HEI distributers

[northboundcj5]

OK guys,It's been quite a while since I've posted....I've been in the process of replacing my AMC 304 V8..If you look at my past postings it would get you up to speed on the whole sad affair..but in a nutshell my CJ put me on the side of the road in placerville and thru the goodwill of a brother jeeper I was able to get out of a dangerous situation on a busy freeway and then I called a tow truck to get me home 2 hours away.
OK that all brings me to the point I would like to share and hopefully receive some input from you guys...
My CJ was running perfect ..I mean smooth. I had recently done some mods ..includeing replacing my dist. With a HEI
Type from 4WD parts..anyway I had ascertained that my timeing chain had broken but it turns out that my can gear was ground off..which of course would give the same results ...loss of timing.. OK well now I am replacing the motor and I am afraid that the dist. (Which by the way is a beautiful looking piece of equipment) will do the same thing to my new 2,000 dollar engine..the guy at 4wd parts told me they were having trouble with them but would not elaborate on the exact problem..so I hope you guys get the general drift of what I'm asking...thanks in advance...

 

[thiswontbetooexpensive]

I am thinking of the same route with my freshly rebuilt AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l for distribution. With a new cam, I'm kind of scared of tearing it up as well!

I will be waiting on some responses on this one, and this isn't the first time I've heard this with the HEI.

 

[northboundcj5]

Thanks for the quick reply...the guy at 4wd parts recommended.. not the HEI but the DUI another type of high energy dist. Well that one costs about $299.00 as opposed to the $130.00 well near $200.00 in cludeing wires and plugs.
It is not supriseing that it was kept a bit vague as there could be some culpability involved in admitting that the HEI is defective...not that I'm sure yet ,but the motor still turns over fine and seems ok. I'm hesitant about forking out another $300.00 bucks for something I just bought.
I'm hoping to hear some more input too. Well thanks....

 

[poppatello]

I thought the HEI distributors were good. It was the gears people were having trouble with. I think you get them separate and there is a cheap kind that chews up the cams. I could be completely wrong here. Or is it the cheap aftermarket HEI's?

I am going with the best one out there when I am ready for the point on my AMC 304 . One of the things I don't plan to save money on...

 

[Cheepjeep85]

Hei distributors work great but it is a well known problem the hardened gears on the cheapo dizzies eat cam gears. Do a search on the forums here and you'll find more info and arguments in the subject than you'll care to read.

Sent from my SCH-I605 using Tapatalk 2

 

[gert]

I have a cheap HEI as well, and after installing learned about the problem of the gears chewing up the cam gears, I will be replacing mine with a set from Bulltear in the near future as I am concerned that I may waste a good engine with some cheap chinese

 

[rr41mag]

I have the DUI no problems yet

 

[northboundcj5]

Great input guys! So it looks like the solution to the problem is a matched set of gears from Bull tear as GERT suggested, (thanks for that input) they cost $129.00 and that would seem to be the fix I'm looking for....
The only other point I have is why are these HEI dist. being marketed by seemingly reputable jeep parts outlets when they are causing such severe damage to the very community they serve? Buyer Beware ...
I have contacted 4wd parts and though it more than likely will mean nothing, have made them aware of this problem..
Thanks again for all the help and if you have one of these HEI dist. It might be a good idea to fix or replace before it really costs ya.....

 

[northboundcj5]

Just a quick note...I have been happy with the service that I've experienced with 4WD parts. I've found them to be professional and help full..I do not intend to cast any disparity on them as a parts outlet.
I am questioning this one idem and that alone.
In retrospect I should have gone with the .more expensive
DUI.