Hi was wondering what all it entails to use your ballast resistor housing with the jumper wire inside. An any tips trick or dos an don't stop. So it will look stock .
Thanks
It takes sbout 10 mins to do.
I used this one off of Amazon. Pretty easy to diassemble and swap in a piece of wire.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07F27W56L/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_image?ie=UTF8
Remobve mounting bracket.
Use small flat head screwdriver to fold down the retaining tabs on the front.
Slide out the spade connectors and resistor wire.
Swap in wire (I soldered mine in) and reassemble.
Quote from: Skdmark on October 04, 2022, 05:20:01 PM
It takes sbout 10 mins to do.
I used this one off of Amazon. Pretty easy to diassemble and swap in a piece of wire.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07F27W56L/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_image?ie=UTF8
Remobve mounting bracket.
Use small flat head screwdriver to fold down the retaining tabs on the front.
Slide out the spade connectors and resistor wire.
Swap in wire (I soldered mine in) and reassemble.
Your link shows a different ballast. Can this one be used and tuck wire behind the ceramic piece ?
If you're bypassing it all together, just run a new solid wire in your harness from A to B so there's no interruptions in the power like a fake ballast resistor.
Then simply tape two fake wires in your harness to plug into a normal ballast resistor :alan2cents:
If your able to bypass without issues, then why is there even one there ? :thinking:
Quote from: Racer57 on October 05, 2022, 05:47:29 AM
If your able to bypass without issues, then why is there even one there ? :thinking:
"QUOTE" ....
"so it will look stock" :dunno:
QuoteIf your able to bypass without issues, then why is there even one there ?
The stock coil isn't designed to run off of 12v. That's why the ballast is there. If you use a coil designed for 12v then you can remove the ballast from the system.
Quote from: Racer57 on October 05, 2022, 05:47:29 AM
If your able to bypass without issues, then why is there even one there ? :thinking:
I think he has a different ign system but wants it to appear stock.
Quote from: Burdar on October 05, 2022, 06:19:32 AM
QuoteIf your able to bypass without issues, then why is there even one there ?
The stock coil isn't designed to run off of 12v. That's why the ballast is there. If you use a coil designed for 12v then you can remove the ballast from the system.
How do you determine is coil is 12v ?
What is the reason to by-pass the ballast resistor? It would be one less thing to go bad, but is there a performance or other benefit?
I know the FBO system comes with the Pertronix coil and included a ballast by-pass. I've been looking at that as an upgrade but not pulled the trigger yet.
TO understand why/if you can/should bypass the ballast, you have to first understand it's purpose.
As said, STOCK coils are not intended to run off 12v. Why? Because 12V wasn't available during cranking. but...once running there's no starter draw, AND the alternator is putting out charge.
So, to have a coil that is capable of producing enough spark during engine start, yet not burn out under running conditions, they use a ballast resistor that gets bypassed during engine start. That's why the condition of "engine cranks, starts, then dies as soon as I let off the starter" is a leading indicator of a bad ballast resistor.
Today's coils are better. They can produce spark powerful enough under cranking conditions, AND perform with 12-14 volts feeding them without burning up.
There is no performance gain by skipping the ballast.
Quote from: Filthy Filbert on October 05, 2022, 11:47:41 AM
TO understand why/if you can/should bypass the ballast, you have to first understand it's purpose.
As said, STOCK coils are not intended to run off 12v. Why? Because 12V wasn't available during cranking. but...once running there's no starter draw, AND the alternator is putting out charge.
So, to have a coil that is capable of producing enough spark during engine start, yet not burn out under running conditions, they use a ballast resistor that gets bypassed during engine start. That's why the condition of "engine cranks, starts, then dies as soon as I let off the starter" is a leading indicator of a bad ballast resistor.
Today's coils are better. They can produce spark powerful enough under cranking conditions, AND perform with 12-14 volts feeding them without burning up.
There is no performance gain by skipping the ballast.
So if I'm using an MSD Blaster 2 coil then I don't need a ballast resistor?
Quote from: blown motor on October 05, 2022, 01:36:36 PM
So if I'm using an MSD Blaster 2 coil then I don't need a ballast resistor?
I have a blaster 2 and no resistor. But I use it with an MSD6A. I'm not sure if you can just bypass your BR with stock ign. Never really thought about it, but you probably can.
according to the manufacturer the blaster 2 is made for use with an MSD ignition box but is universal so can be used with other ignition systems. It does require a 0.8 ohm ballast resistor when used with a factory style points ignition. That limits the current that has to run through the point contacts (and so reduces arcing and resultant erosion across the contacts). Its primary resistance (0.7 ohms) is apparently too low otherwise. Although they don't specify a ballast resistor when using any electronic ignition system I'd want confirmation about running a factory electronic ignition (like a Chrysler 1970s box) without that resistor; the switching transistor can only carry so much current in continuous operation.
When I worked at an auto parts store late '70s to mid '80s there were two 'universal' coil types, one with a built-in internal resistor (on top of the base primary resistance) and the kind (like Chrysler used) that required an external resistor to limit the current through the coil primary and the ignition controller (electronic or points).
I used an MSD Blaster coil with a mopar "orange box" electronic ignition without a ballast resistor and had no problems.
Does anyone know if the coil that you get from fbo can be placed horizontal ? An if it will fit in the stock bracket. Oh an what size wire need to be use inside the Ballast resistor .
An I just wanted to say thanks to everyone who replied to my thread it has all be helpful
Quote from: Filthy Filbert on October 06, 2022, 03:13:58 AM
I used an MSD Blaster coil with a mopar "orange box" electronic ignition without a ballast resistor and had no problems.
I also have a Mopar Orange box, and an MSD Blaster coil. So, i ask this question, you say you "used" meaning past tense no ballast resister with that combination. Might i ask how many miles you put on the car in question without a coil failure??
Quote from: Filthy Filbert on October 06, 2022, 03:13:58 AM
I used an MSD Blaster coil with a mopar "orange box" electronic ignition without a ballast resistor and had no problems.
I once bought a pair of Hemi Leaf springs and was transporting them in the back seat while in heavy traffic. I stopped short and they fell of the seat and hit the console which wasn't bolted down. This knocked the shifter into reverse. Car skidded and killed the engine. No problems. LOL. Though I don't recommend doing that. :D
I've been using this one for over 10 years now with no BR ,with no issues... You could remove the label to make it look more " stock" if you wanted?
https://www.jegs.com/i/MSD-Ignition/121/8222/10002/-1
Quote from: Red70340Cuda on October 06, 2022, 10:42:47 AM
Does anyone know if the coil that you get from fbo can be placed horizontal ? An if it will fit in the stock bracket. Oh an what size wire need to be use inside the Ballast resistor .
An I just wanted to say thanks to everyone who replied to my thread it has all be helpful
IIRC I used 12awg wire.
As long as the wire is the same or bigger than the factory wires going to the ballast resistor you're good.
I'm running a Sniper EFI setup in my car and am also using the Holley Sniper canister coil.
Quote from: chargerdon on October 06, 2022, 01:41:45 PM
I also have a Mopar Orange box, and an MSD Blaster coil. So, i ask this question, you say you "used" meaning past tense no ballast resister with that combination. Might i ask how many miles you put on the car in question without a coil failure??
I'd guess it was somewhere around 5000 miles. It was on a big block that I put in a 98 Dakota. I eventually parted that truck out, as it had a lot of very expensive custom one-off parts that I was not excited to having to replace if anything broke or wore out.
Thanks, i actually called MSD's customer support line and asked that very question, which was how long would a Blaster II coil last, if i didnt cut back the voltage with a ballast resistor.
Their answer was classic... "probably not as long as if i did use the ballast resistor". So, then i said ok, how long should a Blaster II last, and was told their are warranted for 90 days.
I know that lately the descriptions says that ballast resistor is required with points/condensor use, but says nothing when used in Electronic Ignitions. So, my guess is that a resistor can be safely bypassed.
How do you determine whether you have a 12v coil that can do without the ballast ? I have the chrome box.
Quote from: dodj on October 10, 2022, 08:10:40 PM
Quote from: Racer57 on October 10, 2022, 06:43:44 PM
Quote from: Dudek on October 10, 2022, 11:03:49 AM
Its possible that the Chrysler electronic ignition module power transistor can safely carry and switch more power/amps than a point's contacts can and since there's no physical wear component to worry about, its 'good enough' to run without ballast. It would be interesting to compare the 0.7 ohm primary resistance of the MSD coil to that of the OEM or the many universal replacement coils that don't provide internal ballast resistance.
@Racer57 (https://forum.e-bodies.org/mlist/racer57_972) presumably that would be in the specs for the coil. It certainly used to be in the description for the universal coils many years ago. The Standard Blue Streak coil I used to use (UC12X) on the Challenger I can't find the formal spec for but Summit once said 1.3 - 1.5 ohms, and it is supposed to be used with an external resistor. The MSD ballast resistor is 0.8 ohms so the total resistance on a point system using their coil and resistance would be 1.5 ohms. The numbers I see online for the factory resistor are 0.7 to 1.5 so the total resistance with the UC12X would be 2 to 3 ohms. Ballast resistance changes as it heats up also.
So I guess you can't guess by the coil's primary resistance value either. You need to check and go with the coil specs and instructions based on your ignition system.
Duodec let me put it this way..... If I replace the ballast with a wire and the system doesn't like it, what will happen ?
Coil failure.
And if running a points ignition, possible points failure.