I have a 94 vette that is in need of a new opti. Any advice where I can find the best price for a dynaspark. Also is the Accel or MSD out? If so any comments or prices for them? Thanks

 

it is a very specific product, going to be hard to find a great deal unless someone bought it and looking to unload it.............good luck with that.

That is what I've seen thus far

 

any thoughts on MSD or Accel?

 

haven't used either ........sorry

 

You can buy direct from DynaSpark:

http://www.dynaspark.net/

I paid $600 two years ago for a Gen-1 DynaSpark, and as far as I'm aware the price hasn't changed. I don't know of any distributors who carry the Dyna, but I'm sure they can inform you about all of this.

I was optimistic about the new MSD unit when it was announced, but within the past week or so two Forum members have reported what sound like serious quality control issues (one reported a rotor digging into the housing, one reported something amiss with a vacuum port or some such), and this is troubling. Several others have reported favorably about it. The unit is new to the market, thus no long-term field performance data exists. Time will tell the story about this product, and I'm sure feedback will continue to be posted on this forum from new users of this unit.

I know nothing about an Accel Opti.

I installed a DynaSpark on my '94 two years and 18k miles ago. I was very impressed when I gave the unit a thorough inspection after removing it from the package, and I'm not easily impressed by such things. I've done my share of mechanical design and custom assembly work in my career, and I've developed a highly critical eye for such things. The Dyna appeared to be, in every respect, extremely well engineered, manufactured and assembled. The machining was beautiful, as was the red anodizing.

The thing appeared to be very well sealed against the environment, and during a phone conversation with the president of DynoTech Engineering (who designed the DynaSpark, but has since sold the product line off to another firm), he actually encouraged me to hose the unit down whenever I felt like washing my engine. That struck me as being a bold assertion of confidence in his product. I doubt there's another distributor manufacturer out there who'd suggest such a thing. I won't do it, but I'm confident it would suffer no harm if I did.

The Dyna installed easily, and it is a true bolt-on solution. It has performed flawlessly since I installed it, and I am very pleased with it. Opti woes and fears have always been a nagging issue for the LT1/LT4 owner, but I no longer even think about the matter. I'm confident that the Dyna would shrug off a major coolant bath if a hose were to puke the green stuff all over it, so I just don't worry about it anymore.

In my humble opinion, the Dyna is the solution of choice for those with a failed Gen-1 Opti. As much trouble as it is to dig down to the Opti on these engines, it simply makes no sense to me to bolt in anything but the best available unit, and the Dyna is well worth the $600 I paid for it. I highly recommend it.

Be well,

SJW

 

I have sold 4 of the new MSD billte opti sparks and so far not one complaint. I spoke with one of my suppliers that has sold at least 24 of them and he has not had any issues with them as far as returns go.

 

This is encouraging news, Tom. The Dyna is a fine product, but competition is always good for consumers. I hope the MSD proves to be as good as the Dyna.

Be well,

SJW

 

Jegs is now $499.00


Or search "MSD" from this link.


http://www.gyrhead.com/Catalog/search.asp

 

I installed a MSD cap and roter on my 92 Gen-1 opti. It is now a VENTED Cap and never ran better.

 

Just bought a MSD Billet Distributor from Jegs for my 92 LT1 for $453 plus $11 shipping and handling and got it in just a couple of days. Haven't installed it yet though. http://www.jegs.com/webapp/wcs/store...tegoryId=10679

 

WRW the gasket you get with it is a pain! I called JEGS and they told me to scotch tape it down and it wouldnt effect the seal. I chose to streach it out (it stretches pretty far) and lay it in place and quickly
put the cap on and screw it down. Just a heads up.

 

I bought mine used a while ago for a good price. You dont see them very often for sale used so I was all over it. I also had to have it rebuilt once also. It wasnt cheap for a complete rebuild but overall it came back looking great. It's been around a while and has been put through the test so I think Ill stick with it until it blows. The way I look at it is you really cant go wrong with it.

 

Thanks for the tip. I believe the instructions say to stretch the o- ring but I can see where that might not be as easy as it sounds. I don't think I'll use the scotch tape though. I may have to get creative. I'm going to install it this weekend.

 

quote: I was optimistic about the new MSD unit when it was announced, but within the past week or so two Forum members have reported what sound like serious quality control issues (one reported a rotor digging into the housing, one reported something amiss with a vacuum port or some such), and this is troubling.

------------------------------------------------------------------



In my experiences, MSD makes products that can go straight into the garbage can.

Lets go back 3 years ago. I had 3. Repeat 3 MSD Digital 6 Plus's fail on me in a row. Yes, they were installed correctly (i dont know how you could install them incorrectly). In one instance, I had to get the car flat-bedded home bc I didnt know what happened (The MSD Digital 6 plus light was still on). In a second instance, I had the bypass jumpers I was able to reinstall. The third time it happened was on a congested road at ngiht. Im lucky I wasnt killed.

Their 8.5 mm spark plug wires are also garbage. I observed spark-arcing at the coil-to-opti wire boot. I had to wrap that section in electrical tape - very cheesy.

I'm not the only person with problems with MSD quality. The only common denominator I could find with the digital 6 plus unit failures were that they seemed to occur on 1993 model year cars. Dont know why.

For these reasons Id stay away from MSD

 

From this link search "MSD" and scroll down.


http://www.gyrhead.com/Catalog/search.asp

 

After a lot of problems with original optisparks decided to invest on a Dynaspark.
Wow! What a difference, I instaled it without problems, not much modifications were done.
It works great, and have washed the engine a couple of times with a peace of mind.
It was about $600 US dlls, but maybe the best investment done, could not be happier and the car runs great!
Best of luck on your election.

 

we couldnt be happier that you couldnt be happier

on another note:
I will not comment on MSD's quality, to be honest I havent personally inspected their "pro-billet" distributor yet. I have had a lot of experience with MSD in the powersports industry. It is important to explore the whole spectrum of their product line and feedback from customers in order to get a real sense of how they deal with quality control. You can be a jack of all trades and a master of none, or vice-versa (jack of few trades master at one). I will say that their red potting is aesthetically pleasing, its a shame the distributor is hidden when installed.

 

Do you plan on getting one and inspecting it? If you find some of it's parts stronger would you use those parts to make yours stronger?

 

Dude, you should get into politics. Good answer.

My dyna has been great so far.

 

I've sold 10 of them with no problems whatsoever, and everybody thus far is very happy.

With regard to MSD's customer service and quality...
MSD's customer service is second to none, and I speak from personal experience, NOT "some guy who's brother's roommate once...", or "I read it on blahblahblah.com from a guy...", etc. Let me give you an example: I bought a used MSD crank-trigger distributor from a speed shop (along with some other pieces in a package deal) that had twisted the shaft inside, making it unusable. I called MSD to inquire about getting a new shaft for it, along with buying a new cap and rotor. MSD told me to send it in to them, and for a flat $35 repair fee, they would replace any needed parts. I told them I bought it used, but it made no difference. TWO DAYS after I sent it in, I received a BRAND NEW crank-trigger distributor that I've used now for for 6 years in my Chevelle. The USED 7AL-2 that I bought with it is still working just fine (and it was 5 years old when I bought it). This to me speaks volumes...and is one of the reasons MSD is my "first line" ignition in my shop.

I have nothing to gain by promoting MSD, as there are several choices for ignition products that I can sell. However, I sell what I believe in, and I believe in MSD.