old Mallory distributors

Alaska Jim

Alaska Jim

Well-known member
Does anyone know if there is anybody that sells old style n.o.s. Mallory distributor caps and rotors? The Mallory distributor that is in my Y-Block has been converted to a pertronix electronic distributor. I believe the distributor is an old 50's or 60's unit. I have looked in the Mallory catalog, but do not see any caps or rotors listed for my distributor. was just wondering if getting a new cap and rotor was possible. if caps and rotors are available, I would like to convert it back to a true dual point. I have heard a lot of pro's and con's of the Pertronix, and am not sure I like it. may have to change out the whole set up. I am sure that the reason the Mallory was used was because of clearance issues. the Mallory has a much smaller cap than the stock dist. Thanks,------Jim
 
Jim, do you know if your Mallory has a two piece cap? Look for two machine screws between the plug wires holding the two halves together. If it does be aware that there are two different 2 piece caps, one has a spring loaded carbon button and the other does not. In addition there are two different rotors and you cannot mix and match these, you need the correct rotor for your cap.
I have a Mallory YC p/n 389A for a 371 Olds and somewhere along the line someone put a different 2 piece cap on it and it is the later 4004 (number inside lower cap) version. The rotor is a 24215B and that has a spring steel strip under the rotor contact, along with the rotor tip being longer. You cannot mix those components as the rotor strikes the contacts in the cap preventing rotation on my distributor. I need to get a 4215 rotor.
I mention this because if you have an old Mallory with a two piece cap and it has the number 24004 in the lower half you need a 24215 B rotor. Because the 24215 B rotor has a spring steel strip under the contact I believe the 24004 has a carbon in it that is not spring loaded. The 24004 is molded in a dark brown color, while the later 4004 cap is black. The 4004 cap takes a fixed, short contact rotor, the 4215, and the 4004 cap has a spring above the carbon. Be aware of this when looking for old Mallory stuff.
 
Fordors, I have not really looked at it "hard" yet. it is a 2 piece cap. wires go In vertically on the top. there are two screws in the top of the cap. I have not taken that apart . I have had the cap off, but I was only going to ck the points. That is how I found out that it had been converted to a Pertronix. I did this right after I got the car. The 2 piece cap is black. don't remember about the rotor, I will look next time I have the cap off. the thing is a pain to get off because it is so close to the firewall. I wish who ever initially built the car would have left about another inch there. Thanks for the tips on the caps and rotors. old stuff is almost non existent up here in Alaska. will have to look for it on the net and when I go to Texas next winter.
 
dmsfrr, Thanks for the summit info ,but they do not list anything for the style dist. that I have. Thanks.----Jim
 
Alaska Jim said:
dmsfrr, Thanks for the summit info ,but they do not list anything for the style dist. that I have. Thanks.----Jim
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You can try calling their 800 number for ordering /tech support and ask about the dist you have. They could have lower demand items they don't list on their website. It's worth a free phone call to find out, and they might know of another place or two that could have what you need. If nothing else they'll offer to sell you a new replacement one. haha :rolleyes:
You mentioned converting back to dual points. They do make one of those, it's not inexpensive tho.
http://www.summitracing.com/parts/maa-2538701/overview/
https://www.google.com/search?q=mallory+2538701&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8
It looks like AutoZone has a slightly better price on it.
http://www.autozone.com/1/products/205678-distributor-mallory-2538701.html
 
Thanks for the info, had not thought of that. I need to order a new catalog, can't seem to find mine. I have been looking on line, but I prefer print.
 
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