proudflesh

I wondered if anyone has a copy of the wiring instructions/diagram of the installation for a system that Jacobs Electronics made many years ago.
I lost my instructions and have forgotten how I installed the system wiring and would like to have the instructions in case the system fails and I need to remove and restore the original wiring to the coil/distributor as it was before I put the system in.
I have had no luck getting in touch with Jacobs at all.
Thanks all,
Proudflesh.

pewter99

well this really ain't the place...this forum is the Help forum for forum issues.

What year Vette do you have and we can move this to the correct forum.

proudflesh

Sorry, brand new here.
1974 stock ignition with Mallory unilite conversion in the distributor and standard coil.

thanks

pewter99

No worries... I see this has been moved to the appropriate forum now so hopefully someone can help you out

chvet73

PM me your address and I will send you the instructions. I had a Jacobs years ago that died. But I still have the directions. By the way thaey went out of business several years ago. Most likely due to their poor customer service. When mine died they would not help and it was barely out of warranty. Hadn't been run but a few thousand miles.
Lucky for me Summit Racing where I bought stepped up and gave me money back. So I've been running an MSD since.

proudflesh

Thanks! snascott@keyway.net

jb78L-82

Jacobs Electronics in the USA was bought out a few years back by Mr Gasket (Accel, Mallory etc) but Jacobs, I believe, an Australian Company, still appears to be around in Australia and other parts of the world-maybe, only US rights were bought out here. I never owned any of their electronic components but I bought a set of their straight boot wire set in 1984 and up to 2 years ago still had them on my 78 L-82-they are by far the best wires I have ever had on any of my cars! I am currently using one of the Jacobs wires on one plug since the "modern" wires that I have used since about 2 years ago, keep burning boots near my headers.

Here is another interesting tid bit:

With my totally rebuilt L-82 currently with about 200 miles with AFR heads, I am burning the wire boots because the AFR heads have the spark plug hole tapped slightly different than the stock heads closer to the exhaust valve than the GM 882 heads. After much research, I discovered that Summit racing used to sell Jacobs Electronics CERAMIC boots-the boots only-which is exactly what I need. Well…….Accel now sells Accel 9000 wire sets-the whole set only-for $125 with CERAMIC boots. ACCEL is part of the parent company that bought Jacobs Electronics in the USA. Interestingly, its MUCH more profitable to sell a complete wire set with ceramic boots than just the ceramic boots like Jacobs was doing. Makes you wonder why Mr Gasket/Accel bought Jacobs…..if the competition has a better product, the easiest way to eliminate them is to BUY them!

proudflesh

It isn't that interesting to me, but thanks for nothing, I should say.
I can't get support from any of these sources.

As for your plug burning heads, what you really need to do is get a set of headers custom built to address that problem.
Remember, you are running the car on the street so do't go nutty over equal tube length, you'll never feel the difference by compromising a few inches here and there.
Working for and managing the design department for one of the best known header companys for close to 30 years (and then building custom headers for guys just like you) makes me an expert on this subject.
This is the best way to solve your problem and maintain the performance you want.
It won't be cheap but, assuming you are as insane as I when it comes to your Vette, this should not be a deal breaker.
Make sure you have a competent custom builder (I quit doing that long ago) so you can select the best primary/collector sizes and have the headers designed with your compromises in mind.
Stainless preferred but thermal barrier coating is also an option.
Spend the money, manage the work being done for you and you will be fine.

cv67

or test fit and dimple never notice if affects anything
finally fell victim for the equal length header deal never again. TOTAL waste of money and makes changing #7 plug and the oil filter an ever loving nightmare

jb78L-82

Have you contacted Jacobs Australia through their tech dept-email link is on their web page?

http://www.jacobselectronics.com.au

I received the Accel 9000 ceramic boot wire set yesterday (aka Jacobs) and they will solve 3 of the 4 problem cylinders. Cylinder #3 should work after some grinding of the weld on the tube to the collector on the McJacks shorty headers. If that does not work, I have an Accel shorty spark plug that will definitely solve the issue.



I gave up on LTH headers for street vehicles long ago. My last car with LTH's was my 73 Nova SS which I owned from 78-1990. I have researched this for a long time now and its pretty well documented (not hear say from folks that anecdotally state that shorty's and block hugger headers are no better than OEM ram horn exhaust manifolds) that LTH's only have an advantage in HP over shorty's which is small above 5,500 RPM. Below 4,500 RPM shorty's will actually make MORE hp than LTH, its about even from 4,500-5,500 RPM, and a slight advantage for LTH's above 5,500 RPM on a moderate performance street engine. The hassles are just not worth it (to me) for a street engine with LTH's. I also have a set of BBK shorty's on a 94 Mustang GT and they definitely made a difference over the Stock OEM Ford Tubular exhaust manifolds. I would probably consider LTH's only on a 500+ HP engine, for me.

proudflesh

Jacobs in Australia doesn't reply, I must be invisible!

That is one of the worst header designs I have seen (and I have seen a lot).
The key part of my reply was "manage the work being done".
Good design is good compromise - and design is compromise.
There are many ways to deal with header design challenges, too many to list here.
Often the customer is the main problem: he wants it all and refuses to understand and face what is most important for his needs, his thinking has been tainted by bad advice or something he read (but he doesn't understand it is bad advice).
I once designed for a guy with a Duster 340. He had Hooker headers (that is where I used to work). He hated them, burnt plug wires, ground clearance problems, steering linkage hit them, etc.
He was in love with the fact that they were equal length (and they were equal length).
I educated the guy as to why this was the case, production headers have made different compromises (don't need to go into that).
I informed the guy that his problem could be solved but at a cost, he may lose horsepower on the dyno, he will lose the equal length but on the street it would not be enough to notice, a better compromise than what he had.
He had been to other header builders but ended up at Dawson's Racing headers, where D., I and another 30 year lifer from Hooker toiled after escaping Hooker H.
Dawson (now deceased) was also a Hooker alumni (less time and experience than I, but an enthusiast none the less.
I built his headers, no more burnt plug wires, better ground clearance, tube length now differing by as much as 7 inches.
He claimed they worked better, could be (but I doubt this) because he re tuned and re-jetted as we told him he should.
Many things are involved with any project, so many things can go wrong: people are too cheap to spend what they should for an expert to even bother with them, not all header builders are talented enough to succeed, and this list goes on and on.
Short story, unless you have the experience (or know someone who does) and boss the work, step by step, you are going to need a big bottle of aspirin.
Statements about rpm and horsepower, regarding header types, can only be blanket statements at best, there are many variables involved when it comes to these numbers and not just with the header design itself.
I would go out of my mind if I had a header like that on any car I owned.

David Moroney

I saw this post from years ago and wondered if anybody had the instructions for how this "Stop Action" system works?

I have one too on a '58 and after rewiring can't get the car to start.

Can anyone please help?

Thanks
David

mikem350

I would find the control box and look at all the wires and where they go. Then compare to the schematic of your car and make necessary connections to bridge circuits that were modified. Then take out the rest.

The ignition and starting is pretty simple to figure out on these old cars. NEW cars are a different story!!!!

One other comment on the spark plug wires issues mentioned above. If a straight boot is hitting a pipe, use a 90 degree (or 135) wire to clear. Seems a bit easier than swapping headers

David Moroney

Thanks Mike

I have a non-standard installation, with a tach-drive distributor and the kill-switch unit controlling all the connections to the ballast resistor, coil and distributor.

I was a bit confused, as I thought the Stop Action sealed unit was supplying the electronic signal to the distributor, but when we opened it up we saw the Pertronix Ignitor unit and just dumped the Stop Action unit altogether. Started immediately.

Thanks for helping.