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What brand/type cap and rotor do you guys prefer?

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Old 06-12-2002, 09:15 AM
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What brand/type cap and rotor do you guys prefer?

It's time I replaced mine, they track very easily and I really don't like them, they just don't go well together. Some crappy dollar store brand they are.

What works well for you?

FYI, I have a normal ignition, may switch to a better coil in the future, but I think thats it for a while.
Old 06-12-2002, 09:41 AM
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Car: 1991 Z-28
Engine: Can you say stroke?!?!
Transmission: 700-r4
Axle/Gears: 3.42
I use MSD's cap and rotor. Cost me like $20 and it looks nice.
Old 06-12-2002, 10:43 AM
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The brand doesn't matter. Even the price may not be significant, since you may simply be paying for a name and a distribution chain with some of the "performance" brands. Even some of the "cheap" replacement lines of ignition parts offer high quality parts, albeit at a higher price. Conversely, some of the "top name" companies also offer crap parts that I wouldn't put in a Honda - O.K., maybe I would in a Honda...

Get a cap and rotor made from GRP (glass fiber reinforced plastic) instead of Lexan or bakelite. Make sure they have solid brass terminals instead of aluminum. The cap and rotor conductor paths should have deep arc chutes and flashover barriers.

Again, the brand doesn't matter. Standard Plus (Blue Streak), Wells/Conrad (Gold Line ONLY!), and even (gulp!) Autolite have some higher quality parts that are better than some "performance" brands I've used/seen. I was very disappointed in an Accel cap that I got that had NO arc chutes and barriers, but it certainly was pretty on the outside, and the packaging looked really fast and powerful! LMFAO - They wanted $30 for that POS!

Clean everything thoroughly, and apply silicone dielectric grease to the plug and coil wire boots before installing them (at both ends of the wire). This will seal not only against moisture but also the ozone normally generated around high voltage systems.
Old 06-12-2002, 04:40 PM
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Re: What brand/type cap and rotor do you guys prefer?

Originally posted by Xenodrgn
It's time I replaced mine, they track very easily and I really don't like them, they just don't go well together. Some crappy dollar store brand they are.

What works well for you?

FYI, I have a normal ignition, may switch to a better coil in the future, but I think thats it for a while.
I just bought and put on an Accel cap and rotor. Cap was fine but I never could get the rotor to fit all the way down. It was hitting the bottom of the cap. Didn't like the idea of driveing it down with a hammer. Which is what the store told me to do when I complained. SO I just cleaned up the old one and put it back on.

In the future I am going to buy the cheap stuff and change it every 6 months... I'll never buy that brand again... The old one was from autozone (had copper contacts) and fit fine.
Old 06-12-2002, 05:17 PM
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Car: 88 Firebird WS6
Engine: 350 TPI
Transmission: T56
Axle/Gears: 3.42
I bought an MSD cap and rotor, and a common "Standard Ignition" replacement cap and rotor. They are exactly the same (Except MSD is red and standard is blue)

Same molding marks, same brass terminals.... for about 1/2 the price.

I like the brass because you can 'shine it up' with emery and get a couple uses out of it.
Old 06-13-2002, 10:35 PM
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Car: Formula
Engine: 6.0 LSX
Transmission: 4L60E
Axle/Gears: 9 Bolt 3:27
I went with the Conrad HD red cap and rotor and I love it. perfect shape with the MSD system.
Old 06-14-2002, 12:57 AM
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Car: 1988 Trans Am GTA
Engine: 5.7L TPI (L98)
Transmission: 700RJunk
I tended to think they're all the same until i tried to use an accel cap/rotor. What a waste of $25. The top of the rotor kept rubbing on the cap, chewing it up until there was a fine plastic dust all over everything under there and my car ran like crap. I've heard several similar complaints. Its funny because EVERY single accel "performance" ignition product i've used on my car ended up giving me problems. I bought their "performance" ignition module and ended up putting a stocker back in there because it was causing a hard-start problem. I bought their "performance" hei coil which ended up giving my tach fits above 3000 rpm. Put and MSD blaster coil in there and voila my tach works again.
Old 06-14-2002, 10:31 AM
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Car: 1986 Firebird
Engine: 2.8 V6
Transmission: 700R4
RedFirebird, I don't like Accel either, but nobody around here has a brass cap for my 2.8 V6. (And MSD doesn't make one, DAMMIT!) The Accel one always carbon-tracks the hell out of the terminals. So I figured I'd go with a GM one.

Want to see what happened? http://www.geocities.com/tomp_3rdgen/burnt-cap.html

Bluestreak is Standard Plus? No kidding! I'll have to ask around for a Standard cap now!
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