Need Distributor Help!

RKS.PA

RKS.PA

Well-known member
I'm running a Mallory three bolt crab distributor on my 59AB, six volt, negative ground. It's a dual point, mechanical advance. The bearing in the front cover has worn to the point that the shaft play is destroying my point dwell.....or so I think. The dizzy is 20 years old. My problem is I can't find parts beyond the Echlin points and condensors for this model. I need a front bearing/cap holder and rotor. The rotor in this model has a large black washer fastened to it as part of the rotor assembly.

Does anyone know where I can get Mallory replacement parts for this distributor or what a satisfactory replacement distributor would be? I'd like to stay with the crab style with external coil. Because of the negative ground.....I'm running an alternator.....I don't know if electronic ignition is an option for me.

Thanks in advance for any help you can provide.

Dick.
 
Dick, the best replacement is a stock Ford crab ignition. Trust me. You'll need to swap the front (timing) cover and fit a spacer for the ignition, or use the adaptors that space the ignition and bolt to the three bolt cover and two bolt ignition.
Martin.
 
Dick,

You might send me a picture of the unit.
We should be able to fix the one you have a lot cheaper than a new replacement unit.

Bubba
 
Thanks, Jim. I'm sure you can fix the Mallory, but I'd like to change to one where I can get replacement parts in the future. As I understand it, Mallory no longer supports the one I have.

Dick.
 
My guess would be Mallory don't make any of the parts they use, they get them from suppliers and so can you. Once you know what the supplier part numbers are should not be a problem. Sounds like the biggest issue is the bearing. If it were mine, I would send it to Bubba's and have him go through it, rebuild it and then provide me with the replacement part numbers for the future. Nothing wrong with stock either, but keeping an older Mallory would be cool for me.
 
Crab is excellent device, parts are readily available...NAPA has all the routine tuning bits, the old Ford specialists have the bushings and hard parts. As an aside, also, I dig into lots of very crusty crabs, and I haven't run into any worn badly enough to really affect gap.
Ford even put in a lube system for the front bearing...did Mallory? No need to answer that!
The move to China was not good for Mallory.
Mallory himself laid out the basic ignition plan for Ford in 1932, and all his stuff was first rate. Mallory's patent # 1,916,178 shows the direct ancestor of '32-48 Ford distributors...
 
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You guys are awesome!!! I talked with Mac Van Pelt this morning and he's sending me all I need to do the Ford 2 bolt crab conversion, save for the adapter plate which I just ordered from Speedway. Going forward, I feel more comfortable with something I can service and fix myself from readily available parts.

Also, I know Bubba can fix the Mallory.....and just about anything else you send his way.... and I may send it to him after I install the Ford crab.

Thanks again!!

Dick.
 
The Mallory you have is the first generation Mallory for the front mount style. If I recall correctly it only has one bearing, at the camshaft end of the ignition. It used the big plastic washer as a front "bearing" to support the end of the ignition cam just below the rotor. I believe the idea was that it bears on the inside of the distributor housing. It wears on its outer edge quickly, you then have a floppy ignition cam, this wiggled about obviously this plays havoc with the contact point gap and dwell. Been a long time since I had the displeasure of working on one, they all had a floppy cam. It has no proper front bearing or bushing. A stupid design. Add this to the damn Chevy advance curve in it, really bad. The advance curve can be adjusted to better suit a flathead, but the basic design is still stupid. Mallory changed the design fairly early on, still had the wrong curve though.
Your disition (sp?) to go for a stock Ford two bolt is a good one.
Enjoy.
Martin.
PS. I wouldn't bother doing anything with your Mallory, except use the cap as a spare., rest of it is useless, even when rebuilt, they were bad out of the box. Stupid design.
 
Martin, actually the one I have does have a "real" bearing in the front cover, so it may be a later version of the one you describe. In any event, I'm taking your advice above and going to the Ford crab with the vacuum brake, etc.

The Mallory's been a good unit for me until now. I got it 20 years ago from Patrick's Antique Auto Parts in Casa Grande, AZ. I think Patrick had deal with Mallory to produce this version, based on his specs. Later there was a falling out of sorts between them and this version was no longer produced. This also may be the reason parts could be hard to come by.

Thank you again for your advice.

Dick.
 
If it´s been working good for many years just ship it of to Bubba and you have a unit working atleast as many years as it did before...
And if service parts is an issue tell Bubba to convert whatever is obsolete to something commonly available.
Im sticking things togetter never intended from the beginning just to get a good running cheap serviceable unit.
There are lots of nice composite lubefree bearings available today that will outlast the original ones.
So with a bit of tinkering your dizzy could be better then new :)
 
Properly set up The Crab dist is the best distributor available for this type ignition system. Having both mechanical and vacuum inputs to the timing curve, thus allowing both power and economy in the same package. All this in a lower cost, more reliable unit.
 
flatheadmurre said:
If it´s been working good for many years just ship it of to Bubba and you have a unit working atleast as many years as it did before...
And if service parts is an issue tell Bubba to convert whatever is obsolete to something commonly available.
Im sticking things togetter never intended from the beginning just to get a good running cheap serviceable unit.
There are lots of nice composite lubefree bearings available today that will outlast the original ones.
So with a bit of tinkering your dizzy could be better then new :)
Click to expand...

But it would still be inferior to a stock Ford crab distributor for the reason Ron stated. Yes it could be made better than it was, 're the advance curve, still no vacuum control.

Dick, your correct about them being a "Patrick's" Mallory. It's just a shame they didn't actually build a better than stock ignition. It's quite a long distributor front to back, compared to a stock Ford two bolt. Maybe enough room for a vacuum advance can on it, that would have been good and better bearing design. Would have been a contender.
Only if.
Martin.
 
Was just a thought if he was happy with it...except wear and parts available.
Im running mechanical advance dizzys so i dont know better ;)
 
How does one identify the stock Ford 21A 2-bolt crab distributor, versus a Mallory or other Ford front distributor?? Does the Ford logo or a Ford part number get stamped into the aluminum distributor housing? Can anyone post a picture showing the identifying 21A features? Need help in finding a Ford 2-bolt. And, how much should one pay for a used one?
 
I just did an online search and came up with all kinds of images in less than 30 sec. Also, checked and all the suppliers have images as well. Then there's VanPelt:

http://vanpeltsales.com/FH_web/flathead_drawings_engines.htm

ebay has images and pricing, that should give you an idea of what they are going for.

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_fro....TRS0&_nkw=ford+flathead+distributor&_sacat=0

You want one in good working order and you can just bolt on contact Bubba's or several others on the Barn that provide distributor service.
 
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I'm still confused, but Let me explain: I looked at a "rebuilt" 2-bolt distributor earlier today before asking my question here on Fordbarn, and I still don't know whether or not the distributor i looked at was made by Ford or someone else since it had no Ford logo, and the only part number cast in the distributor housing was 35513.

The linked Van Pelt drawings of the various flathead distributors are drawn such that one can't tell for sure if they are 2-bolt or 3 bolt distributors --- at least i can't tell. And it wasn't clear whether any of them were marked with 21A.
 
If the ignition has a vacuum brake it's a Ford. The aftermarket Mallory two and three bolt ignitions did not have a vacuum brake. That's got to be the easiest.
The Mallorys have a machined billety newness about them, Ford are very slim and cast aluminium or iron.
They are different in almost everything, the above two will easily id what's what.
Once you've seen both you'll be able to tell the difference across a field.
Ford two and three bolt ignitions don't look anything like one another. Two bolt has a the cap/caps parallel with the front of the engine. The three bolt has a cap on each side of the ignition parallel with the chassis rails, and a coil growing out of the top of the ignition body.
Google images will pout you right
Martin.
 
I would be more than happy to trade you a Bubba Rebuilt Crab distributor with cap and rotor for the used Mallory. Just ship it to me and i will send you a complete unit no charge ......

Bubbas Hot Rod Shop
1330 Main Street
Speedway Indiana 46224
 
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