the added benefit of faster starts & a lot more pep.

thx again!

Guy
 
Glad to hear you solved the ignition problems!

I found using a TR6 sway bar on the front of my TR4a did indeed help keep the inside rear wheel on the ground so reducing wheelspin on corner exit. But that was on the race track...in normal driving it just seemed to cause understeer.
Since I have irs your results may be different.
 
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