Anybody recommend an ignition setup for a 454. Mild engine. It has an HEI but it looks like its pretty worn. I know I can rebuild it but I don't know how old or what condition it was before it was installed by the previous owner. BTW the engine does not seem to fire on all cylinders at idle and low RPM, but ant a higher RPM it seems better. I changed all the plugs, the wires seem good although I need to ohm them out. What resistance should I see on a good wire. Since this was an aftermarket engine installed by the previous owner what is the correct gap on the plugs. The ones I pulled were .040. Thanks in advance

Drew

I think you will get abetter chance for a good response in the Performance or Engine threads. The easy answer would be to put in a new MSD system and all new plug wires but there are a lot cheaper possiblilites.

you can't go wrong with an msd ready to run

How much $$$ do you want to spend?
How much time do you want to spend?

Most setups will work just fine with a basic HEI setup. The trick is getting the setup correct for your vehicle. Tognotti's sells a pretty cheap knock-off HEI with a high output coil FWIW. I have one and it suffers from an overly aggressive mechanical advance curve and a pretty crummy adjustable vacuum can though.

And that is the rub with generic over the counter distributors, the setup may or may not be close to what you need. It may be worth your time and $$$ to go the custom built distributor from somebody like Davis Unified Ignition. You tell them you engine setup and they build a new distributor with whatever you need in mechanical and vacuum advance. I have not used these guys, but after messing around with trying to get one right I can see some merit in the idea. You can find them on the web at www.performancedistributors.com.