Thread: Ballast Resistor? or Not?

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Originally Posted by 1wild&crazyguy

I agree.

It's usually better run one when it's not needed than it is to not run one when it is needed.

with a ballast, when the rpm's go up... so does the voltage anyhow.

if you set it down under 12 volts its never going to 12 or past that . if that was the case your points would burn up ??????????????? IF hei coil is made for NO ballast then it should not need one

Originally Posted by pat mccarthy

if you set it down under 12 volts its never going to 12 or past that . if that was the case your points would burn up ??????????????? IF hei coil is made for NO ballast then it should not need one

Very true, but are any of the coils in the round can made specifically for hei and thus 12v contantly. I don't know..... Just a question. Hmmmmmmmmm time for some research.

Originally Posted by dlotraf33

Very true, but are any of the coils in the round can made specifically for hei and thus 12v contantly. I don't know..... Just a question. Hmmmmmmmmm time for some research.

yes MSD makes one

Ok, still not real sure as to answer. Here is what I found.
MSD Blaster II and III coils instructions say points and factory dist run ballast resistor. In another place they say if dist does not require ballast resistor don't run one. ???????????

Pertronics, Flamethrower 40,000 volt coil is internally resisted so can be used on many ignition systems. Directions and specs say nothing as to ballast resistor, 45,000 volt coil is available in 1.5 and 3.0 ohm models.??????? Oh 40,000 volt coil is .6 ohm

Accel says any coil with less than 1.0 ohm resistance needs ballast resistor.

phone support may lead to better info. It appears most of the round can coils are made to replace point type coils and electronic ignition systems. None specify HEI, with the exception of the conflicting mention by msd.

Electrical I know, not necessarly automotive, but theory and how componets work. I know somthing like a coil is designed to opperate a certain voltage, or range. If you design a coil to produce a certain output voltage with a ballast it will produce that voltage, increasing the input voltage will increase output voltage. But if one were to build to min specs, to reduce production cost. They might not handle very much voltage in excess of design spec. You would think in the case of an ignition coil with the numerous applications today the mfg would give at least a max input voltage, or better a min and max range that would not damage the coil and produce the desired output voltage. I did discover that the accel coil I purchased was a .8 ohm coil designed for points application. You would think that would be on the box, or on even a small instruction sheet in product. Neither were present, and of course the idiots a most auto parts stores anymore need an application for a set of cork sbc valve cover gaskets. Before I purchase another coil, and I think I'm looking at MSD, I wan't to hear it from them, that no ballast required, and that coil will operate without failure on constant 12 volt operation. But on the other end a coil designed to output 40,000 volts with a ballast could be run with a ballast on hei type, just run 12 volts to dist, and dropped voltage to coil only. You would think the aftermart market manufactures, knowing we are modifying our vehicles would maybe figure we were smart enough to understand their specs, and not just say it'll work buy it.

Originally Posted by pat mccarthy

yes MSD makes one

Yeah it looks like that is the way to go. They had more specs and info on their products that the othes I looked at.

Oh BTW, really like that "IRISH DIPLOMACY" my great, great, grandfather was an O'Brian and mother always told me I got the Irish temper.

Originally Posted by dlotraf33

Yeah it looks like that is the way to go. They had more specs and info on their products that the othes I looked at.

Oh BTW, really like that "IRISH DIPLOMACY" my great, great, grandfather was an O'Brian and mother always told me I got the Irish temper.

i would not know any thing about the IRISH temper thing i have a bit of german No temper i just do not forget and that would be the IRISH i have alot of that i have used many of the MSD blaster coils with the 6als the pionts just will not take 12 volts full time that what the ballast ressistor from welding the points . the chevy cars used resistor wire for the old points when going to a hei or MSD this wire get removed so it gets 12 volts done a hand full this way

Originally Posted by pat mccarthy

if you set it down under 12 volts its never going to 12 or past that . if that was the case your points would burn up ??????????????? IF hei coil is made for NO ballast then it should not need one

wow ha ha uhhh....
No, it's not gonna kill the coil running less than required voltage.
btw my ballast lowers/limits the voltage and DOES increase with rpm to a point.
What can burn a coil is too much current.
like I said 1st off...run what the coil manufacture recommends.

btw don't take general statement and spread it to cover every coil under the sun...We know HEI's take a straight 12 volt lead.

Good luck, i'm out of this from now on.

Originally Posted by 1wild&crazyguy

wow ha ha uhhh....
No, it's not gonna kill the coil running less than required voltage.
btw my ballast lowers/limits the voltage and DOES increase with rpm to a point.
What can burn a coil is too much current.
like I said 1st off...run what the coil manufacture recommends.

btw don't take general statement and spread it to cover every coil under the sun...We know HEI's take a straight 12 volt lead.

Good luck, i'm out of this from now on.

ok yep your the one that did say use a basllast on HEI or did i miss some thing ???? his old coil was for a points dist ?????not hei

Well, I am by far no expert on any of this, but I have run MSD Dist
with their box and a Blaster 2 coil since 1997 on both small and big
block chev and I have never had a problem. I thru the resister away
long ago..Did not know Msd made in Mexico, guess I should read more,
but then if it works for me, I'm happy.

Originally Posted by rdobbs

Well, I am by far no expert on any of this, but I have run MSD Dist
with their box and a Blaster 2 coil since 1997 on both small and big
block chev and I have never had a problem. I thru the resister away
long ago..Did not know Msd made in Mexico, guess I should read more,
but then if it works for me, I'm happy.

not sure on the box but the blaster coil is made in mexico

Originally Posted by pat mccarthy

ok yep your the one that did say use a basllast on HEI or did i miss some thing ???? his old coil was for a points dist ?????not hei

Yeah as it turns out the old coil was for a points type dist. Which I did not know at the time or until yesterday. Lack of information on package and no instructions. I might have said ballast on hei. Not for the hei, but rather for the coil that may have been designed for it. I think the coil mfg's may not have taken these type dist into account, as they are fairly new. Msd and others have electronic ignition systems with ext coils, but they have control box and their coils are designed for those products. HEI traditionally have the coil in the cap. Even the conversion to run ext coil with stock type HEI were more for using larger coils, that usually have cooling fins, not old style round can coils. And as I am finding out none of the mfg's that I have looked at specifically say that any of their round can coils are for HEI type system. My question was ballast to keep coil from going bad, not for HEI dist. And Mfg's recomendations are surly the way to go, but they probably didn't figure someone would want to use an old sytle coil on one of these dist. There are better coils, but they look like 2010 coils.

And I suppose I am the dumb a##, I never thought of points, I have been running HEI's since about 1977, its only now that I have used one with the external coil, (Size of dist), and wanting to look like an older setup. The thought never occured to me until coil was going out and I started thinking about it.

I believe I have it figured out. And thanks for all the input and recomendatios. There is no point beating a dead horse.

well i know i had a setup like yours? on my 50 many years ago stock GM HEI with a ex coil that was a jacobs kit and i used the box mallory hei coil. msd has nothing that will work in a round can coil?

Originally Posted by pat mccarthy

not sure on the box but the blaster coil is made in mexico

Yeah Pat, those must have been the "high quality" ones. Today looked at MSD Blaster 2 coil, damn it, Made in CHINA. I guess they had to cut costs. I talked to MSD today, they say don't need no stinking ballast. But guess what that guy doesn't even know how they are wired, he says ballast only reduces voltage to points or trigger device, but if you look at a stock wiring diagram or the MSD instruction sheet, the ballast is inbetween the 12v wire comming from ign switch and the + term on coil, so the voltage is dropped to the coil. The coil is not operating on 12 volts. So I am not sure he knows what he is talking about.

So no point's........... screw the ballast..........if the coil burns out send it back to f.........ing CHINA. Now some engineer at MSD knows the true answer, but you don't talk to them, you talk to some smuck who answers your question off a list, if your question ain't on the list you get no answer. And my accel, CHINA, coil is 1.5 ohm, so according to accel's specs it needs no ballast resistor. Do you know any coil's made in USA? I should get off my soap box, but I get so irratated, these companies were founded by hot rodders, they knew the products and they were made for performance, now it's all about margin and outsourcing.............................

well you may need to go in the way back machine to 1979? i was sure that last msd coil was from mexco? if there all made in china then the stickers are made in the usa ?????

Originally Posted by pat mccarthy

well you may need to go in the way back machine to 1979? i was sure that last msd coil was from mexco? if there all made in china then the stickers are made in the usa ?????

It probably was Pat, they may have just recently gone to china, also possible they have more than one source. I just hate that label now. But funny you should say that about the sticker, I have installed stuff that said, (in small print) box made in USA or printed in USA, contents made in china. Can you say N.O.S. I quit buying rebuilt starters, they have turned into junk, so I go to junk yard and get one, of course pretty soon those will all be junk rebuilts in junk yard. Catch 22 I guess. Not picking on MSD or anyone else I have bought certain parts or items that were good in the past but now don't hold up or don't work at all, and some stuff doesn't have a country of orign, may say assembled in mexico, parts could come from china or bulgaria for all I know. I replaced a watervalve that didn't work properly from day 1 for a customer, we laughed because we thought we might have gotten a higher quality replacement part (made in Mexico)