Any CJ Owners (Ignition Upgrade Queston)?

  • Hey all, long shot but here it goes: I am looking to upgrade my ignition on my 76 CJ5 with a 304 V8. The pre-78 Prestolite ignitions appear to be less cut and dry as their motorcraft sourced newer counterparts. I've found tons of information regarding the later (Team Rush mainly), with parts lists and DIY write ups. Conversely, I've found little to nothing for my vintage.


    By chance, has anyone here performed a similar ignition upgrade on their pre-78? If so, could you walk me through it?


    Thanks in advance!

  • One of the easiest ways to eliminate points is with a Pertronix conversion. Remove points, replace with Pertronix, reset timing and you're good to go!
    The DUI has a good reputation also, and is pretty much self contained. The hardest part of installing it is dropping it in on the right tooth. The stock wiring powers the stock coil when the key is turned on. There is a resistor or resistor wire built into the stock harness believe it or not to reduce the volatage going to the coil to make it last longer. The resistance must be eliminated in order to get full power out of the HEI. It's pretty simple. The only catch is that the distributor might "backfeed" from the wiring harness. If that occurs a simple diode is used to stop that from happening.
    I could help you out with it if you would like, I enjoy this kind of thing!

  • Thanks for the feedback and pointers! I am leaning heavily toward the dui for sake of simplicity, performance and durability.


    Once I pull the trigger I will most definitely take you up on your offer to assist. It is much appreciated!

  • The HEI distributor will send a nice clean tach signal for the TBI injection. I installed the Howell setup last year and it is a huge improvement also. I'm working on getting a datalogging setup for it so that I can get a custom chip burned for it. Howell has good customer service, and will re burn the chip once for free if you supply them with some data.
    Your Jeep looks like it's really nice, it's always cool to see another CJ around!

  • The HEI distributor will send a nice clean tach signal for the TBI injection. I installed the Howell setup last year and it is a huge improvement also. I'm working on getting a datalogging setup for it so that I can get a custom chip burned for it. Howell has good customer service, and will re burn the chip once for free if you supply them with some data.
    Your Jeep looks like it's really nice, it's always cool to see another CJ around!

    I ordered the ignition tonight. I'll catch up with you about a time to install it as soon as it comes in! Thanks again!

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